Vetter v Lake Macquarie City Council

This appeal concerned a worker, Ms Natalie Vetter, who was injured in a motor vehicle accident while travelling home from her employment with Lake Macquarie City Council. The dispute centred on whether her injuries were compensable under the *Workers Compensation Act 1987* (NSW), specifically whether the journey home, which included a private visit to her grandmother for dinner, constituted a "journey" as defined by the Act, or if it involved a disqualifying deviation or interruption. The matter came before the High Court of Australia following an appeal from a judgment of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The High Court was required to determine several legal issues. Firstly, it needed to consider whether the worker's stop for dinner with her grandmother constituted a deviation or interruption to her journey home from work, thereby affecting her entitlement to compensation. Secondly, the Court had to examine the powers of the Court of Appeal when hearing an appeal from the Compensation Court of New South Wales on a point of law only, particularly in relation to the findings of fact made by the primary judge. Finally, the Court considered the application of section 10(1A) of the *Workers Compensation Act 1987* (NSW) concerning the worker's fault contributing to her injuries.

The High Court allowed the appeal, setting aside certain orders of the Court of Appeal. The Court reasoned that the Court of Appeal had erred in law in its consideration of the "fault" provisions under section 10(1A) of the *Workers Compensation Act 1987* (NSW). While acknowledging that the worker's journey involved a deviation for a private purpose, the High Court found that the Court of Appeal had applied an incorrect legal test regarding the employer's burden of proof for establishing fault. The matter was remitted to the Compensation Court for a retrial limited to the question of fault under section 10(1A), with the Court of Appeal's dismissal of other aspects of the appeal being upheld.