Appeals from serious injury determinations under s.135 of the Accident Compensation Act 1985 (Vic) are governed by the 'plainly wrong or wholly erroneous' standard from Mobilio v Balliotis, not the Warren v Coombes standard applicable to civil appeals generally. A back injury causing a disc prolapse with canal stenosis, resulting in significant lifestyle restrictions, ongoing pain requiring medication, loss of employment flexibility, and risk of future surgery, is capable of constituting a 'serious injury' even where the claimant retains employment and suffers only modest income loss.
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