Whitehaven Coal Mining Ltd v DAVIES

WHITEHAVEN COAL MINING LTD
v
DAVIES
[2021] HCASL 38
S183/2020

The applicant seeks special leave to appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales (McCallum JA, Macfarlan JA and Simpson AJA agreeing) allowing the respondent's appeal against a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales (Wright J) in which the respondent had claimed damages for breach of duty of care owed to him as the applicant's employee.
The applicant has not identified a question of law to warrant the grant of special leave to appeal and otherwise advances no arguable ground of appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal. The applicant requires an extension of time, but, in the circumstances, it would be futile to grant the extension which is sought.
Pursuant to r 41.08.1 of the High Court Rules 2004 (Cth), we direct the Registrar to draw up, sign and seal an order dismissing the application with costs.

M.M. Gordon J.J. Edelman

4 March 2021

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Whitehaven Coal Mining Ltd, the applicant, sought special leave to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, which had allowed the respondent's appeal against a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The respondent had initially claimed damages for breach of duty of care owed to him as an employee of the applicant. The primary legal issue for the court was whether special leave to appeal should be granted to the applicant, and if so, whether there were any arguable grounds for such an appeal.

The court examined the grounds for appeal presented by the applicant and concluded that there were no arguable grounds warranting the grant of special leave to appeal. The applicant also requested an extension of time to file the application, but the court determined that such an extension would be futile in the circumstances. The court further noted that the applicant had not identified a question of law that would warrant the grant of special leave to appeal.

The High Court, pursuant to rule 41.08.1 of the High Court Rules 2004 (Cth), directed the Registrar to draw up, sign, and seal an order dismissing the application with costs. The court found that the application for special leave to appeal did not meet the necessary criteria, and therefore, the application was dismissed. The court's decision was rendered on 4 March 2021.

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