Court of Final Appeal rejects widow's claim for work-injury compensation
Court of Final Appeal rules against woman seeking work-injury compensation after the unexplained death of her husband
The city's top court yesterday dismissed an appeal by a widow seeking work-injury compensation from the employer of her late husband, whose body was cremated without undergoing an autopsy in 2007.
Sibly Sit Wing-yi lost her claim against Berton Industrial, which had employed her husband, Randie Cheung Ka-wai, who died at the age of 37.
The Court of Final Appeal will give reasons for its decision at a later date.
Cheung was a merchandiser for Berton, which makes inexpensive products such as plastic toys. He was found collapsed in a toilet at their offices in Dongguan , Guangdong province, in July 2007 and certified dead soon after. He is survived by Sit and their son.
The case centres on a clause in the Employees' Compensation Ordinance which states an employer must pay compensation "if in any employment, personal injury by accident arising out of and in the course of the employment is caused to an employee".
Cheung's body was cremated shortly after it was returned to Hong Kong. No autopsy was conducted. A doctor in Dongguan could not certify the cause of death.
Two pathologists who examined Cheung's medical history said there was not enough evidence to ascertain the cause of death. Neither was there evidence to determine whether his death was it was due to a previous medical condition or was related to his job.
