Frost v Warner (The "N'Gluka") - High Court of Australia (Gleeson CJ, Gaudron, Gummow, Kirby and Callinan JJ) - 7 February 2002

Negligence - Duty of care - Motor vessel accident caused by vessel being grossly overloaded - Whether respondent's status as holder of certificate of registration conferred requisite degree of control to found direct or vicarious liability

On 8 January 1990 the motor vessel N'Gluka sank in Port Stephens, New South Wales resulting in the death of five children trapped in the front cabin. The appellants were on board the vessel and were the immediate family of one of the children who died in the accident. They commenced proceedings in the District Court of New South Wales claiming damages for nervous shock and other psychological trauma. The defendants in that action were Mr Warner who was the navigator and person in charge of the vessel and the respondent. The cause of the sinking was that the vessel had been grossly overloaded and it had been Mr Warner who allowed far too many people to travel on the vessel.