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GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF LIABILITY (PARTIES (Minors- no special protection…
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF LIABILITY
INTERESTS PROTECTED
C's Property
- may be goods or land, protected by torts such as nuisance, trespass and negligence
Economic Interest
- protected to a limited extent particularly if there is damage to C's body, mind or property and the financial losses suffered by C are a consequence of physical harm
Personal Security
- personal injury to C's body or ind may be caused negligently or intentionally by D
Actionable Per Se
- C is required to prove that he has suffered some damage which is recognised in law as compensatable- area without proof of damage known as actionable per se such as trespass
THE MENTAL ELEMENT OF TORT
Negligence
- behaviour is measured against the 'reasonable person'. D will be negligent if he fell below the standard of reasonable care expected by the law in the circumstances
NETTLESHIP V WESTON [1971]
Strict Liability
- not necessary to prove adult and carelessness in order to establish liability in tort. Tort law sometimes holds D liable even when he has taken every reasonable care to avoid an accident
Vicarious Liability
- liability of employers for the torts of their employees
Defamation
- a claimant in defamation does not need to prove that D was careless in publishing a statement that caused to harm C's reputation
RYLANDS V FLETCHER [1868]
- liability for interfering unreasonably with another's use and enjoyment of land or the liability for accumulating dangerous substances that escape and cause harm to another's land
Malice
- doing something intentionally without lawful excuse or action with an improper motive (private nuisance and defences to defamation)
BRADFORD CORPORATION V PICKLES [1895]
Intention
- D must be shown to have intended to do the physical act which brings about the trespass but it is not a requirement that D intended to cause harm
OBJECTIVES OF TORT
DETERRENCE
Individual Deterrence
- based on the argument that D may change his conduct in the future if he has to compensate C for the damage caused by that behaviour
Market Deterrence
- based on the argument that those who participate in accident-causing activities should bear the cost of the activity
COMPENSATION
- generally perceived to be the main purpose served by the tort system
PARTIES
Minors
- no special protection from being sued in tort but people under 18 are rarely sued. Parents are responsible for the torts committed by their children only if the parent either failed to control the child or ordered the child to do the tortious act
Joint and Several Liability
- the law allows C to sue all or any individual wrongdoers, where more than one persons tort has contributed to the same damage
Artificial Legal Persons
- a corporation can sue or be sued
Administration of Justice
- public policy requires total immunity in some situations such as giving evidence in court
Sovereign Immunity
- the Crown is generally liable for the actions of its employees and agents but foreign sovereigns cannot be sued in the English Courts
PRIVACY
Reluctant to recognise a tort of privacy and established it is not necessary to recognise privacy as a right in order to comply with
Art 8 ECHR
WAINWRIGHT V HOME OFFICE [2003]
Some protection of personal information has been achieved in several cases through an action for breach of confidence
CAMPBELL V MIRROR GROUP NEWSPAPERS [2004]
TORT v CRIME & CONTRACT
CRIME
- an action to prove that a tort has been committed is brought by the victim who is seeking some redress and the standard of proof is the balance of probabilities
CONTRACT
- obligation on D to take care of C and C's interests arises in law and there may be no pre-existing relationship between C and D. Compensation paid to C seeks to put C back in the position he was before the accident occurred