Workers Compensation Nominal Insurer v O'Donohue

In Workers Compensation Nominal Insurer v O'Donohue, the Workers Compensation Nominal Insurer appealed against a determination made by an arbitrator in relation to the compensation payable to a worker for partial incapacity. The worker, Mr O'Donohue, had been injured while working for a business that was linked to New South Wales, leading to a dispute over the application of section 9AA of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 and the calculation of the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation.

The court had to decide whether the worker's employment was connected with New South Wales for the purposes of section 9AA, and if so, whether that section applied to the calculation of the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation for partial incapacity. The court also had to determine the appropriate weekly wage rate for the purpose of calculating the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation under section 42 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987, prior to the amendments introduced by the Workers Compensation Legislation Amendment Act 2012.

The court found that the worker's employment was indeed connected with New South Wales, and that section 9AA applied to the calculation of the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation for partial incapacity. However, the court held that the arbitrator had erred in the calculation of the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation, and that the matter should be remitted to another arbitrator for re-determination. The court confirmed the remainder of the arbitrator's determination, and ordered that the appellant pay the first respondent's costs of the appeal.

The court's orders confirmed the majority of the arbitrator's determination, revoked the quantification of the worker's entitlement to weekly compensation, and remitted the matter to another arbitrator for re-determination. The court also ordered that the appellant pay the first respondent's costs of the appeal, and that the costs of the second arbitration be determined in accordance with the outcome of that arbitration.