Jarratt v Commissioner of Police for NSW & Anor [2002] NSWSC 596

Reported Decision : (2002) 56 NSWLR 72

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : Jarratt v Commissioner of Police for NSW & Anor [2002] NSWSC 596 FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 30060/01 HEARING DATE(S) : 24 June 2002 JUDGMENT DATE : 5 July 2002

Jeffrey Thomas JARRATT - Plaintiff PARTIES : COMMISSIONER OF POLICE FOR NSW - 1st Defendant STATE OF NSW - 2nd Defendant JUDGMENT OF : Simpson J

COUNSEL : T.K. Tobin QC with D. Campbell - Plaintiff R.C. Kenzie QC with P. Ginters - Defendants SOLICITORS : Verekers - Plaintiff Crown Solicitor - Defendants CATCHWORDS : Crown employment - held "at the pleasure of the Crown" - right of Crown to dismiss at will, without reason - procedural fairness - removal "at any time" - meaning of "at any time" - irrelevant considerations - damages LEGISLATION CITED : Police Service Act 1990 Interpretation Act 1987 Shenton v Smith [1895] AC 229 Dunn v The Queen [1896] 1QB 116 Fletcher v Nott (1938) 60 CLR 55 Kaye v Attorney-General for Tasmania (1956) 94 CLR 193 Coutts v the Commonwealth of Australia (1985) 157 CLR 91 Kelly v the Commissioner of the Department of Corrective Services [2001] NSWCA 148; 106 IR 181 Gould v Stuart [1896] AC 575 CASES CITED : George v Minister for Education and Youth Affairs, unreported, 31 August 1989 Annetts v McCann (1990) 170 CLR 596 Kioa v West (1985) 159 CLR 550 Suttling v Director General of Education (1985) 3 NSWLR 427 Director General of Education v Suttling (1986) 162 CLR 427 Attorney-General for the United Kingdom v Heinemann Publishers Australia Pty Ltd (1987) 10 NSWLR 86 Barratt v Howard [1999] FCA 1132; 165 ALR 605 Barratt v Howard [2000] FCA 190; 96 FCR 428 Rankin v Marine Power International Pty Ltd [2001] VSC 150, unreported, 21 May 2001 DECISION : Refer paragraphs 44, 47, 48 and 61.