Article by Ashley Jones and Marcela Kamada
The Northern Territory Court of Appeal recently reviewed the
Wayne Tank principle in a case where the loss resulted
from more than one cause. Under the Wayne Tank principle,
where there are two or more concurrent causes of the loss, one of
which is an insured event and one which is an excluded event, the
insurer is not liable to indemnify under the policy.
The Central Australian Aboriginal Congress
(Congress), is an incorporated association that
provided a wide range of medical and related services to its
patient group. The Congress was one of the defendants in an action
brought by the spouse of the late Clive Henry Impu for damages in
negligence. The Congress suffered judgment for $236,972. The trial
judge found the Congress had breached its duty of care to the
deceased by reason of a number of "administrative" errors
or failures, some by administrative staff, others by two medical
practitioners employed by the appellant.
