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Final negligence review report
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Assistant Treasurer Senator Helen Coonan has released the final report of the Review of the Law
of Negligence.

The Review, chaired by the Honourable Justice David Ipp, was established as one of the measures agreed by the second Ministerial Meeting on Public Liability Insurance in May.

The panel was asked to inquire into the law of negligence and to develop a series of proposals which provide a principled approach to reforming the law of negligence.

The final report incorporates the first report by the panel released in early September and recommends a range of additional significant reforms including:

Forseeability of Risk

Defendants should only be responsible for a risk that is not insignificant rather than far fetched or fanciful risks;

Contributory Negligence

Allowing courts to find that a plaintiff who contributed to his or her own injury can be held 100 per cent responsible;

Public Authorities

Providing a limited defence for public authorities, such as local councils, where they have taken a decision on policy grounds not to perform a specific public function, such as a road inspection.;

Mental Harm

Changing negligence law so that plaintiffs who suffer a physical injury can only claim for consequential psychiatric harm if they have suffered a recognised mental illness and not simply because an injury may have led to vague feelings of depression;

Limitations on Legal Costs

Abolishing orders for legal costs when the award of damages is less than $30,000 and limiting legal costs to $2500 in cases where the award of damages is between $30,000 and $50,000;

Caps and Thresholds

A cap for general damages payouts of $250,000 and thresholds to remove small claims from the system;

A cap for loss of earnings of twice average full time adult ordinary time earnings.

Senator Coonan said the 61 recommendations had the potential to significantly reform the legal system underlying medical negligence, public liability and professional indemnity claims and to provide a platform for national consistency.

Senator Coonan said that although many of the panel's recommendations required action by State and Territory Governments, the Commonwealth would look closely at what more it could do to encourage and facilitate a nationally coordinated response.

See the full report

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Working with children
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The Commission for Children and Young People Act 2000 Qld has been amended to help ensure that
people seeking to work with children are suitable.

Any person in regulated employment as a paid employee or volunteer or as a person carrying on a regulated business is now required to fill out an application form consenting to a criminal history check prior to their appointment or engagement.

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General Insurance Enquiries and Complaints Scheme
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The General Insurance Enquiries and Complaints Scheme is a national Scheme for consumers aimed at
resolving disputes between insureds and their insurance companies or claimants who have a dispute with
another person's insurance company in relation to motor vehicle property damage (ie third party claim). The Scheme also provides
free advice and information about any general insurance matter.

More

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Energy Consumer Protection Office
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The Energy Consumer Protection Office (ECPO) provides free dispute resolution processes to assist
Queensland electricity customers who have a complaint or a dispute with their electricity entity.

The ECPO offers a process of having complaints investigated, mediated and resolved by an independent third party if Queensland electricity customers are not satisfied with the response they receive from their electricity entity.

It only has power to mediate and arbitrate up to $20,000

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