The Dust Diseases Board cannot refuse a claim for compensation under s 8 of the Workers' Compensation (Dust Diseases) Act 1942 (NSW) on the basis that the claimant has already recovered common law damages. The requirement in s 1(1) of the DD Act that it be 'construed with' the Workers Compensation Act 1987 does not incorporate the operative provisions of the latter (including s 46 and s 151Z(1)(c)) into the DD Act. The statutory scheme avoids double recovery through the mechanism in s 8E, which allows the DDB to recover from the common law defendant amounts deducted from damages.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 5 later cases that cite this judgment.
1 of the 5 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.