Smythe v Burgman (No 2) [2015] NSWSC 298

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Smythe v Burgman (No 2) [2015] NSWSC 298 Hearing dates: 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 March 2015 Decision date: 25 March 2015 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Adamson J Decision: 1. Judgment for the defendant. 2. Subject to an application for a different order being made within 7 days hereof, order the plaintiff to pay the defendant's costs of the proceedings. Catchwords: TORTS – alleged medical negligence resulting in amputation of leg – whether general practitioner ought to have diagnosed arterial ischaemia notwithstanding atypical presentation – relevance of subsequent detection of abnormal pulses to determination whether defendant checked pulses and found them to be normal at first examination – whether amputation would or could have been avoided if ischaemia diagnosed at first examination – insufficient evidence to assess the value of chance of avoiding amputation if earlier diagnosis made CREDIBILITY OF WITNESSES – evidence of usual practice – inferences from clinical notes – importance of timing of versions given by plaintiff compared with contemporaneous business records Legislation Cited: Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW), ss 5D(1), 5E, 5O, 15B(2)(c), 16 Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), s 69(4) Health Practitioner (NSW) Regulation 2010, Sch 2, cll 1, 2 Cases Cited: Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty Limited v Haleluka [2012] NSWCA 343 Connor v Blacktown District Hospital [1971] 1 NSWLR 713 Fox v Percy [2003] HCA 22; 214 CLR 118 Malec v JC Hutton Pty Limited [1990] HCA 20; 169 CLR 638 Onassis v Vergottis [1968] 2 Lloyds Rep 403 R v GK [2001] NSWCCA 413 Smythe v Burgman [2015] NSWSC 150 Watson v Foxman (1995) 49 NSWLR 315 Texts Cited: Justice D Hodgson, "The Scales of Justice: Probability and Proof in Legal Fact-finding" (1995) 69 ALJR 731 Joe P Chauvapun and Maciej Dryski, "Distal Peripheral Microembolism" 2005 13(1) Vascular 50 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Lynne Smythe (Plaintiff) Dr Zoe Burgman (Defendant) Representation: Counsel: M Williams SC/CK Hickey (Plaintiff) M Windsor SC/J Raftery (Defendant)