What happened
A police officer sued the State for psychiatric injury from workplace bullying and harassment. The State accepted a duty of care but disputed breach, causation and damages.
A pre-existing back injury and other causes also affected his work capacity. Part 5 of the NSW Workers Compensation Act 1987 limited the claim to economic loss.
The issues
The court examined earnings that would have been lost even without the defendant's conduct, actual pay, promotion prospects, compensation already received and superannuation. It did not accept the claimed career path at face value.
To account for contingencies, it reduced past loss by 25% and future loss by 65%. These percentages reflected the evidence in this case; they are not standard rates.
The court's decision
The award comprised $350,056 for past economic loss and $603,188 for future economic loss, each including superannuation, for a total of $953,244. The court reserved its decision on costs and interest.
Understanding the figures
These Australian-dollar figures were assessed on 6 August 2025. They do not cover all injury losses, such as pain and suffering, treatment and care. The future-loss reduction cannot simply be applied to another psychiatric injury claim.
What this case shows
An earnings review can examine the pay records, unrelated causes, career assumptions and superannuation calculation.
These offer a useful focus for a second opinion on existing advice, rather than comparing totals from unrelated cases.
Why another case may differ
This explains a first-instance judgment and is not advice on an individual claim. Relevant official passages were checked on 8 November 2026, without an exhaustive appeal-history review. The case is not presented as work undertaken by Park & Co.
Applying it to your claim
Different facts, evidence or procedures, an appeal, or a change in the law may affect how this decision applies. This is general information, not a report of a case handled by Park & Co Lawyers.
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