Education Law Notes – Term 4, 2024

The law never stops! Despite the end of the year being only a few weeks away, there are important and relevant legal issues to bring to your attention. We trust these Notes will be helpful to you in your important work with children and young people and in your leadership in the school context.

First, we look at a recent High Court decision which confirmed that the law in Australia is that an employer is not vicariously liable for the conduct of anyone who is not an employee. Being like an employee is not enough.
We examine a case of vicious bullying after school hours and away from the school campus and the resulting successful claim against the State of NSW.

We also consider the lessons from a case where a 10 year old girl with disabilities was injured in an off-campus horse riding activity overseen by an external provider.