Legal Bulletin No. 211
This bulletin was issued on 16 May 2025
Issued 16 May 2025
Welcome to the two hundred and eleventh edition of the Personal Injury Commission’s Legal Bulletin. Please see here for details about the legal citations used for the Commission’s decisions. The decisions listed below are now available on AustLII and will be available shortly, on Jade and Lexis Nexis. Any legislative updates are provided at the base of the Bulletin.
Presidential Member Decisions
Yandell v SAE Institute Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPICPD 38
Workers compensation; Division 9 of Part 3 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987; commutation of compensation; whether commutation of “full liability” included liability for past gratuitous domestic assistance; Held – the name of the respondent to the appeal is amended wherever necessary to read
“SAE Institute Pty Ltd”; the Member’s Certificate of Determination dated 23 July 2024 is confirmed.
Decision date: 2 May 2025 | Before: Deputy President Elizabeth Wood
Colin Joss & Co Pty Limited v Williams [2025] NSWPICPD 39
Workers compensation; psychological injury; “discipline” in section 11A(1) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987; application of Kushwaha v Queanbeyan City Council [2002] NSWCC 25; 23 NSWCCR 329; Webb v State of New South Wales [2019] NSWWCCPD 50; Martsoukos v Secretary, Department of Education [2024] NSWPICPD 85 considered and applied; “reasonable” action within section 11A(1) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987; wide discretion; Vines v Australian Securities and Investment Commission [2007] NSWCA 126 considered and applied; Held – the orders in the Certificate of Determination dated 28 June 2024 are confirmed.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Before: Acting Deputy President Paul Sweeney
Newitt v Combined Roofing Australia Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPICPD 40
Workers compensation; adequacy of reasons; held that the Member failed to reveal reasoning; Rule 78 of the Personal Injury Commission Rules 2021; denial of procedural fairness not established; Browne v Dunn (1893) 6 R 67 considered and applied; Held – the Certificate of Determination dated 13 August 2024 (wrongly dated 23 August 2023) is revoked; the matter is remitted to be heard and determined by another member.
Decision date: 7 May 2025 | Before: President Judge Phillips
Motor Accidents non-Presidential Member Decisions
Allianz Australia Insurance Limited v Hunter [2025] NSWPIC 178
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; settlement approval; entitlement to non-economic loss; past and future economic loss; Held – settlement approved under section 6.23(2)(b) of the Act in the sum of $315,000.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Member: Elyse White
Allianz Australia Insurance Limited v Wakeling [2025] NSWPIC 179
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; settlement approval; rear end collision; aggravation of pre-existing injury; past economic loss; future economic loss; revision of calculation for past economic loss; appropriate basis for resolution of matter; adequate provision for past economic loss; deduction to be made by insurer; medical restrictions are on future work capacity; imprecise calculations requiring buffer; Held – settlement approved.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Member: Hugh Macken
AAI Limited t/as AAMI v Simpraga [2025] NSWPIC 186
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; motor vehicle accident; claims assessment; damages for economic loss; damages for future economic loss; most likely future circumstances; pre-existing condition; 70-year-old claimant was injured in a motor vehicle on 2 January 2022; injuries to cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine, both shoulders, left knee; both hips, anxiety and depression; prior accidents; following 2016 accident compensated on basis no past or future work capacity until age 67 years; Held – no capacity to maintain longer term employment where not fully recovered and given age; buffer of $20,000 for impairment past earning capacity; no change in most likely future circumstances.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Member: Susan McTegg
AAI Limited t/as GIO v McCrohon [2025] NSWPIC 190
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (MAI Act); statutory benefits disputes involving sections 1.9, 3.1, 3.11, 3.28, and 3.39 of the MAI Act and section 30 of the Civil Liability Act 2002; factual dispute about circumstances of accident; proceedings settled between the parties; costs order sought by claimant under section 8.10(4) and by insurer under section 8.3(4) of the MAI Act; San v Rumble (No 2), Ho v Professional Services Review Committee No 295, AAI Ltd trading as GIO v Moon, and Grinter v CIC Allianz Insurance Limited applied; Held – exceptional circumstances exist that justify payment of the claimant’s costs; payment of the reasonable and necessary legal costs incurred by the claimant in connection with the proceedings in accordance with section 8.10(4)(b) of the MAI Act permitted; payment of the insurer’s reasonable legal costs permitted.
