The Tutty Case

Abstract

Buckley v Tutty is the leading Australian case dealing with the economic freedom of players of professional team sports. The High Court found the New South Wales Rugby League's (NSWRL) retain and transfer system to be an unreasonable restraint of trade. This case, the only one of its type to be determined by the High Court, has been used as a precedent in other sports employment cases. It has enhanced the economic rights of players and has aided player associations in developing comprehensive collective bargaining deals with their respective leagues. This paper is divided into three sections. It begins with the background and circumstances associated with Dennis Tutty's challenge to the NSWRL's employment rules. This is followed with an analysis of the case law associated with the High Court's decision. It concludes with an examination of the case's broader significance for the governance of Australian sport.

Biography

Braham Dabscheck is a Senior Fellow at the Melbourne Law School at the University of Melbourne. He is a long term industrial relations scholar. He writes on Australian industrial relations, industrial relations theory and industrial relations in professional sport. He has been an expert witness in leading sports cases, a consultant to player associations in both Australia and overseas and has participated in collective bargaining negotiations in Australian sport. He is an independent member of the Australian Football League Players Association Player Agent Accreditation Board. He was the editor of The Journal of Industrial Relations from 1991 to 1999.