State Rail Authority (NSW) v Chu [2008] NSWCA 14
- Criminal conduct of a third party constitutes a "novus
actus interveniens".
- Sexual assault breaks the causal link from slip and fall at
train station.
This is another slip and fall case, this time involving stairs
which we will again choose to categorise as a defective product.
The real reason, however, why we are including it is because of the
criminal content that is not usually evident in a product liability
case.
A person cannot be liable for damages for failure to take care
to prevent personal injury unless negligence on its part caused the
harm. The current law in Australia (as laid down by the High Court)
as to whether negligence caused an injury is to be answered by the
application of 'commonsense'.
