WOOLLEY v PHILLIPS [1996] NSWCA 562

WOOLLEY v PHILLIPS SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COURT OF APPEAL

CLARKE, SHELLER and COLE JJA 26 August 1996, 26 August 1996

[1996] NSWCA 562

ASSAULT — wrongful arrest — false imprisonment by police officer — abandonment of claim for punitive, exemplary or aggravated damages — sum awarded within discretionary range — absence of apology by Commissioner for Police commented upon.

Cole JA This is an appeal by Helena Maria Woolley against the inadequacy of damages awarded to her by Judge HH Bell on 4 October 1995. His Honour found the respondent Gary Thomas Phillips, at the relevant time a police officer, had assaulted, wrongfully arrested and falsely imprisoned Mrs Woolley. There is no appeal from his Honour's findings of fact concerning the incidents which constituted the assault, the wrongful arrest and the false imprisonment. Accordingly, the question of the adequacy of damages awarded is to be addressed upon the basis of his Honour's finding of fact concerning the incident.

His Honour found that the appellant was born on 15 August 1935 and thus was forty-seven years old on 21 April 1983 when the events occurred and sixty-one years old at the date of trial in 1995. The appellant and her daughter lived in a flat in William Street, Sydney. Early on the morning on 21 April 1983, whilst she was ironing clothes, the appellant was disturbed by a loud knocking at the door of her flat. Upon opening the door, she found the respondent and another police officer present. They were looking for a Mr Ellis. The respondent mistakenly thought Mr Ellis resided in the flat. Without warrant, the two police officers entered the flat when the appellant opened the door. Judge Bell found that "This was without any invitation from her and against her will though no actual force was used until after they had entered and she did not expressly refuse to admit them."