Decision date: 1 May 2025 | Senior Member: Brett Williams
Workers Compensation non-Presidential Member Decisions
Paunovic v RJ Armstrong Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 124
Workers Compensation Act 1987; industrial deafness; claim for hearing aids; applicant had worked for the respondent up to January 2009; made a claim for industrial deafness against another employer in 2000 and received compensation consistent with a finding of 17% binaural hearing loss; applicant is seeking payment for hearing aids; relied on a medical report which assessed his binaural hearing loss at 13%; IME was unaware of the amount of hearing loss assessed in the previous claim; Held – applicant has discharged his onus of proving injury by virtue of satisfying the provisions of section 17; respondent has not satisfied the evidentiary onus to establish the employment did not cause or contribute to the injury at issue Elias Fadallah v Canterbury City Council applied; hearing aids are reasonably necessary as a result of the injury at issue; respondent is to pay the costs of and incidental to the provision of the hearing aids.
Decision date: 4 April 2025 | Member: Cameron Burge
Ernst v Aurizon Holdings Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 172
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for benefits in respect of the death of a worker; whether the applicant was dependent for support upon the worker at the date of his death; whether there were any other persons dependent for support upon him as at that date; Held – applicant was partly dependent for support upon the worker at the date of his death; no other persons dependent for support upon the worker at the date of his death; respondent liable to pay the amount of $938,600 in accordance with section 25(1)(a) with agreed interest; amount to be paid to the applicant in accordance with sections 29(1A) and 85A(1).
Decision date: 28 April 2025 | Member: Gaius Whiffin
Del Caro v Transport for NSW [2025] NSWPIC 181
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for weekly compensation pursuant to section 33 and for medical expenses pursuant to section 60; Held – frank injury to left knee found to have arisen from falling; alternatively left knee condition was a disease injury contracted from the nature of duties; left wrist injury consequential to left knee collapsing; respondent liable for left knee and left wrist conditions; weekly compensation payable; general order for medical expenses related to those injuries.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Member: Adam Halstead
Harvey v KW Resort Management Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 182
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for medical expenses for medicinal cannabis; accepted injury to the lumbar spine; whether a trial of medicinal cannabis is reasonably necessary treatment; section 60; principles in Diab v NRMA Limited considered and applied; Held – proposed trial of medicinal cannabis is reasonably necessary within the meaning of section 60; respondent to pay the cost of a four month trial of medicinal cannabis.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Member: Kathryn Camp
Abi-Khattar v Clintons Motors Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 183
Workers Compensation Act 1987; psychological injury; respondent accepted injury under section 4; allegations related to variety of events including actions with respect to transfer and retrenchment; discussion of meaning of transfer; Manly Pacific International Pty Ltd v Doyle considered; reasonableness of respondent’s actions with respect to transfer and retrenchment discussed separately as distinct actions; respondent failed to lead evidence on the applicant’s performance on KPIs; no comparison with how employees were treated; transfer actions not reasonable; assessment of wholly or predominantly; psychological injury not wholly caused by section 11A action; issue of predominantly unnecessary to decide; observations in Manly Pacific International Hotel Pty Ltd v Doyle potentially inconsistent with Hamad v Q Catering Ltd; finding of no current work capacity based on preponderance of evidence and particularly treating opinion; Held – transfer actions not reasonable; retrenchment actions not reasonable; no current work capacity; respondent pay weekly compensation and medical expenses based on no current work capacity.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Principal Member: John Harris
Kay v Charles Sturt University [2025] NSWPIC 184
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for compensation for medical treatment pursuant to section 60; accepted work injury to applicant’s face sustained in a fall; whether the dental treatment was reasonably necessary as a result of the accepted work injury; whether section 59A precludes entitlement to compensation; Held – dental treatment was reasonably necessary as a result of the accepted work injury; section 59A does not operate to preclude the applicant’s entitlement to compensation.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Member: Karen Garner
