COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA v. EVANS [2006] NSWSC 414

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA v. EVANS [2006] NSWSC 414

HEARING DATE(S) : Monday 31 October 2005

JUDGMENT DATE : 12 May 2006

JURISDICTION : Common Law

JUDGMENT OF : Hall J at 1

DECISION : Appeal dismissed. Appellant to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal.

CATCHWORDS : Extension of time - limitation periods - claim for personal injury arising from collision between the Melbourne and the Voyager - appeal from an Associate Judge (formerly Master) to a Judge of the Supreme Court - awareness on behalf of plaintiff amounting to knowledge that a personal injury has been suffered - difference between physical and psychiatric injury - nature and extent of personal injury suffered - reports on locating witnesses, former employees who knew or had worked with the plaintiff - hearsay evidence in interlocutory proceedings - s.75 Evidence Act - credit and reliability of the plaintiff - prejudice in delay - significant prejudice making the chance of a fair trial unlikely - presumptive and actual prejudice.

LEGISLATION CITED : Limitation Act 1969 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005

Blyth v Commonwealth of Australia [2005] NSWSC 721 Commonwealth v. Diston [2003] NSWCA 51 Commonwealth of Australia v. Nelson [2002] QSC 274 Commonwealth of Australia v. Smith [2005] NSWCA 478 Cranbrook School v. Stanley [2002] NSWCA 290 Harris v. Commercial Minerals Limited (1996) 186 CLR 1 CASES CITED : Atikulla v. Sefton (2001) 53 NSWLR 574 Bray v. F.Hoffman-La Roche Limited (2002) 190 ALR 1 Sydney City Council v. Zegarac (1998) 43 NSWLR 195 Brisbane South Regional Health Authority v. Taylor (1996) 186 CLR 541 Holt v. Wynter (2000) 49 NSWLR 128 South Western Sydney Area Health Service v. Gabriel [2001] NSWCA 477 McLean v. Sydney Water Corporation [2001] NSWCA 122