Question 1
In the first instance, the case was heard in Melbourne. Regarding the nature of dispute Willet had been a Senior Detective Constable and worked at the Victorian Police Force. She suffered from a depressive disorder that was depressive because she had been subjected to harassment and bullying when working at the police force. She was awarded damages amounting to $106,000 by the jury to compensate have for losing the enjoyment of life and suffering. After appealing to the Supreme Court, the damages were increased to $250,000.Medical evidence showed that the harassment and bullying contributed to Willet's mental disturbance.
Phrases that demonstrate that this is a civil case include “ We also accept that Willet did suffer serious mental injury as a the result of the respondent’s negligence”; “ The negligence of the respondent had deprived Willet of the career she has chosen, in which she was proficient” and “ Willet will be awarded damages in the sum of $ 1,250,000”.
Question 2
The outcome of the case was that the damages that had been issued by the jury were insufficient, and the plaintiff was not guilty of contributory negligence. Osborn JA dissented with the first judgment of his fellow judges concerning the manner in which the damages were assessed. The Judges at the Supreme Court agreed that the damages that were issued during the first instance were inadequate. According to Osborn J A, the Appellant was entitled to the $ 2,500, 000 damages because they were more realistic and could be compensated her for losing a promising career. Furthermore, the judges at the Court of Appeal overruled the early ruling that showed that there was contributory negligence on the part of Willet.
Question 3
If the State of Victoria were interested in challenging the decision of increasing damages, the court it would appeal to the High Court of Australia because the highest court in Victoria is the Supreme Court. The decisions that are made by the Supreme Court can be reviewed by the High Court of Australia can review (Reynolds, 2012).
The jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal encompasses determining whether trials were conducted in a fair manner and it establishes whether the law was applied correctly when conducting trails. The Court of Appeal hears civil and criminal cases that have been decided by the Supreme Court Trial Division and the County Court. Furthermore, it handles cases that have been decided by Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The court Hierarchy has many advantages, and the first one is that a court hierarchy enables a court to apply the precedent Doctrine. In addition to that, it helps the courts to handle appeals efficiently and increases the specialization of courts (Reynolds, 2012).
Question 4
A burden of proof refers to the minimum duty that must be met by the initiating party/ the plaintiff to prove the case against the defendant. The burden of proof is the obligation of substantiating a case that is before the court of law. The burden of proof in a criminal case should be “beyond a reasonable doubt". As such there should be no doubt about the facts of the case after an impartial and careful consideration of the evidence that is presented before the court. The burden of proof in civil cases is low. It is mere as “a preponderance of evidence” thus more than 50% of the evidence should support the legal assertions of the plaintiff (Reynolds, 2012).
The standard of proof for the criminal cases should be beyond “reasonable Doubts whereas the standard of proof in the civil cases should be convincing and clear evidence (Reynolds, 2012). It is noteworthy that a defendant that is not guilty of the criminal offense can be sued successfully in a civil trial. Under the civil suit, the victim is responsible for initiating and controlling the case. The victim files a document that sets outs the facts of a particular case and all the legal claims which are used to determine whether the defendant is liable under the civil law (Bird, 2013).
Question 5
During criminal trials, a jury decides whether according to the facts of a particular case, a party is guilty or not guilty of the accusations. The jury reaches its verdict by assessing all the evidence that is introduced in the Court, and it is not responsible for interpreting the law. The jury complies with the Judge's directions regarding the legal matters. The jury should be independent and impartial thus it should not be influenced by any party. Furthermore, all the statements that are made in the jury room should be kept confidential by all the jury members. Markedly, the role of the juries is civil trials is limited. The juries are used in exceptional civil cases. The jury has a role of deciding upon liability in the civil cases (Bird, 2013).
In Victoria, a jury would have been needed if the defendant or plaintiff made an application for a jury to be involved in the case. If one party would have wanted a jury to be involved in the case and the other party did not interest in involving a jury, the party that does not want the jury to be involved in the cases must try to persuade the court to do away with the jury (Reynolds, 2012).
