Commissioner of Police v Lawrance [2011] NSWIRComm 109

Industrial Relations Commission New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Commissioner of Police v Lawrance [2011] NSWIRComm 109 Hearing dates: 18 and 19 May 2011 Decision date: 17 August 2011 Jurisdiction: Industrial Relations Commission Before: Boland J, President at [1], Kavanagh J at [195], Staff J at [1] Decision: (1) Leave to appeal is granted. (2) The appeal is dismissed. (3) The stay of the orders of Walton J on 2 December 2010 is dissolved. Catchwords: APPEAL - POLICE - Application by Commissioner of Police for leave to appeal and appeal from decision at first instance to order re-employment of a police officer to a lower grade - Officer removed pursuant to s 181D of the Police Act 1990 on ground of officer's conduct - Officer exposed penis to group of fellow officers and persons as a "party trick" in a restaurant at a Christmas party - Innate seriousness of misconduct - Whether officer genuinely contrite and remorseful - Whether primary judge gave sufficient weight to earlier episodes of misconduct - Consideration of alcohol as a contributing factor to misconduct - Whether primary judge gave sufficient weight to public interest - Whether there was power to order re-employment to a lower grade - Whether it was impracticable to re-employ officer to lower grade - "Immaturity" - Whether primary judge erred in mixing factors relevant to question of harshness and factors relevant to assessing gravity of misconduct - Relevance of character evidence - Leave to appeal granted - Appeal dismissed Legislation Cited: Fair Work Act 1994 (SA) Industrial Relations Act 1996 Industrial and Employee Relations Act 1994 (SA) Police Act 1990 Police Act 1998 (SA) Summary Offences Act 1988 Cases Cited: Abboud v State of New South Wales (Department of School Education) [1999] NSWIRComm 449; (1999) 92 IR 32 Alexander v Commissioner of Police [2009] NSWIRComm 3 Applicant v Respondent [2009] AIRC 950 Babaniaris v Lutony Fashions Pty Ltd [1987] HCA 19; (1987) 163 CLR 1 Burge v NSW BHP Steel Pty Ltd [2001] NSWIRComm 117; (2001) 105 IR 325 Byrne & Frew v Australian Airlines Ltd [1995] HCA 24; (1995) 185 CLR 410 Casari v Sydney South West Area Health Service (No 2) [2008] NSWIRComm 240 Commissioner of Police v Collins [2008] NSWIRComm 162; (2008) 180 IR 191 Commissioner of Police v Dobbie [2006] NSWIRComm 285; (2006) 157 IR 44 Commissioner of Police v Evans [2006] NSWIRComm 170; (2006) 153 IR 144 Commissioner of Police for New South Wales v Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales & Sewell [2009] NSWCA 198; (2009) 185 IR 458 Crowe v Graham, Duncan, Rogers & McKay [1968] HCA 6; (1968) 121 CLR 375 Devries v Australian National Railways Commission [1993] HCA 78; (1993) 177 CLR 472 Director of Public Employment by his agent the Director-General of the Department of Juvenile Justice v Public Service Association (on behalf of Brown) [2008] NSWIRComm 221; (2008) 184 IR 134 Director General, New South Wales Dept of Health v Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales [2010] NSWCA 47; (2010) 193 IR 244 Dismissal of Union Delegates at Homebush Abattoir, Re [1966] AR (NSW) 371 Ferdinands v Commissioner for Public Employment [2006] HCA 5; (2006) 225 CLR 130 Foster and Woolworths Limited [2000] NSWIRComm 208 GlaxoSmithKline Australia Pty Ltd v Makin [2010] FWAFB 5343 Goodwin v Phillips [1908] HCA 55; (1908) 7 CLR 1 Hollingsworth v Commissioner of Police (No 2) (1999) 47 NSWLR 151 Hosemans v Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2004] NSWIRComm 253; (2005) 138 IR 159 Hosemans v NSW Police (No 3) [2005] NSWIRComm 161 Hosemans v Commissioner of Police (No 4) [2005] NSWIRComm 409; (2005) 150 IR 263 House v The King (1936) 55 CLR 499 J Aresca v Qantas Airways Limited [2002] AIRC 41 King v State Bank of New South Wales (No 2) [2002] NSWIRComm 353; (2002) 126 IR 407 Lawrance v Commissioner of Police [2010] NSWIRComm 149; (2010) 199 IR 139 Lawrance v Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2010] NSWIRComm 173 Lawrence v Coal & Allied Mining Services Pty Ltd t/as Mt Thorley Operations/Warkworth [2010] FWAFB 10089 Laws v London Chronicle (Indicator Newspapers) Ltd [1959] 2 All ER 285 Little v Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2002] NSWIRComm 52; (2002) 112 IR 212 Mace v Murray [1955] HCA 2; (1955) 92 CLR 370 McCormack v Federal Commissioner of Taxation [1979] HCA 18; (1979) 143 CLR 284 McCabe v New South Wales Police Service [1996] NSWIRComm 105; (1996) 99 IR 361 Metropolitan Meat Industry Board v Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (NSW Branch) [1973] AR (NSW) 231 Metwally (No 2) v University of Wollongong [1985] HCA 28; (1985) 59 ALJR 481 Micallef v ICI Australia Operations Pty Ltd [2001] NSWCA 274 Moloney v Mercer [1971] 2 NSWLR 207 Morgan v Commissioner of Police [2009] NSWIRComm 184 New South Wales Department of Education and Training v New South Wales Teachers Federation (on behalf of Mossfield) [2006] NSWIRComm 210; (2006) 155 IR 257 Rose v Hvric [1963] HCA 13; (1963) 108 CLR 353 Rowland v Austar Coal Mine Pty Limited [2010] FWA 8011 Samad v Public Service Board (NSW) (1983) 5 IR 464 S Mason v Boyne Smelters Limited [Dec 880/99 B Print R7701] Toll Transport Pty Ltd v Transport Workers' Union of New South Wales [2010] NSWIRComm 58; (2010) 194 IR 144 Ueckert and Australia Water Technologies Pty Ltd [2000] NSWIRComm 123 Warren v Coombes [1979] HCA 9; (1979) 142 CLR 531 Wright v R (No 2) [1968] VR 174 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Commissioner of Police (Appellant) Andrew Lawrance (Respondent) Representation: M J Kimber SC with J V Murphy of counsel (Appellant) P F Lowson of counsel (Respondent) Henry Davis York Lawyers (Appellant) Walter Madden Jenkins Solicitors (Respondent) File Number(s): IRC 1421 of 2010 Decision under appeal Jurisdiction: 9105 Citation: Lawrance v Commissioner of Police [2010] NSWIRComm 149 Lawrance v Commissioner of Police (No 2) [2010] NSWIRComm 173 Date of Decision: 2010-12-02 00:00:00 Before: Walton J, Vice-President File Number(s): IRC 37 of 2010