The decision of a judge to dismiss a disability discrimination case which he described as a "trifle" and "nothing more than a try-on" has been overturned on appeal in a development described as a victory for the rights of people with disabilities.

Central Coast woman Kate Hinton launched a case against Westmead Private Hospital after it was unable to provide a sign language interpreter for her husband Anthony, who is deaf, to help him communicate with medical staff during the birth of their first baby last year.

Anthony Hinton, his wife Kate Hinton and their baby daughter Abigail. Credit:James Brickwood

The couple ended up having to switch to the public Westmead Hospital, which provided an Auslan interpreter free of charge.

The matter came before Judge Alexander "Sandy" Street in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, where he dismissed the case in February, comparing Mrs Hinton's request to her "buying a bag of chips" and expecting the shopkeeper to provide an interpreter.