Town of Mosman Park v Tait

The Town of Mosman Park brought a case against Tait, who was injured while using the town's recreation grounds. The case was heard in the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The primary issue was whether the Town of Mosman Park, as the local authority in control of the recreation grounds, owed a duty of care to Tait and if so, whether that duty had been breached. The court also had to determine whether the risk of injury was foreseeable, the magnitude of that risk, the likelihood of the risk materialising, and whether the town's inspection regime for the recreation grounds was reasonable.

The court found that the town did owe a duty of care to Tait, as a user of the recreation grounds, to ensure the grounds were reasonably safe. The court noted that the town had control over the grounds and was responsible for maintaining them. The town's duty of care was to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of users, and this involved assessing the risk of injury and taking steps to mitigate that risk where necessary. The court found that the risk of injury was foreseeable and that the town had breached its duty of care by failing to take reasonable steps to mitigate the risk. The town's inspection regime was also found to be inadequate, as it did not adequately identify and mitigate the risks present on the recreation grounds.

The court concluded that the Town of Mosman Park was liable for Tait's injuries and ordered the town to pay damages to Tait. The amount of damages was not specified in the decision. The court also noted that the town's inspection regime needed to be improved to prevent similar incidents in the future. The decision reinforces the importance of local authorities taking their duty of care seriously and ensuring that adequate measures are in place to protect users of public spaces.