Guff v The Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2007] NSWDC 290

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Guff v The Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2007] NSWDC 290

HEARING DATE(S): 15 October 2007 - 25 October 2007 EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 24 October 2007

JURISDICTION: Civil (Residual Jurisdiction)

JUDGMENT OF: Neilson DCJ at 1

DECISION: Decision of the Commissioner of Police set aside; Death of the late David James Guff was caused by his having been hurt on duty; Defendant to pay plaintiffs' costs

CATCHWORDS: Police Sergeant attached to Police Rescue and Bomb Disposal Squad commits suicide whilst off duty - Whether psychiatric condition of deceased was caused by his having been "hurt on duty" - Whether psychiatric condition resulted from injury arising out of or in the course of the deceased's police service - Consideration of various stressors alleged by parties to be the cause of the psychiatric condition - Whether deceased's "volition was overthrown" at the time of suicide - Held: if deceased's psychiatric condition deprived him of the ability to choose between death and life his volition was overthrown and death was not a wilfully self inflicted injury - Workers Compensation Act 1987 section 9A, section 11A, section 14(3) - Kooragang Cement Pty Ltd v Bates (1994) 35 NSWLR 452 - Soutar v Commissioner of Police (2006) 3 DCLR 351 - Smith v Commissioner of Police (No 2) (2000) 20 NSWCCR 27 - Holdlen Pty Ltd v Walsh (2000) 19 NSWCCR 629 - Simeon Wines t/as Buronga Hill Winery v Bobos [2004] NSWCA 342 - Mercer v ANZ Banking Group Ltd (2000) 20 NSWCCR 70 - Bottle v Wieland Consumables Pty Ltd (1999) 19 NSWCCR 135 - Kushwaha v Queanbeyan City Council (2002) 23 NSWCCR 339

Workers Compensation Act 1987 LEGISLATION CITED: Police Act 1990 Police Regulation (Superannuation) Act 1906