Rivera v Health Care Complaints Commission [2006] NSWCA 216

New South Wales Court of Appeal

CITATION: Rivera v Health Care Complaints Commission [2006] NSWCA 216 This decision has been amended. Please see the end of the judgment for a list of the amendments.

HEARING DATE(S): 31 January 2006

JUDGMENT DATE: 2 August 2006

JUDGMENT OF: Mason P at 1; Santow JA at 2; McColl JA at 3

DECISION: Appeal dismissed with costs.

CATCHWORDS: MEDICINE - medical practitioners - whether Medical Tribunal erred in law in finding patient's complaints proved to requisite standard of proof - whether conduct proved properly characterised as professional misconduct - EVIDENCE - effect on patient's general credibility of rejection of her evidence in respect of one complaint - use of similar fact evidence to assist conclusion second complaint established - APPEAL - error of law - challenge to Tribunal's reasoning process.(D)

LEGISLATION CITED: Medical Practice Act 1992 Supreme Court Act 1970

Azzopardi v Tasman UEB Industries Ltd (1985) 4 NSWLR 139 Briginshaw v Briginshaw [1938] HCA 34; (1938) 60 CLR 336 Citicorp Life Insurance Ltd v Smith [2005] FCAFC 102 Daskalopoulos v HCC [2002] NSWCA 200 Health Care Complaints Commission v Litchfield (1997) 41 NSWLR 630 House v The King (1936) 55 CLR 499 CASES CITED: Jones v Dunkel [1959] HAC 8; 101 CLR 298 Lindsay v Health Care Complaints Commission [2005] NSWCA 356 Minister Administering the Crown Lands Act v Deerubbin LALC (1998) 43 NSWLR 249 Purnell v Medical Board of Queensland [1999] 1 Qd R 362 R v District Court of the Metropolitan District Holden at Sydney; Ex parte White (1966) 116 CLR 644 Sabag v Health Care Complaints Commission [2001] NSWCA 411 Soulemezis v Dudley (Holdings) Pty Limited (1987) 10 NSWLR 247 Zaidi v Health Care Complaints Commission (1998) 44 NSWLR 82