Workers Compensation Act 1987; sections 33, 37 and clause 2 of Schedule 3 considered; accepted psychological injury; whether claim incapacity results from the accepted psychological injury; dispute as to incapacity; applicant “acting” at time of injury in a different position to her substantive position; dispute in respect to the application of clause 8C of the Workers Compensation Regulations 2016 (Regulations) and as to the meaning of “ongoing nature”; Project Blue Sky Inc v Australian Broadcasting Authority; Secretary, Department of Communities and Justice v Farrugia considered and applied; Held – applicant’s incapacity is due to the accepted injury; applicant has an entitlement to weekly compensation pursuant to section 37(3)(a); respondent is to pay the applicant’s reasonably necessary medical and treatment expenses for the psychological injury pursuant to section 60.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Member: John Turner
Willing v Berry Rural Co-Operative Society Ltd [2025] NSWPIC 188
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for the respondent to pay for the cost of a L4/5 total disc replacement and L5/S1 anterior lumbar interbody fusion; whether the worker continues to suffer the effects of the work injury or whether the worker’s lower back condition is the natural progression of degeneration in the lower back; whether the proposed surgery is appropriate; consideration of Tray Fit Pty Ltd v Cairney; whether spinal surgery is reasonably necessary as a result of the injury; consideration of Murphy v Allity Management Services Pty Ltd and Rose v Health Commission (NSW); Held – worker continues to suffer the effects of the work injury; the L5/S1 anterior lumbar interbody fusion is reasonably necessary as a result of the injury sustained by the worker but not the L4/5 total disc replacement; order pursuant to section 60 (5) is not warranted having regard to the evidence and the claim made by the worker.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Member: John Isaksen
Gentle v State of New South Wales (NSW Police Force) [2025] NSWPIC 189
Workers Compensation Act 1987; claim for lump sum compensation; injury dispute; disputed injury to bilateral knees; Held – evidence weighed in the balance and a finding in the applicant’s favour on the balance of probabilities; matter was remitted to the President for referral to a Medical Assessor.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Member: Jane Peacock
Motor Accidents Medical Review Panel Decisions
Rafoka v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2025] NSWPICMP 190
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (MAI Act); Motor Accidents Compensation Act 1999 (MAC Act); review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); section 58 and section 60 of the MAC Act; claimant presented in an extremely disabled state; post-accident fall and coccygeal fracture; claimant suffered substantial psychological symptoms; right wrist fracture from fall before accident; rib bruising and sternal fracture; generalised non-anatomical giving way weakness; pain focused whilst perceiving herself as very disabled; chronic pain syndrome; right shoulder restriction variable and voluntary; Held – MAC revoked and new certificate issued; 7% whole person impairment (WPI) assessed.
Decision date: 21 March 2025 | Panel Members: Member Hugh Macken, Dr Margaret Gibson, and Dr Sophia Lahz | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, and Lower Limb
Insurance Australia Limited t/as NRMA Insurance v Costantino [2025] NSWPICMP 272
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); degree of permanent impairment disputes; claimant was in a motor vehicle accident; insurer admitted liability for the claim; claimant sustained physical injuries; Medical Assessor diagnosed persistent depressive disorder caused by the subject accident and found 19% whole person impairment (WPI) on the psychiatric impairment rating scale (PIRS); Held – Review Panel made the same diagnosis (Dysthymia) and assessed 8% WPI; no issues of principle; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 22 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Gary Victor Patterson, Dr Gerald Chew, and Dr John Baker | Injury module: Mental and Behavioural
Allianz Australia Insurance Limited v Le [2025] NSWPICMP 298
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); assessment of degree of permanent impairment; prior skull fracture; pre-accident osteoarthritis; laceration to webbing between thumb and index finger; rib fracture; differing examination findings; no significant differences pre-and post-accident radiological investigations; surgery to right hand; no signs of radiculopathy; sensory loss both thumb and index finger; Held – 6% whole person impairment (WPI); MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Hugh Macken, Dr Tai Tak Wan, and Dr Margaret Gibson | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, and Lower Limb
Collier-Caldwell v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2025] NSWPICMP 302
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whole person impairment (WPI) assessment at 4%; claimant witnessed the immediate aftermath of a motorbike accident involving his brother and alleged that he suffered psychiatric disability; claimant suffered unrelated physical disabilities from work incidents; claimant made first complaint about his psychiatric disabilities seven months post-accident; Review Panel accepted this was reasonable; Review Panel concluded that the claimant had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and was satisfied that this was causally related to the accident; Held – Review Panel assessed WPI at 7%; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 1 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Alexander Bolton, Dr John Baker, and Dr Christopher Canaris | Injury module: Mental and Behavioural
Locampo v Insurance Australia Limited t/as NRMA Insurance [2025] NSWPICMP 303
