Victorian Workforce Authority v Workers Compensation Nominal Insurer

2025/00402561

WORKERS COMPENSATION – on 13 July 2017 at an orchard at Hillston, NSW, Mr Ching Tam suffered a spinal cord injury resulting in tetraplegia in the course of his employment by Mr Handy Professor Pty Ltd on a farm operated by Super Seasons Pty Ltd – Mr Tam commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court against Super Seasons Pty Ltd, the appellant and the respondent – the respondent brought a cross-claim against the appellant and Mr Tam (who withdrew from the proceedings before final judgment) seeking restitution on various grounds of sums paid to, for or on behalf of Mr Tam purportedly under the provisions of the Workers’ Compensation Act 1987 (NSW) (WCA) up until 6 August 2022 – the primary judge found that the respondent had mistakenly accepted liability and made payments to, for, or on behalf of Mr Tam, the benefits of which were unjust for the appellant to retain – the primary judge made orders in chambers giving effect to the primary judgment ordering the appellant pay the respondent $1,915,218.43 – whether the primary judge erred in failing to find that the statutory scheme of the WCA and the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013 (Vic) was inconsistent with the respondent’s general law claim in restitution – whether the primary judge erred in finding that the appellant had been unjustly enriched.

Workers’ Compensation Nominal Defendant v Victorian WorkCover Authority [2025] NSWSC 1079