McDonald Jones Stadium fall: Court of Appeal rules in favour of Venues NSW

It was a wet and windy winter afternoon at Broadmeadow more than four years ago when Kerri Kane took a tumble as she navigated steps on the lower western side of McDonald Jones Stadium.

She was awarded more than $90,000 after a judge found at the end of a three-day trial in the district court that Venues NSW, the government agency that occupies the site, had been negligent for not installing a handrail.

A panel of three judges in the NSW Court of Appeal has now ordered that judgment be set aside, causing Ms Kane's payout to fall over, and instead ruling in favour of Venues NSW.

As Ms Kane walked down the steps while at a game with her husband and friend about 5.30pm on July 6, 2019, there was a concrete wall and glass balustrade to her right and seating to her left.

She slipped and "fell suddenly" backwards onto the concrete then "stood up some five seconds later".

The main issue for the court - both at the trial and on appeal - was whether a "reasonable person" in the place of Venues NSW should have installed a handrail.

"The risk was familiar and obvious," Justice Mark Leeming wrote in his judgment.

"The use of stepped aisles without handrails in similar stadiums is commonplace."

He said McDonald Jones Stadium had been certified as fully compliant eight years earlier.

He noted there had been no evidence of a history of falls resulting in injuries, despite the stairs being used by "literally" millions of spectators.

The Turton Road venue is the homeground of the Newcastle Knights and the Newcastle Jets Football Club.

Ms Kane's evidence at trial was that she had definitely not overstepped and completely missed the stair, that she was wearing joggers and being cautious in the wet conditions.

Venues NSW had argued that the structure was fully compliant, the surface of each step was highly slip-resistant, and similar set-ups were in place in other venues.

The trial heard from expert witnesses on both sides.

Justice Leeming said the stadium by nature would be busy and if a handrail had been on the concrete wall of the aisle where Ms Kane fell, people going up and down on the seat side would not have been able to use it.

He also said patrons could have their hands full of food, drinks or bags.

"Those considerations matter because most users of the stairs will be doing so when there are thousands of people in the stadium who want to move about at half-time or at the conclusion of an NRL or A-League match, and so the greatest usage will be when the aisle is crowded," he said.

He wrote that while some may not make use of a precaution like a handrail, it did not mean the responsible person should not bother implementing it, but its effectiveness was relevant.

"I do not accept that a reasonable person in the position of Venues NSW would install a handrail along those aisles which had a concrete side," he said in his judgment.

Ms Kane was also ordered to pay the costs of Venues NSW in the Court of Appeal.

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