Scurr v Compensation Fund Corporation [2005] NSWDC 18

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Scurr v Compensation Fund Corporation [2005] NSWDC 18

HEARING DATE(S): 18/7/2005 EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 18 July 2005

JURISDICTION: Civil

JUDGMENT OF: Rein SC DCJ

DECISION: At [14]-[15]

CATCHWORDS: Appeal from Victim's Compensation Tribunal - Scope of s.39 - need for error of law - Failure of Tribunal to deal with application for consideration of additional material

LEGISLATION CITED: Victims Support and Rehabilitation Act 1996, ss 38,39

PARTIES: Gordon Theodore Scurr (Applicant) Compensation Fund Corporation (Respondent)

FILE NUMBER(S): 37/04

COUNSEL: Mr Torpey (Applicant) Mr McAteer (Respondent)

JUDGMENT

1 HIS HONOUR: Before me today is a Notice of Motion by the applicant against the Compensation Fund Corporation. Mr Torpey of counsel appears for the applicant and Mr McAteer appears on behalf of the Fund. The application is made pursuant to s 39 of the Victims Support and Rehabilitation Act 1996, the Act.

2 There is no dispute between the parties that an appeal brought under s 39 is of restricted scope and can only be concerned with a question of law. Some specific matters are said to be matters that are not questions of law (see s 39(3) of the Act).

3 The background to the matter I shall state briefly. It is that the applicant had been the subject of intimidation, including threatening calls, but also a shotgun blast fired into his window. As a result of those incidents there followed subsequently acts of violence committed by Mr Scurr himself upon two persons. He was subsequently found guilty of manslaughter in the Supreme Court. The persons whom he killed were, in all likelihood, connected with the incidents that occurred two weeks before and over a period of time. There is no dispute as to those circumstances.