O'Loughlin v Linfox Australia Pty Ltd [2015] FCA 1000

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

O'Loughlin v Linfox Australia Pty Ltd [2015] FCA 1000 Citation: O'Loughlin v Linfox Australia Pty Ltd [2015] FCA 1000

Appeal from: O'Loughlin and Linfox Australia Pty Ltd [2014] AATA 577

Parties: KYM O'LOUGHLIN v LINFOX AUSTRALIA PTY LTD and COMCARE

File number: VID 540 of 2014

Judge: BROMBERG J

Date of judgment: 10 September 2015

Catchwords: WORKERS' COMPENSATION – appeal from decision of AAT affirming employer's decision to revoke an acceptance of liability for an injury and substitute denial of liability on the basis that the injury was not sustained "in the course of employment" – where AAT had determined that Comcare v PVYW (2013) 250 CLR 246 applied whether or not injury to the employee occurred in an interval in an overall period of work – whether PVYW established different organizing principle to Hatzimanolis v ANI Corporation Limited (1992) 173 CLR 473 so that the Hatzimanolis principle was no longer limited to injuries sustained during an interval in a period of overall work – whether the AAT had found that the employee was injured during such an interval, or to the contrary had found that the employee was not in an interval – PVYW did not establish a different organizing principle – in the absence of a finding that the injury was sustained during an interval in an overall period of work, AAT erred in applying the Hatzimanolis principle (as clarified in PVYW) to conclude that the injury was not sustained "in the course of employment" – appeal allowed

Legislation: Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 (Cth), ss 44(1), 44(5), 44(7)(a) Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth), ss 5A(1)(b), 60, 62, 64(1)