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TORT LAW - Coggle Diagram
TORT LAW
LIABILITY IN NEGLIGENCE FOR ECONOMIC LOSS AND PSYCHIATRIC INJURY
PURE ECONOMIC LOSS CAUSED BY NEGLIGENT ACTS AND NEGLIGENT MISSTATEMENTS
A claimant can claim damages for
Any psychiatric injury suffered
Any damage to their propert
A claimant will not be able to claim for what is known as "pure economic loss". This is considered as being economic or financial loss which is not caused by physical injury or damage
Example: any loss of profit suffered by a business while it was unable to operate
Exception to this is that a claimant who suffers a financial loss as a result of a negligent misstatement will be able to claim for the loss if they can establish a "special relationship" with the defendant who gave the advice
LOSS CAUSED BY NEGLIGENT ACTS
Courts decided that loss of profit was more an issue of contract law than of tort law
Spartan Steel v Martins and Co.
Lord Denning said that the line must be drawn as a matter of policy, and that this loss of profit was better borne by insurers than by the defendant's alone
Weller v Foot and Mouth Disease Research Institute
The idea that pure economic loss being a loss of profit
LOSS CAUSED BY NEGLIGENT MISSTATEMENTS
Can be applied in two situations
Two-party liability - where A gives advice or makes a statement to B and D suffers loss in relying on it
Three-party liability - where A makes a statement to B, and B communicates it to C. C then suffers loss from relying on the statement
A claim may be made by those who suffer from financial loss as a result of a statement
Hedley Byrne v Heller and Partners
A special relationship between the claimant and defendant must be established
Caparo v Dickman
The possession of a special skill or expertise on the subject being advised on
A reliance by the claimant for the advice - the advice is used and acted on by the claimant
The advice is communicated directly to the claimant and not through a third party or by third party means
The person giving the advice knows that it is being required for the purpose described at the time to the defendant
There is no disclaimer to act as a defence
LIABILITY FOR PSYCHIATRIC INJURY SUSTAINED BY PRIMARY AND SECONDARY VICTIMS
Claims for psychiatric injury are a development of the law of negligence
Primary victims have to prove negligence on the part of the defendant
Secondary victims have more restrictions on what classifies as a successful claim
There was an accident or sudden event where the defendant was negligent which caused the injury
some form of mental injury
The claimant passes the Alcock criteria
That a person of reasonable fortitude would have suffered the same injury in the circumstances
NEGLIGENCE BY THE DEFENDANT HAS INITIALLY TO BE PROVED
The defendant owed a duty of care, they duty was breached and loss or damage was caused in psychiatric injury cases
A MENTAL INJURY
The claim will have to be supported by medical evidence and the injury will have to be sufficiently serious that the claimant is badly affected by it
Must be more than mere shock or grief - it must be a long-term injury that, for example, stops the claimant from working
Claim can therefore include loss of earnings, both past and future, while suffering from the injury
Must come from a sudden event