Mercy Centre Lavington Ltd v Kiely & Ors [2017] NSWSC 1234

Mercy Centre Lavington Ltd v Kiely & Ors [2017] NSWSC 1234

The Medical Appeal Panel made errors of law because it exceeded the limits imposed by s 328(2) of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW) by considering matters not raised in the first defendant's appeal grounds and supporting submissions, including the quantum of secondary psychological injury and unchallenged factors considered by the AMS. It also erred by using s 323 of the 1998 Act as the methodology for determining the impairment to be excluded for secondary psychological injury under s 65A of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW), where those provisions serve different purposes and were not intended to work together, and where there was medical...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
14 September 2017
Procedural Posture
Administrative Law Judicial Review of a Medical Appeal Panel Assessment Concerning Workplace Injury and Permanent Impairment / Summons Filed Under S 69 of the Supreme Court Act 1970 (nsw) Challenging the Medical Appeal Panel Decision Dated 15 March 2017
Outcome
The plaintiff's judicial review challenge succeeded; the Medical Appeal Panel decision was set aside and the matter was remitted for determination by a differently constituted Appeal Panel.
Legal Topics
['judicial Review' 'medical Appeal Panel Powers' 'permanent Impairment Assessment' 'primary and Secondary Psychological Injury' 'error of Law' 'legal Unreasonableness']
['administrative Law' 'workers Compensation'] ['judicial Review' 'medical Appeal Panel Powers' 'permanent Impairment Assessment' 'primary and Secondary Psychological Injury' 'error of Law' 'legal Unreasonableness']

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Procedural Posture

Administrative Law Judicial Review of a Medical Appeal Panel Assessment Concerning Workplace Injury and Permanent Impairment / Summons Filed Under S 69 of the Supreme Court Act 1970 (nsw) Challenging the Medical Appeal Panel Decision Dated 15 March 2017

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether the Medical Appeal Panel acted beyond the powers conferred by s 328 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW) by considering matters not raised in the worker's appeal grounds and supporting submissions." 'Whether the Medical Appeal Panel was entitled to revise the quantification of secondary psychological injury and find error in factors not challenged by the first defendant.' 'Whether the Medical Appeal Panel erred in using s 323 of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW) by analogy to determine the proportion of impairment to be excluded under s 65A of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW).' "Whether the Medical Appeal Panel's decision was legally unreasonable."]

Ratio Decidendi

The Medical Appeal Panel made errors of law because it exceeded the limits imposed by s 328(2) of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW) by considering matters not raised in the first defendant's appeal grounds and supporting submissions, including the quantum of secondary psychological injury and unchallenged factors considered by the AMS. It also erred by using s 323 of the 1998 Act as the methodology for determining the impairment to be excluded for secondary psychological injury under s 65A of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW), where those provisions serve different purposes and were not intended to work together, and where there was medical...

Court Disposition

The plaintiff's judicial review challenge succeeded; the Medical Appeal Panel decision was set aside and the matter was remitted for determination by a differently constituted Appeal Panel.

Orders

  • ['The decision of the Medical Appeal Panel in matter number M1-003761/16 dated 15 March 2017 is set aside.' "Remit the matter to the third defendant for determination of the first defendant's appeal by a differently constituted Appeal Panel pursuant to s 328(1) Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation...