lequebecfume
01-27-2011, 03:18 PM
Nimbin man's payout for pot plan
Daniel Hurst
January 28, 2011
http://images.brisbanetimes.com.au/2011/01/27/2155034/weed420-420x0.jpg
A Nimbin man plans to grow cannabis with a payout after a car crash.
A Nimbin man has told a tribunal he would use money from a damages payout to secure land for a cannabis crop.
The man, who is seeking damages for injuries from a 1996 car crash that occurred in Queensland, made the remark during a hearing to determine his mental capacity.
In a written decision published this week, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the man had the capacity to proceed with his claim for damages even though he had made “many unusual and bizarre comments”.
“AB”, whose full name has not been released, had been seeking damages in the Supreme Court of Queensland for injuries from a vehicle crash dating back to May 1996.
However, a Supreme Court hearing in 2009 was adjourned on the third day after AB's lawyer became concerned his client lacked capacity to provide instructions.
When AB appeared before the tribunal on November 22 last year, he said he would be prepared to represent himself in court if his lawyers did not wish to continue with his claim.
AB was asked how he would manage the damages he might recover from the claim.
“He told the tribunal that he intends to use the damages to obtain the use of some land to grow food and cannabis for pain relief purposes,” the written decision stated.
The written summary also described how the man had given a lengthy account of his views about existence, with AB contending that “as a living creature his being is separate from the words that form the name of AB”.
Much of the written material he provided explored the “dichotomy between his person and what the world at large calls that person and how it deals with him”.
AB also “expressed a lack of trust in conventional investments or banking arrangements, which was consistent with the apparent unconventional lifestyle choices he has made while a resident of Nimbin over the past few years”.
Doctor Oscar Serrallach, also from the northern New South Wales town, told the tribunal he was not aware of any medical condition that would impair AB's decision-making capacity.
However, he said the man's capacity may be affected by chronic cannabis use.
In the written decision, tribunal senior member Clare Endicott said AB had conceded he was effectively “playing a game with the courts” and had made many strange comments.
“Nevertheless, the tribunal is satisfied that he has insight into his actions despite his discursive narratives about the concept of being,” she wrote.
“AB has expressed to the tribunal that he holds unconventional values about lifestyle that many people would not agree with and would indeed object to, such as the use of cannabis for pain relief and production of that drug as a potential means of income support."
“However, the evidence before the tribunal falls far short of establishing a conclusion that the process of decision making used by AB has become impaired as a result of chronic cannabis use.”
The tribunal decision means the man will now be able to proceed with his damages claim in the Supreme Court.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/nimbin-mans-payout-for-pot-plan-20110127-1a6r5.html?from=brisbanetimes_sb
LEQ ZEPPELIN
Daniel Hurst
January 28, 2011
http://images.brisbanetimes.com.au/2011/01/27/2155034/weed420-420x0.jpg
A Nimbin man plans to grow cannabis with a payout after a car crash.
A Nimbin man has told a tribunal he would use money from a damages payout to secure land for a cannabis crop.
The man, who is seeking damages for injuries from a 1996 car crash that occurred in Queensland, made the remark during a hearing to determine his mental capacity.
In a written decision published this week, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the man had the capacity to proceed with his claim for damages even though he had made “many unusual and bizarre comments”.
“AB”, whose full name has not been released, had been seeking damages in the Supreme Court of Queensland for injuries from a vehicle crash dating back to May 1996.
However, a Supreme Court hearing in 2009 was adjourned on the third day after AB's lawyer became concerned his client lacked capacity to provide instructions.
When AB appeared before the tribunal on November 22 last year, he said he would be prepared to represent himself in court if his lawyers did not wish to continue with his claim.
AB was asked how he would manage the damages he might recover from the claim.
“He told the tribunal that he intends to use the damages to obtain the use of some land to grow food and cannabis for pain relief purposes,” the written decision stated.
The written summary also described how the man had given a lengthy account of his views about existence, with AB contending that “as a living creature his being is separate from the words that form the name of AB”.
Much of the written material he provided explored the “dichotomy between his person and what the world at large calls that person and how it deals with him”.
AB also “expressed a lack of trust in conventional investments or banking arrangements, which was consistent with the apparent unconventional lifestyle choices he has made while a resident of Nimbin over the past few years”.
Doctor Oscar Serrallach, also from the northern New South Wales town, told the tribunal he was not aware of any medical condition that would impair AB's decision-making capacity.
However, he said the man's capacity may be affected by chronic cannabis use.
In the written decision, tribunal senior member Clare Endicott said AB had conceded he was effectively “playing a game with the courts” and had made many strange comments.
“Nevertheless, the tribunal is satisfied that he has insight into his actions despite his discursive narratives about the concept of being,” she wrote.
“AB has expressed to the tribunal that he holds unconventional values about lifestyle that many people would not agree with and would indeed object to, such as the use of cannabis for pain relief and production of that drug as a potential means of income support."
“However, the evidence before the tribunal falls far short of establishing a conclusion that the process of decision making used by AB has become impaired as a result of chronic cannabis use.”
The tribunal decision means the man will now be able to proceed with his damages claim in the Supreme Court.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/nimbin-mans-payout-for-pot-plan-20110127-1a6r5.html?from=brisbanetimes_sb
LEQ ZEPPELIN