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); claimant injured in a motor vehicle accident; Medical Assessor determined the injury to the left shoulder suffered by the claimant in the accident was a threshold injury; Review Panel conducted its own examination; Held – Review Panel found the injury to the left shoulder was not a threshold injury; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 2 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Terence Stern OAM, Dr Drew Dixon, and Dr Thomas Rosenthal | Injury module: Upper Limb
Ryan v Insurance Australia Limited t/as NRMA Insurance [2025] NSWPICMP 307
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); claimant’s application for review under section 7.26; assessment of whole person impairment (WPI) at 10%; issues of causation; claimant had pre-existing lower back problems and left wrist fracture subject of medical investigation and treatment in the months before the accident; claimant delayed reporting accident and all symptoms for a few weeks after accident; Held – accident could have and did injure the lower back, left hip and left wrist; injuries soft tissue aggravations; impairment assessment at 5% for lower back, 4% for left wrist and no assessable impairment in left hip; MAC revoked and new certificate issued; no issue of principle.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Belinda Cassidy, Dr Les Barnsley, and Dr Margaret Gibson | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, and Lower Limb
AAI Limited t/as AAMI v Dhungel [2025] NSWPICMP 309
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC) under section 7.26 of a further assessment of a threshold injury dispute; issue of credibility and reliability of claimant’s histories and evidence with surveillance film, social media and internet searches and evidence from the claimant’s treating psychiatrists; issue of causation with insurer relying on evidence to suggest mechanism of accident was minor; Held – claimant did not have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to accident not being severe (DSM-5-TR criterion A not satisfied); claimant did have major depressive disorder (MDD) relating to the claimant’s relationship with his mother triggered by the accident; motor accident a more than negligible contribution to the development of the disorder; MDD is not a threshold injury; MAC confirmed; Allianz Australia Insurance Limited v MacKenzie & Ors cited.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Belinda Cassidy, Dr Christopher Rikard-Bell, and Dr John Baker | Injury module: Mental and Behavioural
Kendirjian v AAI Limited t/as AAMI [2025] NSWPICMP 310
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); threshold injury dispute; Medical Assessor found the claimant is suffering from accident-related adjustment disorder which is a threshold injury; Held – Review Panel of the same opinion that the claimant is suffering from an adjustment disorder secondary to pain; neither party provided any medical evidence to the contrary; no issue of principle; MAC confirmed.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Gary Victor Patterson, Dr John Baker, and Dr Christopher Rikard-Bell | Injury module: Mental and Behavioural
Farsad v QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited [2025] NSWPICMP 311
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); motor accident; substantial collision; claimant re-examined; early complaint of left sided low back pain; absence of complaint at hospital not significant; MRI scan showed left L4/5 protrusion; prior back pain; clinical findings of the Review Panel support source of radiating pain from the L4/5 disc; intervertebral discs are cartilaginous structures; aggravation of disc involves further tearing which is a partial rupture of cartilage and ligaments; Held – motor accident aggravated the protrusion at L4/5; non-threshold injury within the meaning of the Act; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Principal Member John Harris, Dr Drew Dixon, and Dr Mohammed Assem | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, and Lower Limb
Almoaiel v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2025] NSWPICMP 312
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); claimant suffered injury in a motor accident; whether the injuries caused by the accident were threshold injuries; whether the motor accident caused a supraspinatus tear in the left shoulder; whether healing of the supraspinatus tear causes that injury to be a threshold injury; reasoning in David v Allianz Australia Insurance Ltd applied; David in Allianz Australia Insurance Ltd trading as Allianz v Susak cited; Held – MAC revoked and new certificate issued; injury to left shoulder is not a threshold injury; injuries to the cervical spine, the lumbar spine, and the right shoulder, are threshold injuries.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Maurice Castagnet, Dr Drew Dixon, and Dr Thomas Rosenthal | Injury module: Spine, and Upper Limb
Shales v AAI Limited t/as GIO [2025] NSWPICMP 316
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC) under section 7.26; claimant was injured in a motor vehicle accident; whether the injuries sustained were threshold injuries; dispute as to total whole person impairment (WPI); Review Panel conducted an examination and considered the factors contributing to the injury according to clause 6.6 of the Motor Accidents Guidelines; Held – MAC revoked and new certificate issued; Review Panel determined that the cervical spine and lumbar spine were threshold injuries; neck injury caused by the accident resulted in 5% WPI.
