Daynes v I-MED Central Queensland Pty Ltd [2024] NSWSC 1064

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Daynes v I-MED Central Queensland Pty Ltd [2024] NSWSC 1064 Hearing dates: 8, 9, 10, 11 July 2024 Date of orders: 22 August 2024 Decision date: 22 August 2024 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Cavanagh J Decision: (1) Judgment for the plaintiff in the sum of $367,952.56. (2) Defendant is to pay the plaintiff's costs. (3) Should either party seek a variation of those cost orders I grant liberty to apply on three days' notice. Catchwords: EMPLOYMENT LAW – contract – summary dismissal – whether the plaintiff engaged in misconduct of sufficient seriousness to justify summary dismissal – allegations of sexual harassment and bullying – whether allegation of sexual harassment proved – whether the plaintiff's conduct amounted to bullying – relevance of the defendant's workplace policies CONTRACT – contract of employment – contractual power to terminate without notice where employee engaged in "serious misconduct" – whether employer obliged to act reasonably in forming the view that employee had engaged in such misconduct DAMAGES – contract of employment – wrongful dismissal – whether absent the wrongful termination the plaintiff would have continued working for the defendant for the period alleged – whether the defendant would have exercised its power to terminate on notice at the end of the fixed term period Legislation Cited: Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW), s 100 Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 140 Cases Cited: Bartlett v Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (2016) 92 NSWLR 639 Blyth Chemicals Ltd v Bushnell (1933) 49 CLR 66 Briginshaw v Briginshaw (1938) 60 CLR 336 Clouston & Co Ltd v Corry [1906] AC 122 Darling Island Stevedoring & Lighterage Co Ltd v Jacobsen (1945) 70 CLR 635 Eldridge v Wagga Wagga City Council [2021] NSWSC 312 Guthrie v News Ltd (2010) 27 VR 196 Harden v Willis Australia Group Services Pty Ltd [2021] NSWSC 939 Hadley v Baxendale (1854) 9 Ex 341 Johnson v Perez (1988) 166 CLR 351 New South Wales Cancer Council v Sarfaty (1992) 28 NSWLR 68 Martinez as trustee for Martinez HWL Practice Trust as representative of the partners trading as HWL Ebsworth Lawyers v Griffiths as trustee for the Griffiths HWL Practice Trust [2019] NSWCA 310 North v Television Corporation (1976) 11 ALR 599 Pastrycooks Employees, Biscuit Makers Employees and Flour and Sugar Goods Workers Union (NSW) v Gartrell White (No 3) (1990) 35 IR 70 Roderick v Washington H Soul Pattinson & Company Ltd (No 2) [2020] NSWSC 1224 Service Station Association Ltd v Berg Bennett & Associates Pty Ltd (1993) 117 ALR 393 Silverbook Research Pty Ltd v Lindley [2010] NSWCA 357 United Group Rail Services Ltd v Rail Corporation of New South Wales (2009) 74 NSWLR 618 Willis Australia Group Services Pty Ltd v Mitchell-Innes [2015] NSWCA 381 Texts Cited: Riley, O'Grady and Sappideen, Macken's Law of Employment, (Thomson Reuters, 9th ed, 2022) Supreme Court Practice Note 16 (16 June 2010) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Anthony Kevin Daynes (Plaintiff) I-MED Central Queensland Pty Ltd (Defendant) Representation: Counsel: A Moses SC with J Bennett (Plaintiff) L Saunders (Defendant)