The NSW Court of Appeal recently delivered an interesting judgment in the matter of Scenic Tours Pty Ltd v Moore [2023] NSWCA 74.

The Plaintiff in this matter, Mr David Moore, was the lead Plaintiff in a class action against Scenic Tours by thousands of disgruntled cruise ship passengers from multiple separate cruises.

For extra context, we suggest reading our 2020 article discussing Moore v Scenic Tours Pty Ltd [2020] HCA 17: Damages for ‘Disappointment and Distress’ Available to Consumers for Breaches of Consumer Guarantees for Travel and Recreational Contracts.

Holman Webb is pleased to announce that eleven lawyers have been included in the 2024 Edition of The Best Lawyers in Australia, and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Australia. Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. 

Section 50C of the Limitation Act 1969 has a 3-year limit for a plaintiff to commence a personal injury claim from the date that the cause of action was ‘discoverable’. 

Section 50D of the Act says the cause of action is discoverable when the claimant knows or ought to know of the fact that:

1. the injury or death concerned has occurred,
2. the injury or death was caused by the fault of the defendant,
3. the injury was sufficiently serious to justify the bringing of an action on the cause of action.

In the 31 March 2023 Court of Appeal decision in Horne v J K Williams Contracting Pty Ltd [2023] NSWCA 58 the Court concluded that the plaintiff knew of the 3 facts soon after the accident.  The plaintiff’s push bike had collided with orange barricades on the side of the road.  

The recent Federal Court decision in Uniting Church in Australia Property Trust (NSW) v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2023] FCA 190 arose out of historic claims of sexual and physical abuse at Knox Grammar School in Sydney, dating back to the 1970’s.

Click through to view a recording of Holman Webb's Insurance Group's first webinar of the year: 2022 - A Year in Review.  Presented by Partner and National Insurance Group Leader John Van de Poll on Thursday 2 March 2023, this webinar examined a range of significant cases from 2022.

Every so often, a case comes up that reminds us of an often forgotten undertaking that solicitors owe the court: the “Harman” undertaking.  

The Harman undertaking concerns documents or information that the court compels third parties to produce.  It operates to prevent any of the parties to litigation from using documents obtained in the course of that litigation for the purpose of other unrelated proceedings, without the leave of the court.

Generally, the court will look for special circumstances explaining why a document should be released for use in other proceedings.  Even when special circumstances are established, the court still has discretion regarding whether to authorise the release of the information. 

Join Holman Webb's Insurance Group for our first webinar of the year: 2022 - A Year in Review.

Presented by Partner and National Insurance Group Leader John Van de Poll and taking place on Thursday 2 March 2023, this webinar will examine a range of significant cases from 2022.

Dennis Denuto famously said, “it’s the Constitution, it’s Mabo, it’s justice, it’s law, it’s the vibe and aah no that’s it, it’s the vibe”. 

The Constitution establishes the composition of the Australian Parliament and outlines how the federal and state Parliaments share power.  It recognises some individual rights (such as freedom of religion) and implies others (such as freedom of speech). 

On its face, it has nothing whatsoever to do with motor accidents. 

Yet for a small but significant class of people, the Constitution has a fundamental impact on how motor accident claims are handled.

The recent Court of Appeal decision in Searle v McGregor [2022] NSWCA 213 has taken an important step in clarifying matters for this particular group of people.

In August 2021, Holman Webb Lawyers reported that the New South Wales Government was considering introducing ‘Decennial Liability’ insurance (inherent defect insurance) to provide up to 10 years of cover to apartment owners for the cost of rectifying defects that threaten the structural integrity of the building.

In a 25 October 2022 media release, the minister for fair trading, Victor Dominello has now announced that the government has accepted the application of Resilience Insurance to offer the insurance.

The minister’s view is that “Decennial liability gives power to the purchasers and body corporates, who will no longer need to prove liability and will only have to demonstrate the damage for assessment.” 

The policy will provide cover for up to 10 years and would cover critical parts of the building’s common property, including the building’s structure, fire safety systems and water proofing.

The Decennial liability cover, in conjunction with the cover under the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020, now means that apartment owners have up to 10 years to either make a claim under the policy, or make a claim against the building practitioner for damage to the building caused by defective building works or design.

This article discusses the 31 March 2022 Supreme Court of Queensland decision in the matter of Re A [2022] QSC 159.  This decision has confirmed when court authorisation is required for the treatment of a minor who wants the treatment.