BELL V. DEMOREST

cams

W.-M. Housrox, Govt. Print., Melb.

cai > if I E HI COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Cege ot REASONS FOR: JUDGMENT

Judgment delivered at... — on BUEN IASG

Py

BELL ve

DEMOREST

QRDER

Appeal dismissed with costs.

BELL

ve

DEMOREST

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

DELIVERED BY DIXON C.J.

CORAM: DIXON C.J. MENZIES J.

WINDEVER J.

a

This is an appeal from a judgment in an action for personal injuries heard in the Supreme Court of Western Australia before Jackson J. He gave judgment for the plaintiff and awarded her damages in the sum of £5326, of which £4000 was general damages.

Personal injuries were sustained by the plaintiff on 16th December 1956, at which date she was nearly twenty-nine years of age. She had pursued a musical career and she taught msic at a school; she had in fact attained some distinction in the practice and teaching of music. At about ten minutes past one in the afternoon of that day she wished to cross Walcott Street. As she crossed from north-east to south-west she saw a Holden taxi being driven from south-east to north-west along the street; it was on her left coming towards her. She had reached the centre of the street and was crossing the street at right angles. She stopped; the taxi stopped. The taxi was driven by a man named Johnson and he waved her on. He had drawn up his taxi not at any pedestrian crossing but simply because she was crossing in front of him, and he just drew it up along the line he was travelling so that when he had stopped it his taxi was still towards the middle of the street. He was not driving over to the left-hand side of the road fully, and there was ample room between the near side of his taxi and the kerb for another car to pass.

The plaintiff crossed in front of him, induced to do so by his waving her on; but coming up behind the taxi was the defendant's car. The defendant was driving it at a speed which may be estimated from what the defendant said in evidence