Decision date: 7 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Terence Stern OAM, Dr Margaret Gibson, and Dr Sophia Lahz | Injury module: Upper Limb, and Nervous System (Neurological)
Tabassum v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2025] NSWPICMP 317
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); motor accident; pedestrian claimant struck by vehicle; whether the degree of permanent impairment of the physical injuries was greater than 10%; inconsistency in accordance with clause 6.41 of the Motor Accident Guidelines; shoulder movement assessed by analogy based on mild loss of gleno-humeral joint; Held – claimant suffers from impairment not greater than 10%; MAC revoked and new certificate issued due to different assessments.
Decision date: 7 May 2025 | Panel Members: Principal Member John Harris, Dr Mohammed Assem, and Dr Shane Moloney | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, and Lower Limb
Allianz Australia Insurance Limited v Hussein [2025] NSWPICMP 318
Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether threshold injury; mild paraspinal tenderness; bruising over chest wall; complaints of lower back pain; diffuse disc bulge at L4/5 and L5/S1; broad base posterior left-sided protrusion; prior back injury; evidence of radiculopathy; stiffness of his lumbar segment; left sciatica; asymmetry of reflexes; muscle weakness that is anatomically localised to an appropriate spinal nerve root distribution; findings of CT scan; Held – non-threshold injury; MAC confirmed.
Decision date: 7 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Hugh Macken, Dr Christopher Oates, and Dr Drew Dixon | Injury module: Spine, Upper Limb, Lower Limb, Digestive System, and Brain Injury
Workers Compensation Medical Appeal Panel Decisions
Pearce v Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPICMP 71
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); appellant submits that the Medical Assessor erred in allowance for the effect on activities of daily living (ADL’s) and failed to conduct a complete and adequate examination; Held – Appeal Panel agreed; re-examination required; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 7 February 2025 | Panel Members: Member Deborah Moore, Dr John Brian Stephenson, and Dr James Bodel | Body system: Cervical Spine and Lumbar Spine
Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty Ltd v Kalpakdjian [2025] NSWPICMP 263
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); psychological injury with a deemed date of injury 19 January 2024; psychiatric impairment rating scale (PIRS) categories; deduction pursuant to section 323; Held – Appeal Panel found error due to insufficient reasons; appellant was re-examined; resulting impairment remained the same with no deduction pursuant to section 323; MAC revoked; new certificate issued with detailed reasons.
Decision date: 15 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Michael McGrowdie, Dr Graham Blom, and Dr John Baker | Body system: Psychological/Psychiatric
Duncombe v Riddle & Co Pty Ltd atf Highfield Family Trust t/as Eden Motel [2025] NSWPICMP 299
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether the deduction the Medical Assessor (MA) made under section 323(1) involved error; whether the MA had proper regard to the evidence when applying paragraph 11.10 of the SIRA NSW Workers Compensation Guidelines for the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, 4th ed 1 March 2021 (the Guidelines) so as to assess the appellant’s pre-injury impairment; whether the MA’s assessment of the appellant’s present impairment in social functioning involved error; Held – MA had proper regard to the evidence and obtained an accurate history by which he could rate the appellant’s pre-injury impairment; MA’s deduction under section 323(1) did not involve error; MA’s rating of the appellant’s impairment in social functioning did not involve error; MAC confirmed.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Marshal Douglas, Dr John Lam-Po-Tang, and Dr Michael Hong | Body system: Psychological/Psychiatric
Bhatia v Secretary, Department of Education [2025] NSWPICMP 300
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether the Medical Assessor erred in two of the psychiatric impairment rating scale (PIRS) categories namely self -care and personal hygiene and social and recreational activities; Held – Appeal Panel found no errors; reasons were adequate; MAC confirmed.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Deborah Moore, Professor Nicholas Glozier, and Dr Graham Blom | Body system: Psychological/Psychiatric
Flitcroft v Our Lady Consolation Aged Care Services Ltd [2025] NSWPICMP 301
