Griffin v Brisbane City Council
[2024] QCA 157 · Bond JA, Flanagan JA, Boddice JA
A woman worked in the Brisbane City Council call centre, where she answered abusive, threatening and distressing calls, including from a persistent serial caller. In March 2017 she suffered a psychiatric injury and never returned to work. The Council accepted it owed her a duty to take reasonable care against psychiatric injury, and the parties had agreed quantum at $251,000 (clear of the WorkCover refund), but the Council disputed whether it had breached its duty and whether any breach caused her injury. The trial judge dismissed her claim on the basis that her injury was not reasonably foreseeable — a question that was not actually in dispute — and did not decide breach or causation under the correct workers' compensation legal framework. The Court of Appeal allowed her appeal, set aside the dismissal, and sent the case back to the trial judge to make proper findings. The court ordered the Council to bear its own costs of the appeal, with the worker's appeal costs to be her costs in the original proceeding.
Incident & injury
Psychiatric injury sustained over the course of employment in a call centre dealing with aggressive, abusive and distressing calls, including from a particular serial caller
- Body regions
- Psychiatric
- Diagnoses
- Psychiatric injury
- Incident date
- 5 March 2017
- Location
- Brisbane City Council call centre, Brisbane
Quick facts
- Date of judgment
- 30 August 2024
- Claim type
- WCRA Common Law
- Proceeding
- Appeal
- Plaintiff outcome
- Successful
- Plaintiff age at injury
- Occupation
- Call centre worker (answering and logging incoming telephone calls) Community & Personal Service Worker
Outcome
Appeal allowed. The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge's fact-finding miscarried because she dismissed the claim on a foreseeability basis not contended for, and did not decide breach or causation within the s 305B / s 305D framework. The matter was remitted to the primary judge for further reasons and a further hearing. Quantum was agreed at trial at $251,000 clear of the WorkCover refund but no judgment sum was entered.
Defendant
1 Brisbane City Council
Employer
- Judgment against this defendant
- $0
Key issues
Griffin v Brisbane City Council [2024] QCA 157
When typing in a Word document, italicise the case name. The copy button copies plain text suitable for any editor.