A finding by a County Court judge in a serious injury application under s 134AB(16)(b) of the Accident Compensation Act 1985 that a worker's injury is employment-related does not give rise to an issue estoppel in subsequent proceedings for statutory compensation. The court hearing a s 134AB application lacks jurisdiction to finally determine causation, and s 134AB(19A) confirms that Parliament did not intend such findings to preclude re-litigation. Workers cannot rely on favourable causation findings from serious injury applications to estop employers in subsequent statutory benefits proceedings.
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