ARBITRATION COURT.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 March 1917, Page 3

ARBITRATION COURT.

i (• » COMPENSATION CLAIMS. A sitting of the Court of Arbitration was held at tho court house, New Plymouth, on Wednesday, Mr Justice Stringer presiding, assisted by Mr J. A. M'Cullough (workers'representative) and Mr. W. Scott (employers' representative) The business consisted of two compensation claims under the Workers' Compensation Act. Benjamin Samuels, of Niho Niho, v. Solomon Samuels, his father, the South Ilritish Insurance Company, who had insured Solomon Samuels against workers' claims, being joined as a third party. 1 Mr A. H. Johnstone (instructed by Messrs Broadfoot and Finlay, of. Te Kuiti) appeared for plaintiff, and Mr. J. E. Wilson for the Insurance Company. The defence was that the plaintiff was r.ot a worker, but an independent contractor, that he had not suffered injury by accident in the course of employment, iind that he had incurred hypertrophy of fcis heart through continuous laborious work prior to the date of the. alleged accident. Evidence had been taken on commission at Taumarunui. Yesterday,-the plaintiff and Dr. Wade gave evidence in support of the claim, and the evidence of Dr. Blackley and Dr J. M. Tope, of Auckland, was called for the defence. After hearing the evidence and argument, the court reserved its decision. In the case of the Public Trustee, administrator of the estate of Alfred James Walter Allerby, v. James Benjamin Groom, of Rahotu, nurseryman, Mr A. H. Johnstone appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr. J. E. Wilson for defendant. The claim was for £474 10s as compensation for the death of Allesby, who bad been engaged by defendant as a gorse-grubber. The deceased was subject to epileptic fits, and his dead body was taken from a drain near which he was working, which was 18 inches deep and contained three or four inenes of water. Evidence was given by Constable O'Neill, Mr Groom, John Schinckel, the widow of the deceased, and Dr. Wade. The court found that deceased had died from suffocation, having fallen into the ditch whilst in the course of an epileptic seizure. Argument followed as to the liability of the employer under the circumstances of the death of the workman. Judgment was reserved. ,