SampCo Pty Ltd v Wurth

SampCo Pty Ltd (the appellant) appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a District Court judgment awarding damages to the respondent, Wurth, for injuries sustained in a fall. The primary dispute concerned the assessment of damages, specifically the causal relationship between the accident and a knee injury, and the entitlement to damages for gratuitous domestic assistance.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the trial judge erred in finding a causal link between the accident and the respondent's knee injury, given the medical evidence. Further, the Court had to consider whether the trial judge was entitled to disregard medical evidence regarding the necessity of domestic assistance, and whether the provision of such assistance by the respondent's husband met the statutory intensity and duration requirements under section 15B of the *Civil Liability Act 2002* (NSW). The Court also had to assess whether the trial judge erred in finding that the husband was unlikely to continue providing services and if the additional duties placed a strain on the marriage.

The Court of Appeal found that the trial judge erred in accepting the causal link between the accident and the knee injury, noting that the injury was sustained during a gym session six months after the fall and was not supported by sufficient medical evidence. Consequently, the damages awarded on this basis were set aside. Regarding gratuitous domestic assistance, the Court held that the trial judge was entitled to award damages for past and future assistance, even if medical evidence suggested a lesser need, provided the statutory requirements of intensity and duration were met. The assessment of damages for domestic assistance was reassessed.

The appeal was allowed, and the District Court's order was set aside. Judgment was entered for the respondent in the amount of $73,800.