Duty of care Flashcards
What are the elements of negligence?
- Loss or damage
- Duty of care
- Breach of duty
- Causation
- Remoteness
- Defences
What are the types of loss or damage?
o Physical/bodily injury
o Psychiatric harm
o Property damage
o Consequential economic loss
o Pure economic loss
What is consequential economic loss?
Results from personal injury/property damage
What is psychiatric harm in tort?
Generally more than emotional distress/recognised mental illness
What was the three stage test of determining a duty of care laid out in Caparo v Dickman?
- Foreseeability of harm (objective)
- Proximity between claimant and defendant
- Fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty
What is the approach to novel situations where a duty of care may be established?
Develop law incrementally by analogy to established authorities
What was the duty of care established in Nettleship v Weston?
road users owe duties to other road users
What was the duty of care established in Cassidy v Ministry of Health?
medical professional owe duty to patients
What was the duty of care established in Robinson v CC West Yorkshire?
police owe duty to protect from reasonably foreseeable physical injury when arresting
What are the exceptions to the general rule that there is no duty of care for omissions?
- statutory duty
- contractual duty
- assumed responsibilty
- sufficient control over claimant
- creation of dangerous situation
Do the ambulance service owe a duty of care for omissions?
duty of care to respond to 999 call within reasonable time
* May not breach if dealt with more pressing emergency first
Do the fire brigade owe a duty of care for omissions?
No duty to attend fire but if they do -
* Duty not to make situation worse through positive act
Do the police owe a duty of care for omissions?
No duty to respond to emergency calls but owe a duty in some circumstances
What are the exceptions to the rule that there is no duty to prevent a third party causing harm?
- Sufficient proximity between defendant and claimant
- Sufficient proximity between defendant and third party
- Defendant created the danger
- Risk was on defendant’s premises
When will there be a duty to prevent a third party causing harm if there is proximity between the defendant and the claimant?
C is an identifiable victim at risk over and above public at large and
D assumed responsibility through words/conduct
