Simpson v NRC Drainage Pty Ltd - [2025] NSWPIC 391

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Simpson v NRC Drainage Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 391
APPLICANT:	Luke Simpson
RESPONDENT:	NRC Drainage Pty Ltd
MEMBER:	Cameron Burge
DATE OF DECISION:	10 August 2025
CATCHWORDS:	WORKERS COMPENSATION - Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for weekly benefits and medical expenses; applicant injured his neck in the course of his employment with the respondent; liability accepted; respondent agreed to voluntarily reinstate weekly payments of compensation; applicant also claimed the costs of proposed C5/6-C6/7 surgery; liability for surgery was declined on the basis it was not reasonably necessary as a result of the injury; respondent carries the evidentiary onus of proving the accepted injury has resolved; Commonwealth v Muratore, and University of New South Wales v Brooks applied; absent an explanation as to why it can be said the agreed aggravation has resolved there is insufficient evidence for so finding; having regard to the indicia set out in Diab v NRMA Limited the proposed surgery is reasonably necessary as a result of the accepted injury; Held – the surgery is reasonably necessary as a result of the accepted injury; respondent is to pay the costs of and incidental to the surgery.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	The Personal Injury Commission determines: 1. within seven days of the hearing held on 5 August 2025, the applicant’s solicitors are to lodge an Application to Lodge Additional Documents, attaching the report of Dr Finch dated 4 August 2025; 2. the applicant suffered an injury to his cervical spine in the course of his employment with the respondent, with a deemed date of injury of 20 April 2023; 3. the respondent agrees to voluntarily reinstate weekly payments pursuant to s 37 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 from 6 November 2024, subject to periodic indexation; 4. the C5/6 total disc replacement and C6/7 anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, as proposed by Dr Yang, is reasonably necessary as a result of the applicant’s injury, and 5. the respondent is to pay the costs of and incidental to the proposed surgery. A brief statement is attached setting out the Commission’s reasons for the determination.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

BACKGROUND

Luke Simpson (the applicant) suffered accepted injuries to his right upper extremity and cervical spine, the latter in the nature of an aggravation to pre-existing disc pathology, with a deemed date of injury of 24 April 2023.
The respondent, NRC Drainage Pty Ltd accepted the existence of the cervical spine injury, and at a preliminary conference in the Personal Injury Commission (Commission) on 27 June 2025, agreed to reinstate weekly payments of compensation to the applicant pursuant to s 37 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (the 1987 Act) from 6 November 2024.
The applicant seeks payment by the respondent of the costs of and incidental to proposed cervical spine surgery, the need for which is said to have arisen from his injury. The respondent opposes that claim, alleging both any need for the proposed surgery does not arise from the applicant’s injury, the…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Simpson v NRC Drainage Pty Ltd

Details

AGLC: Simpson v NRC Drainage Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 391
Case: [2025] NSWPIC 391
Decision Date: 10 August 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Simpson, the applicant, sought weekly compensation benefits and the costs of proposed medical surgery from NRC Drainage, the respondent, under the Workers Compensation Act 1987. Simpson had injured his neck in the course of his employment with NRC Drainage, which accepted liability for the injury. NRC Drainage had also agreed to reinstate weekly payments of compensation. However, it declined to pay for the proposed C5/6-C6/7 surgery on the basis it was not reasonably necessary as a result of the injury.

The central issue was whether the proposed surgery was reasonably necessary as a result of the injury. The court considered the onus was on NRC Drainage to prove that the injury had resolved. The court examined the cases of Commonwealth v Muratore and University of New South Wales v Brooks to determine the standard of proof required. The court also considered the indicia set out in Diab v NRMA Limited to determine whether the surgery was reasonably necessary. The court found that there was insufficient evidence for NRC Drainage to prove the injury had resolved, and that the proposed surgery was reasonably necessary as a result of the injury.

The court held that the proposed surgery was reasonably necessary as a result of the accepted injury and ordered NRC Drainage to pay the costs of and incidental to the surgery. The court found that NRC Drainage had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that the injury had resolved, and that the proposed surgery was not reasonably necessary. The court considered the indicia set out in Diab v NRMA Limited and found that the proposed surgery met the standard of being reasonably necessary. The court ordered NRC Drainage to pay the costs of and incidental to the surgery, including any reasonable costs incurred by Simpson in pursuing the claim.

Orders