Claim relies upon State of Queensland v Heraud

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Crown Law this week was able to have a claim against
the State of Queensland discontinued by relying upon the case of State of
Queensland v Heraud
[2011] QCA 297.

In Heraud, it was held that a
claimant cannot join the State of Queensland as a respondent to a claim under the
Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002, in circumstances where the State
is, or will be, also a respondent to the claim as the claimant's employer under
the Workers Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003.  In those
circumstances, a claimant will be defined as a worker and the injury sustained
by the claimant may be one that is specifically excluded by the operation of s.
6(2) of the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act.

In brief, therefore, if the State of
Queensland is the claimant’s employer and the injury was sustained as part of
the claimant's work, the State of Queensland cannot be joined under the Personal
Injuries Proceedings Act
, even if the claim is brought against another
department, on the grounds that the State of Queensland is considered as being
one entity.