This detailed revision guide contains in-depth notes on the following modules:
-human rights and tort law
-negligence
-duty of care
-breach
causation
-defences and remedies
-trespass
-breach of statutory duty
-occupier's liability
-employers liability and vicarious liability
-nuisance an...
Topic 1 - Human Rights and Tort Law
Topic 2 - Negligence
Topic 3 - Duty of Care
Topic 4 - Duty of Care: Public Bodies
Topic 5 - Breach
Topic 6 - Causation
Topic 7 - Defences and Remedies
Topic 8 -Trespass
Topic 9 - Breach of Statutory Duty
Topic 10 - Occupiers’ Liability
Topic 11 - Employers’ Liability and Vicarious Liability
Topic 12 - Nuisance and the Rule in Rylands v Fletcher
Topic 13 - Defamation
Topic 14 - Privacy
1
, Topic 1 - Human Rights and Tort Law
The main rights in Tort Law:
o Right to life (Article 2) - Osman, Rabone
o Prohibition of torture, inhuman or degrading treatment (Article 3)- the “hooded men”
o Prohibition of slavery (Article 4 ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights)) -
Hounga
o Right to liberty and security (Article 5) - Lumba
o Right to a fair trial (Article 6) - Osman
o Right to private/family life, etc (Article 8) - Campbell, PJS
o Freedom of expression (Article 10) - Campbell, PJS
o Right to peaceful enjoyment of property/possessions (Art1, Protocol 1) - Marcic
The key principles that underlie the ECHR:
o Legality of the rule of law
o Transparency and accountability
o Effectiveness, ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ obligations
o Proportionality
o Margin of appreciation
Where a tort case engages a public authority as a defendant, the Human Rights Act 1998 will
apply
Topic 2 - Negligence
Harms include:
o Personal safety
o Damage to property
o Economic loss
Donoghue v Stephenson (1932) - general principle of negligence, Lord Atkin:
o ‘You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably
foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour.’
Negligence Claim - The Key Steps
Key Question: Should D be held responsible for the claimant’s loss?
o Does C have proof of damage?
No, then D NOT liable in tort.
Yes, then...
o Does D owe the claimant a duty of care?
No, then D NOT liable in tort.
Yes, then...
o Was D at fault?
No, then D NOT liable in tort.
Yes, then...
o Did D’s fault “cause” the claimant’s injury?
No, then D NOT liable in tort.
Yes, then D is liable.
o Any applicable defences; either full or partial?
2
, Psychiatric injury
To claim for psychiatric injury, it must be a recognised psychiatric injury
Hinz v Berry [1970]: ‘Damages are not awarded for the grief or sorrow caused by a person’s
death’.
Not possible to recover for mere grief, anxiety, or distress under tort of negligence
Perception of shock - this refers to a ‘sudden event’ which causes the C to go into ‘shock,’ must
be a sudden sensory perception
Lord Ackner in Alcock [1992]
o ‘The sudden appreciation by sight or sound of a horrifying event which violently agitates
the mind’
Primary and Secondary Victims
A primary victim is someone who was involved in the incident/accident, they were present and
more than a passive witness, usually physically injured or it was ‘reasonably foreseeable’ that
they could have been physically injured
Now primary victim is used to refer to C who is in “zone of physical danger” and who were
“participants” in physical event that caused the psychiatric harm
A secondary victim is a witness to an incident/accident and suffers psychiatric harm as a result
(not directly involved)
To limit the number of claims and regulate recovery, the courts imposed additional control
mechanisms to make it more difficult to recover compensation
Control mechanisms are set out in McLoughlin v O’Brian [1983] 1 AC 410
o Class of Persons
o The proximity of such persons to the accident
o The means by which the shock is caused
Class of Persons
Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police [1992] 1 AC 310
‘Close ties of love and affection’ between C and V
Rebuttable presumption in case of spouses, parents, and children
Decided on a case-by-case basis
Proximity of Persons to the accident
Close in both time and space
Did the C come upon the ‘immediate aftermath’?
Lord Wilberforce: ‘to insist on direct and immediate sight or hearing would be impractical and
unjust.’
‘In every case the underlying and essential postulate is a relationship of proximity between
plaintiff and defendant…’ Lord Oliver
Means by which the shock is caused
Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police [1992] 1 AC 310
The shock must come through sight or hearing of the event or its immediate aftermath
Television coverage is considered in some cases
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