Question 6
In the legal process, the “counsel’s is a crucial component in the criminal justice system. The counsel should be courageous and devoted in a bid to render a quality and effective representation of the client. The counsel should make extraordinary efforts to represent the best interest of the client. Besides, the defense counsel has a responsibility of improving and reforming the administration of justice. Furthermore, counsel should misrepresent the facts of the law when representing the accused or the accuser. Furthermore, counsel should not delay when handling cases (Bird, 2013).
The role of the solicitor in the legal process entails preparing for cases and advocacy. Litigation makes a small percentage of the total work that is carried out by a solicitor. The Appellant’s counsel in the case of Willet v State of Victoria were MR M J G Waugh and Mr. A J Keogh SC. The appellant’s solicitors were Clark Toop and Taylor. On the other hand, the Respondents’ Counsels were MS R L Kaye and Mr. M F Wheelan SC. Besides, the solicitor of the respondent was Wisewould Mahony. It is noteworthy that the abbreviation QC stands for Queen’s Counsel whereas the abbreviation SC stands for Senior Counsel.
Question 7
The role of precedent, in this case, is that it helped the judges to make a ruling that is reasonable and consistent with the judicial decisions that were made of previous cases of the same subject. The Case Hocking v Bell (1945) HCA 16 is persuasive because it is not written down as a law but it helped the judges to weigh the options regarding the damages that had been issued to the plaintiff.
The case Calin V Greater Union Organization (19910 VSC 23 is persuasive because it influenced the outcome of the case. Similarly, the case Lai Wee Lian v Singapore Bus service (1984) Sing AC 729 is persuasive because it persuaded the outcome of the case. The case State of Victoria v MclVer (2005) VSCA 50 is persuasive because it played a role in influencing the judges’ decision about contributory negligence.
Question 8
Originally, the case involved the claim of negligence and negligence refers to the failure to exhibit a level of care that could have been taken by a person with ordinary prudence under the same circumstances. Also, negligence can be defined as the failure to exercise a reasonable duty of care which may result in the injury of another party. The party must be owed the duty of care. Elements of negligence encompass the duty of care, the Breach of the duty, causation and damages. In the case of Willet versus The State of Victoria, the State of Victoria was found liable for Willett’s claim of being negligent because it failed to put reasonable measures to stop workplace bullying (Bird, 2013).
Question 9
One of the precedent cases that were noted in the case is the case of Sate of Victoria versus McLver and Ors (2005) VSCA 50; 11 Vr 458. In the case, the plaintiff sued the defendant because of the psychiatric illness that followed a wrongful arrest. According to the judgment, there was no evidence that the plaintiff’s behavior contributed to negligence the psychiatric illness.
The case was used as precedent because it was similar to the case of Willet versus the state of Victoria in some aspects. First and foremost, the plaintiff suffered psychiatric illness due to the employer’s negligence. Secondly, evidence was presented to the court to show that the plaintiff had contributed to the negligence.
Question 10
Concerning the court and legal system of the UK, the civil and criminal matters are administered by the Courts of England and Wales. The legislation is used to constitute courts, and they subordinate parliament. The Civil courts in the UK include Court of Appeal, High Court, and the Country Courts. The Criminal Courts in the UK include the Court of Appeal, Divisional Court of the High Court, Crown Court and the Magistrate Court (Bird, 2013).
In reference to the Court and Legal System of USA, there are two major types of courts systems namely the federal and state court system. The state courts are the lowest tier courts in the USA judicial system. The state courts resolve most of the legal issues in the various states. The federal courts are subdivided into the circuits and district. All states have federal districts mad those that are populous have more than one district. The federal lawsuits commence at the level of a district in a federal court (Bird, 2013).
References
Bird, R. (2013). James Butler, Supreme Court of Victoria Librarian 1988-2012. Austl. L. Libr., 21, 60.
Reynolds, S. (2012). Books for the profession: The library of the Supreme Court of Victoria. Australian Scholarly Publishing.
