Victorian Workcover Authority v Esso Australia Ltd

HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIAGLEESON CJ,GUMMOW, KIRBY, HAYNE AND CALLINAN JJVICTORIAN WORKCOVER AUTHORITY & ANOR      APPELLANTSANDESSO AUSTRALIA LTD   RESPONDENTVictorian WorkCover Authority v Esso Australia Ltd [2001] HCA 5313 September 2001M101/2000ORDER1.Appeal allowed with costs.2.Set aside order of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria.3.Matter remitted for consideration by the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria, consistently with the reasons of this Court, of any remaining grounds of appeal.On appeal from the Supreme Court of VictoriaRepresentation:R P Gorton QC with M F Wheelahan for the appellants (instructed by Wisewoulds)A G Uren QC with G A Lewis for the respondent (instructed by Middletons Moore & Bevins)Notice:  This copy of the Court's Reasons for Judgment is subject to formal revision prior to publication in the Commonwealth Law Reports.CATCHWORDSVictorian WorkCover Authority v Esso Australia LtdAccident compensation – Workers compensation – Section 138 of the Accident Compensation Act 1985 (Vic) confers an entitlement to indemnification upon employers or insurers who have paid or are liable to pay compensation – Section 60(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1986 (Vic) provides for damages in the nature of interest in respect of any proceeding for the recovery of debt or damages – Whether a proceeding to establish amount of indemnification under s 138 is a proceeding for the recovery of debt or damages.Words and phrases – "debt or damages".Accident Compensation Act 1985 (Vic), s 138.Supreme Court Act 1986 (Vic), s 60.GLEESON CJ, GUMMOW, HAYNE AND CALLINAN JJ.FactsThe first appellant is the Victorian WorkCover Authority...