Bosnyak v Wroblewski [1974] HCA 45

High Court of Australia Barwick C.J. Menzies, Gibbs, Stephen and Mason JJ. Bosnyak v Wroblewski [1974] HCA 45

ORDER Appeal allowed. Order of the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Western Australia, whereby it answered in the negative two questions in a case stated by the Chairman of the Workers' Compensation Board of Western Australia, set aside and in lieu thereof order that the questions in the case stated be answered in the affirmative. Order that the respondents pay the appellants' costs of the case before the Full Court of the Supreme Court and the appellants' costs of this appeal.

Cur. adv. vult.

The following written judgments were delivered:—

Nov. 4 Barwick C.J.

The respondent in this appeal brought an application under the Workers' Compensation Act, 1912-1970 W.A. (the Act) against the appellants, his deceased father's employer, for an award of compensation. The respondent's claim is that he is entitled to an award against the employer for a sum of $11,906 as well as for a weekly sum of $3.50 payable until he is of the age of sixteen years.

The background to the respondent's claim is that his father died as a result of a compensable injury, leaving as his dependants his widow and two children of whom the respondent was one. The widow brought proceedings under the Fatal Accidents Act, 1959 W.A.. She brought that action only on behalf of herself and her daughter and recovered a verdict for an amount of $18,980 for herself and $2,750 for her daughter. The action was not brought on behalf of the respondent. In London Brick Co. Ltd. v. Robinson [4] , the House of Lords decided, upon a form of workers' compensation legislation which, as will appear from what I have to say, was in my opinion radically different to that under which the respondent's claim has to be considered, that an applicant for compensation in the situation of the respondent was entitled to an award of both the lump sum payable upon the death of his parent and the weekly sum during his continuing dependency. It is around the question of whether the provisions of the Act are so significantly different from the earlier form of the workers' compensation legislation that the dispute in these proceedings arises. The majority of the Full Court thought that there has been no significant change in the basic concepts of the workers' compensation legislation of Western Australia by amendments which were effected by the Workers' Compensation Amending Act No. 18 of 1970, to which assent was given on 8th May of that year. It will therefore be important to contrast the pre-amendment and the post-amendment situation in the relevant parts of the workers' compensation legislation.