Gurnett v Macquarie Stevedoring Co Pty Ltd [1955] HCA 63

High Court of Australia Dixon C.J. McTiernan, Williams, Webb and Taylor JJ. Gurnett v Macquarie Stevedoring Co Pty Ltd [1955] HCA 63

ORDER Appeal allowed with costs. Order of the Full Court of the Supreme Court discharged. In lieu thereof order that the appeal to that court be allowed with costs, the verdict for the defendant be set aside and there be a new trial of the action and that the costs of the former trial abide the result.

Cur. adv. vult.

The following written judgments were delivered:—

Nov. 28 Dixon C.J., McTiernan, Williams and Webb JJ.

This is an appeal from an order of the Full Court of the Supreme Court of New South Wales dismissing an appeal from a verdict for the defendant which was found by direction at the end of the plaintiff's case. It is an action for personal injuries by a stevedore's labourer against a stevedoring company. The injuries were sustained during the discharge of the cargo in Sydney of the ship Duntroon. The plaintiff was at work upon a gantry at the ship's side. The cargo included cases of apples which were lifted by ship's gear from the hold to the gantry. The cases were placed upon a tray secured to the fall of the ship's derrick by means of a rope from each of the four corners of the tray terminating in a hook. When the tray was loaded the four ropes were hooked to a ring attached to the fall. But when the tray was returned empty from the gantry only two of the hooks were affixed to the ring at the end of the fall so that the tray was suspended vertically with the remaining hooks hanging down. The plaintiff was at work on the floor of the gantry unhooking the tray and removing cases of apples from it. He wore gauntlet gloves. As the tray was being returned empty one of the hanging hooks was caught in a glove. According to his evidence he had given the word for the tray to be hoisted away and as it went one of the tray "legs" (i.e., hooked ropes) caught him in the glove on the right hand and dragged him to the edge of the gantry. "It went", he says, "to such a point that I had to think twice about whether I would land on the wharf or make a dive for the ship. I went for the ship's side and I landed on my outstretched hands". By landing on his hands he suffered the injuries complained of. He sustained Colles' fractures in the region of the wrist joints of both forearms. The plaintiff was not asked the direct question as to why he jumped or what passed through his mind when he did jump, but he was cross-examined as to the circumstances and he gave the following answers:—