The Port Waratah Stevedoring Co Pty Ltd v Nicos Joannou

The Port Waratah Stevedoring Co Pty Ltd (the appellant) appealed to the New South Wales Court of Appeal against a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the appellant's liability for injuries sustained by Mr Nicos Joannou (the respondent), a stevedore, who suffered a fractured ankle when he slipped on a patch of grease on the deck of a vessel. The respondent had sued the appellant for damages for negligence.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the appellant owed a duty of care to the respondent in relation to the condition of the vessel's deck, and if so, whether that duty had been breached. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the appellant, as the stevedoring company responsible for loading and unloading the vessel, had taken reasonable steps to ensure the safety of the stevedores working on board, including inspecting and cleaning the deck to remove hazards such as grease.

The Court of Appeal found that the appellant did owe a duty of care to the respondent. The court reasoned that the appellant, by undertaking the stevedoring operations, had assumed responsibility for the safe conduct of those operations on the vessel. This responsibility extended to taking reasonable steps to identify and mitigate foreseeable risks to its employees, including the risk of slipping on deck. The court held that the appellant had failed to discharge this duty, as there was evidence that the grease had been present for a significant period and that the appellant had not implemented adequate procedures for inspecting or cleaning the deck. The court applied the principles of negligence, focusing on the foreseeability of the harm and the reasonableness of the steps taken by the appellant to prevent it.

The appeal was dismissed, and the appellant was ordered to pay the respondent's costs.