Re Lay and Australian Postal Commission

This matter concerned a preliminary issue raised in a claim for compensation for household services by Mr McDonald against the Australian Postal Commission. The dispute centred on the application of transitional provisions within the *Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988* (SRC Act) to a compensable injury sustained prior to the commencement of that Act. The claim itself was made on 21 January 2013 and related entirely to a period after 1 December 1988.

The legal issue before Deputy K Bean P was whether the transitional provisions of the SRC Act restricted Mr McDonald's entitlement to compensation for household services to only those types of compensation that would have been payable under the previous legislation, the *1971 Act*. Specifically, the court had to determine if the transitional provisions, particularly section 124 of the SRC Act, acted as an impediment to a claim for gardening services made after 1 December 1988, even if the underlying injury occurred before that date.

Deputy K Bean P reasoned that as Mr McDonald's claim was made well after the commencement of the SRC Act and related entirely to a period after 1 December 1988, the transitional provisions did not prevent his claim. The Deputy President held that the applicant's entitlements under section 29 of the SRC Act were to be determined by direct reference to the provisions of the SRC Act itself, and that section 124 did not create an impediment to the success of a claim for gardening services relating to the post-commencement period. Accordingly, the decision on the preliminary issue was that Mr McDonald was entitled to have his claim for gardening services relating to a period after 1 December 1988 determined under section 29 of the SRC Act.