Rawson Homes Pty. Ltd. v Donnelly

Rawson Homes Pty. Ltd. and CSR Ltd. (the defendants) appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a judgment of the District Court in favour of the plaintiff, Mr. Donnelly. The dispute concerned Mr. Donnelly's claim for damages arising from alleged negligence.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the primary judge's factual findings were so glaringly improbable or affected by error as to warrant appellate intervention. Specifically, the court considered whether the findings regarding liability for common law negligence were sustainable.

The Court of Appeal found that the primary judge's findings of fact were indeed glaringly improbable and vitiated by error, particularly in relation to the issue of liability for common law negligence. The court reasoned that the evidence did not support the conclusions reached by the primary judge on this crucial aspect of the case.

Consequently, the appeal against Rawson Homes Pty. Ltd. was allowed, and the judgment in favour of the plaintiff was set aside. The matter was remitted to the District Court for a re-trial solely on the issue of liability for common law negligence. The appeal against CSR Ltd. was dismissed.