Posted on behalf of Bill Madden:

Dear All

Today the High Court of Australia delivered judgment in Tabet v Gett, which considered the availability of compensation for loss of a chance in medical negligence litigation.

The six members of the court who sat for the hearing wrote five judgments. None supported the concept.

The facts of the matter were somewhat different from those considered by the House of Lords in Gregg v Scott as the patient Ms Tabet had already suffered damage (however had a less than even chance of avoiding it).

The judgment is available online here:

http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/HCA/2010/12.html

Regards
Bill Madden
Slater & Gordon Lawyers / University of Western Sydney