Sloss v NSW [1999] NSWSC 995

New South Wales Supreme Court CITATION : Sloss v NSW [1999] NSWSC 995 CURRENT JURISDICTION : Common Law Division FILE NUMBER(S) : 11083/89 HEARING DATE(S) : 20/10/1998; 26/10/1998-29/10/1998 JUDGMENT DATE : 6 October 1999

PARTIES : Frances Irene Sloss (plaintiff) State of New South Wales (defendant) JUDGMENT OF : Hidden J at 1

COUNSEL : P Stone (plaintiff) P R Sternberg (defendant) SOLICITORS : J F Morrisey & Co (plaintiff) Crown Solicitor (defendant) CATCHWORDS : Tort - nervous shock - plaintiff's son murdered in prison CASES CITED : Coates v GIO (1995) 36 NSWLR 1 DECISION : Judgment for the plaintiff

THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COMMON LAW DIVISION

HIDDEN J Wednesday, 6th October 1999

No: 11083/1989 Frances Irene Sloss - v - State of New South Wales Reasons for judgment

1 HIS HONOUR: In these proceedings the plaintiff, Frances Irene Sloss, seeks damages for nervous shock arising from the death of her son, Anthony Cameron, while he was a remand prisoner at the Long Bay prison complex. Mr Cameron had been administered an overdose of heroin by another prisoner, who was later convicted of his murder. It seems that that prisoner should not have been in the wing where Mr Cameron was. The defendant, the State of New South Wales, has not contested its duty of care or the breach of it. The only issue on liability is damage. 2 The plaintiff seeks general damages for what she claims is a psychiatric condition engendered by the circumstances of her son's death. She also claims economic loss on the basis that that condition has had an adverse affect upon her capacity to conduct her business. The defendant contends that she has proved no more than a normal grief reaction and has failed to establish nervous shock, in the sense of a psychological or psychiatric injury: Coates v Government Insurance Office of New South Wales (1995) 36 NSWLR 1, per Gleeson CJ at 4 and Clarke JA at 19. The defendant also contends that, even if she could prove the psychiatric condition alleged, she has not demonstrated any economic loss attributable to it.