Shellharbour Golf Club v Wheeler [1999] NSWSC 224

Reported Decision : 46 NSWLR 253

New South Wales Supreme Court CITATION : Shellharbour Golf Club v Wheeler [1999] NSWSC 224 CURRENT JURISDICTION : Administrative Law FILE NUMBER(S) : 30023/98 HEARING DATE(S) : 11 March 1999 JUDGMENT DATE : 24 March 1999

Shellharbour Golf Club Limited (Appellant) Lynne Isabel Wheeler (1st Respondent) PARTIES : James Gough (Second Respondent) Delmar Veronica Jeffrey (Third Respondent) Equal Opportunity Tribunal (Fourth Respondent) JUDGMENT OF : Studdert J

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION : Equal Opportunity Tribunal LOWER COURT FILE NUMBER(S) : 85/95 LOWER COURT JUDICIAL OFFICER : P. Goode, M. Alt, D. McNeill

I.M. Neil (Appellant) S. Winters (1st Respondent) COUNSEL : Submitting appearance (2nd Respondent) Submitting appearance (3rd Respondent) Submitting appearance (4th Respondent) Russell McClelland Brown (Appellant) Redfern Legal Centre (1st Respondent) SOLICITORS : Leo & Morrison (2nd Respondent) Maguire & McInerney (3rd Respondent) I.V. Knight (4th Respondent) CATCHWORDS : Sex Discrimination; liability of principal for conduct of agent; liability of incorporated golf club for conduct of its president; whether statute imposed onus on principal to prove conduct not authorised by it; whether findings of Equal Opportunity Tribunal involved error of law; Statutory construction; Anti-Discrimination Act, 1977, s 53(1) Anti-Discrimination Act ACTS CITED : Commonwealth Sex-Discrimination Act Interpretation Act Australian Iron & Steel Pty Ltd v Banovic (1989) 168 CLR 165 Canadian Pacific Railway Co. v Lockhart [1942] AC 591 Deatons Pty Limited v Flew (1949) 79 CLR 370 Ex parte Johnson; re MacMillan 47 SR 16 CASES CITED : Haines v Leves (1987) 8 NSWLR 442 Langley v University of New South Wales (1984) EOC 902-018 Samuels Real Estate v Lamb & Anor (1998) EOC 92-923 University of New South Wales v Moorhouse (1974-75) 133 CLR 1 Waters v The Public Transport Commission (1991-92) 173 CLR 349 DECISION : Summons dismissed