Garzo v Liverpool/Campbelltown Christian School Limited & Anor [2011] NSWSC 292

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Garzo v Liverpool/Campbelltown Christian School Limited & Anor [2011] NSWSC 292 Decision date: 15 April 2011 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Garling J Decision: (1) Judgment for the first and second defendants on the plaintiff's claim. (2) Plaintiff to pay the defendants' costs of the proceedings. (3) Judgment for each cross-defendant on each of the cross-claims. (4) Liberty to apply in respect of order (2) within seven days, by notification to my associate. Catchwords: NEGLIGENCE - Duty of care - Accident occurred in a school in which there were internal roads and pedestrian crossings - Maintenance contractor engaged by the school to paint pedestrian crossings - Plaintiff slipped and fell on a painted strip of a pedestrian crossing

NEGLIGENCE - Breach of duty - Proper pleading of a claim under s 5B of the Civil Liability Act - Identification of a risk of harm - Foreseeability - Whether defendant had actual or constructive knowledge of the risk of harm - Whether risk of harm was not insignificant - The precautions which the plaintiff says a reasonable person in the defendants' position would have taken in the circumstances - Whether part of the crossing had been more recently repainted - Whether the slip resistance of the crossing was below recommended standards - Whether the slip resistance of the crossing was insufficiently uniform - Whether a reasonable person in the position of the school or the maintenance contractor would have sourced a different paint for use on the crossing

NEGLIGENCE - Causation - The test under s 5D of the Civil Liability Act 2002 - Many potential causes of a slip and fall - Whether the plaintiff has established that the lack of slip resistance of the crossing caused her injury