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ARTICLE · 09 OCTOBER 2008

Jurisdictional Error by CARS Assessors/Principles of Causation

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The NSW Court of Appeal handed down its decision in Insurance Australia Limited -v- Helou on 7 October 2008.

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Andrew Gorman
Andrew Gorman

In Brief

  • Where a claimant has a pre-existing tendency to one of a number of conditions contributed to by an accident, it is unnecessary to assess damages that arose from each separately.
  • The Supreme Court will only interfere with a CARS Assessor's assessment of damages where there is error on the face of the record.
  • The Supreme Court will not interfere with a CARS Assessor's assessment where a perceived error is made within the Assessor's jurisdiction.
  • The opportunities for successfully challenging a CARS Assessment on the basis of jurisdictional error remain very limited.

Background

The NSW Court of Appeal handed down its decision in Insurance Australia Limited -v- Helou on 7 October 2008.

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