University of Western Australia v Gray

The University of Western Australia (UWA) appealed to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Full Federal Court, which had upheld a finding that UWA had breached its duty of care to Dr. Gray, a researcher. Dr. Gray suffered a severe injury when a laboratory centrifuge, which he was using in the course of his employment with UWA, malfunctioned and exploded. The dispute centred on whether UWA had taken reasonable precautions to prevent such an accident.

The High Court was required to determine whether UWA had breached its duty of care to Dr. Gray by failing to implement adequate safety procedures for the operation and maintenance of the centrifuge. Specifically, the court considered whether UWA ought to have foreseen the risk of such an accident and, if so, whether its response to that risk was reasonable in the circumstances. This involved an assessment of the foreseeability of the danger, the likelihood of the harm occurring, the potential severity of the harm, and the burden of taking alleviating action.

The High Court found that UWA had breached its duty of care. The court reasoned that UWA ought to have foreseen the risk of a centrifuge malfunction and explosion, particularly given the age and condition of the equipment and the absence of a comprehensive maintenance and inspection regime. The court applied the principles of negligence, emphasising that an employer has a duty to take reasonable steps to protect its employees from foreseeable risks of injury. The court concluded that the measures taken by UWA were insufficient to discharge this duty, and that a reasonable employer would have implemented more rigorous safety protocols.

The High Court dismissed UWA's appeal, affirming the decision of the Full Federal Court.