Geoffrey Hancy - Barrister

Cases // Transport & Marine

Geoff has handled a wide variety of transport cases.

His record of decided transport cases starts with standard motor vehicle collisions, but spans unusual collisions such as between road trains, between road train and hauled caravan, with ship unloader, and with animals straying on to highways.

The cases have covered seafarer’s compensation, employment discrimination, sinking of vessel in a cyclone, goods lost at sea, what is the 'sea', parasailing, damage to shipped gas turbines, vessel fire, insurance non-disclosure, interference with contractual relations, payment for bunkers, charterparty, conflicts of law, bailment on terms, damaged ship unloader, port authority loss, aviation accidents.  He has acted in train derailment cases.

2021
[2021] WADC 61
Essaiyd v Saint

Worker injured hand on fishing vessel. Successfully recovered small amount of damages from skipper and substitute skipper. Claim against owner of vessel failed. Employer’s liability. Occupier’s liability. Statutory liability. Client was successful in that one claim failed and the modest damages awarded in the District Court were well below the limit of the jurisdiction of the Magistrates Court

[2019] WASCA 17
Osborne Park Commercial Pty Ltd v Miloradovic

Liability of owner of warehouse to customer using accessway not occupied by owner.  Customer injured by reversing truck combination driven recklessly by unrelated third party. No established category duty of care.  Whether duty of care owed by store owner to customer collecting goods. Reasonable foreseeability. Breach of duty. Causation.  On appeal client was not successful

2017
[2017] WADC 129
Miloradovic v Osborne Park Commercial

At trial client was not successful.  Claim for contribution by tortfeasor who reversed truck and trailer combination into customer of warehouse owner.  Apportionment of liability.  Warehouse owner ordered to pay contribution despite telling customer to go to a warehouse bay

[2014] WADC 147
Sovereign Grange Pty Ltd v Gwynfor Pty Ltd

No appeal. At trial client was not successful.  Tyre seller client. Road transport.  Prime mover and trailers ran off highway and were damaged when steer tyre catastrophically failed after over 170,000 km of use.  Seller of tyre held liable for breach of implied contractual terms of fitness for purpose and merchantable quality.

[2014] HCA 33
Maxwell v Highway Hauliers Pty Ltd

Before High Court client was successful.  On appeal client was successful before Court of Appeal. At trial client was successful. Road transport company client. Heavy haulage vehicle insurance. Insurance Contracts Act (Cth) s54. After contract made insured prime movers were driven by drivers who were not ‘PAQS’ tested, contrary to a term of policy.  Decision of trial judge and Court of Appeal, requiring insurers to indemnify insured, upheld. Insurers’ appeal to the High Court dismissed

[2013] WASCA 115 (S)
Maxwell v Highway Hauliers

Interlocutory decision, client was successful.  Insurers unreasonably failed to accept settlement offer for appeal. Ordered to pay indemnity costs from date when offer ought to have been accepted.

[2013] WASCA 115
Maxwell v Highway Hauliers

Before High Court client was successful.  On appeal client was successful before Court of Appeal. At trial client was successful. Road transport company client. Heavy haulage vehicle insurance. Decision of trial judge, requiring insurers to indemnify insured, upheld. Insurers’ appeal dismissed

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