Wipro Ltd v NSW [2022] NSWCA 265
Did employment in India under separate arrangements with the same entity count as part of ‘continuous service’ for long service leave purposes?8 This depended on territorial reach of the legislation and the presumption against extraterritoriality9, each of which depend on interpretation.
The task is to identify the ‘hinge’ or central conception of the legislation10, then to determine if there is a territorial connection in that respect. In this case, the so-called hinge was ‘continuous service’ in NSW so that employment in India was not to be counted. The court said earlier cases were ‘plainly wrong’ as they had applied the wrong legal test11.
This principle is from Episode 93 of interpretation NOW!
Footnotes:
8 s 4 of the Long Service Leave Act 1955 (NSW).
9 Infosys [2021] VSCA 219 (at [4-6]), Impiombato [2022] HCA 33 (at [61-62]).
10 Impiombato [2022] HCA 33 (at [59]), DRJ [2020] NSWCA 242 (at [157]).
11 Keenan [2020] FCAFC 204 (at [191]), Stone (No 2) [1971] AR 246 (at 253-254).