Wallaby Grip (BAE) Pty Limited (in liq) & Anor v WorkCover Queensland; CSR Limited v WorkCover Queensland
[2022] QCA 204 · Morrison and Mullins JJA and Kelly J
WorkCover Queensland, the State's workers' compensation insurer, paid more than $760,000 in compensation to a worker (referred to as Mr Maguire) who developed mesothelioma after inhaling asbestos dust while working at Gladstone between 1972 and 1981. WorkCover then sued the companies it said were responsible for the asbestos products, seeking to recover the compensation it had paid. Before that, the worker himself had filed a court claim against some of those companies, but that claim was never served and went stale. The companies argued that because the worker had 'taken proceedings to recover damages', WorkCover lost its right to claim the money back. The Court of Appeal disagreed. It held that merely filing a claim that is never served does not count as 'taking proceedings' in the relevant sense, so WorkCover was entitled to pursue its claim. Both companies' appeals were dismissed with costs.
Incident & injury
Inhalation of asbestos dust and fibres during employment between 1972 and 1981 at a Gladstone smelter and the Gladstone Power Station, causing malignant mesothelioma in the worker (Mr Maguire)
- Body regions
- Respiratory, Chest / thorax (includes ribs)
- Diagnoses
- malignant mesothelioma
- Location
- Gladstone
Quick facts
- Date of judgment
- 21 October 2022
- Claim type
- WCRA Statutory
- Proceeding
- Appeal
- Plaintiff outcome
- N/A
- Occupation
- fitter and turner / boilermaker Technician / Trade Worker
Outcome
Both appeals by the alleged wrongdoers (Wallaby Grip companies and CSR Limited) against the dismissal of their strike-out / summary judgment applications were dismissed. The Court of Appeal held that a worker who had filed but never served a stale District Court proceeding had not 'taken proceedings to recover damages' within the meaning of s 207B(8) WCRA, so WorkCover's claim for indemnity could proceed.
Key issues
Wallaby Grip (BAE) Pty Limited (in liq) & Anor v WorkCover Queensland; CSR Limited v WorkCover Queensland [2022] QCA 204
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