SAS Trustee Corporation v Woollard

The SAS Trustee Corporation (the applicant) sought judicial review of an order made by the Full Bench of the Industrial Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the interpretation of provisions within the *Police Regulation (Superannuation) Act 1906* (NSW) and the *Superannuation Administration Act 1996* (NSW), specifically relating to a former police officer's entitlement to a pension due to an injury. The applicant argued that the Industrial Court had acted without jurisdiction in making its determination.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the Industrial Court had the power under s 67(5) of the *Superannuation Administration Act 1996* (NSW) to hear an appeal in the circumstances, and whether the Full Bench had erred in its interpretation of the term "injury" as used in s 10B of the *Police Regulation (Superannuation) Act 1906* (NSW), particularly in relation to when such an injury was "notified". The Court was also required to consider the principles of statutory interpretation, including the purposive approach and the relevance of regulations when interpreting a primary Act.

The Court of Appeal found that the Industrial Court had misconstrued the scope of its appellate jurisdiction under s 67(5) of the *Superannuation Administration Act 1996* (NSW). It held that the conditions precedent for the Industrial Court to exercise its power to hear an appeal had not been met. Furthermore, the Court determined that the Full Bench had erred in its interpretation of "injury" and "notified" under s 10B of the *Police Regulation (Superannuation) Act 1906* (NSW), applying a purposive approach that was not supported by the statutory text and considering regulations in a manner that went beyond their intended scope.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal ordered that the order of the Full Bench of the Industrial Court be quashed and remitted the matter to the Industrial Court to be dealt with according to law. The first respondent was ordered to pay the applicant's costs of the proceedings.