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether Medical Assessor (MA) provided adequate reasons for assessing 0% whole person impairment (WPI) in relation to scarring; whether MAC contains demonstrable error or relies on incorrect criteria; no issue in relation to the other assessed body systems; Held – MA erred in failing to provide reasons in accordance with the TEMSKI scale for assessing scarring; MAC contains a demonstrable error; nature of the error necessitated re-examination of the appellant by a member of the Appeal Panel; Appeal Panel found 2% WPI; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 30 April 2025 | Panel Members: Member Cameron Burge, Dr Drew Dixon, and Dr Tommasino Mastroianni | Body system: Cervical Spine, Left Upper Extremity, and Scarring (TEMSKI)
Rayner v Shellharbour City Council [2025] NSWPICMP 304
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether the examination the Medical Assessor (MA) conducted was sufficient to establish if the appellant had radiculopathy; whether MA provided adequate reasons for his rating of the appellant’s whole person impairment (WPI) due to the effect of the appellant’s injury on his activities of daily living; Held – MA’s findings from examination were not sufficient to determine whether appellant met all of the criteria for radiculopathy which is an error; MA did not provide sufficient reasons for his assessment of WPI relating to the effect the appellant’s injury had on his activities of daily living; appellant re-examined; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 2 May 2025 | Panel Members Member Marshal Douglas, Dr James Bodel, and Dr Tommasino Mastroianni: | Body system: Lumbar Spine, Right Lower Extremity, and Scarring
Warrington v SummitCare Group Employment Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPICMP 305
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); assessment of the digestive system; Medical Assessor (MA) assessed no impairment from hernia because he said there was no work related injury; Held – Appeal Panel found error as the MA made a determination on causation which was not open to him to do; re-examination considered necessary; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Jane Peacock, Dr Phillip Truskett, and Dr Timothy Anderson | Body system: Incisional Hernia
Hamad v Express Glass 24 hour Service Pty Ltd [2025] NSWPICMP 306
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); psychological injury; appellant employer alleged assessment on the basis of incorrect criteria and demonstrable error under four of the psychiatric impairment rating scale (PIRS) categories; self- care and personal hygiene, social and recreational activities, concentration, persistence and pace, employability; Held – Appeal Panel did not find error in any contested category; MAC confirmed.
Decision date: 5 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Jane Peacock, Dr John Lam Po-Tang, and Dr Douglas Andrews | Body system: Psychological/Psychiatric
Angel v State of NSW (Murrumbidgee Local Health District) [2025] NSWPICMP 313
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); whether assessment based on incorrect criteria or MAC contains a demonstrable error due to Medical Assessor’s finding on a deduction pursuant to section 323; pre-existing condition at left knee; total knee replacement foreshadowed as a treatment option if non-operative treatment failed two years prior to injury; worker returned to work as an enrolled nurse; increase in symptoms caused by twisting injury at work following which total knee replacement surgery performed; Held – demonstrable error in finding that pathology seen on MRI prior to injury was “identical” to pathology seen post-injury; failure to have regard to relevant evidence; one-tenth deduction not at odds with the available evidence; MAC revoked and new certificate issued.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Rachel Homan, Dr James Bodel, and Dr Drew Dixon | Body system: Left Lower Extremity (Knee)
Dawson v Batemans Bay Bowling & Recreational Club [2025] NSWPICMP 314
Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; review of Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC); assessment of the left upper extremity, cervical spine and thoracic spine; worker appealed; no complaint on appeal about the overall impairments assessed for thoracic and cervical spine but a complaint about the deduction of one-tenth made under section 323; complaint about the assessment of the left upper extremity at 0% whole person impairment (WPI); Held – error found and re-examination considered necessary; MAC revoked and a new certificate issued.
Decision date: 6 May 2025 | Panel Members: Member Jane Peacock, Dr Roger Pillemer, and Dr Christopher Oates | Body system: Cervical Spine, Thoracic Spine, and Left Upper Extremity (Shoulder)
This publication is for information only. The publication is not legal advice. The information provided is not a substitute for reading the decisions. The Commission does not accept liability for the information in this publication or for way the information is used.
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