Wright v TNT Management Services Pty Limited

This matter concerned an application for special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia. The applicant, Mr Wright, was an employee who had commenced proceedings against his employer, TNT Management Services Pty Limited trading as Comet. Mr Wright sought to recover damages for personal injuries sustained during his employment, alleging a breach of contract by his employer.

The central legal issue before the court was whether sections 52 and 53B of the *Trade Practices Act 1974* (Cth) extended to a situation where an employee sued for damages for breach of an employment contract, specifically concerning the employer's implied obligations to provide a safe system of work and competent staff. Mr Wright contended that the employer's contractual obligations, including the provision of a safe system of work and competent employees, constituted representations of fact that were breached, thereby giving rise to a cause of action under the *Trade Practices Act*.

The High Court considered the judgments of the court below. Mr Justice McHugh had found that the implied term of a safe system of work in the contract of employment was sufficient to establish a cause of action under section 52 of the *Trade Practices Act*. However, Mr Justice Mahoney and Mr Justice Clarke took a different view, suggesting that something more than an implied term was required. They indicated that an explicit representation by the employer, such as a supervisor expressly stating that a safe system of work would be provided, might be necessary to found a claim under section 52. Mr Justice Mahoney's reasoning suggested that a warranty arising by imputation, as opposed to an express statement, might not be sufficient for the purposes of the Act.