law Flashcards
case studies
Esso v Commissioners for Customs and Excise (1976)
Does Esso have to pay purchase tax on the World Cup coins it gave away with its petrol?
- no more than 2 judges delivered similar ratios on any point
- judges reached the same decision but for different reasons
- in such a situation, a later court is permitted to decide that there is discernible ratio and therefore it will not be binding on future courts
R (Rogers) v Swindon NHS Trust (2006)
- Rogers applied for funding of unlicensed drug to treat terminal breast cancer
- refused by the NHS as the case wasn’t deemed exceptional.
- Court of Appeal ruled this as unreasonable, and therefore unlawful- Trust had no clear reasons.
Food Protection (Emergency Provisions) Order 1986
- came into affect 2hours after it was made and laid before Parliament
- prohibited the movement or slaughter of any sheep thought to have been affected by radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl incident
Cableways Installations Regulation 2004
required technical knowledge of cablecars, drag lifts and ski lifts
Air Navigation Order 1995
- followed 3 months later by Air Navigation (No.2) Order
- revoked and replaced the earlier order
- made expressly “to remedy defects and printing errors”
Afghanistan (UN Sanction) 2001
- made it illegal to supply funds to Osama Bin Laden
Austin v Southwark London Borough Council
Lord Hope established that the Supreme Court can use the Practice Statement after being renamed
Donoghue v Stevenson
- decomposed snail in ginger beer- consumer suffered personal injury as a result
- Lord Atkin established duty of care to manfuacturer
- neighbour principle and negligence
Hunter v Canary Wharf
- erection of Canary Wharf tower interfered with TV signal to Hunter in nearby block of flats
- sued in tort of nuisance
- distinguished Bridlington Relay v Yorkshire Electricity Board as case lost signal through electrical interference rather than a presence of a building
- Hunter won
Merritt v Merritt
- distinguished Balfour v Balfour
- both husbands living separately and promised to send money, and didn’t
- Balfour’s were still together, therefore it was seen as a domestic disagreement and not intended to be legally binding
- Merritt’s were separated, therefore the promise was seen as intending to be legally binding
Coltman v Bibby Tankers
- Coltman’s husband died when a ship crashed and sank
- sued under Employer’s Liability (Defective Equipment) Act 1969
- Definition of equipment did not include a ship
- Purposive judge ignored this and Coltman won, claiming a ship to be equipment
R v (Registrar General Exparte Smith)
- Smith murderer, denied information to find his birth mother
- adopted person will obtain birth certificate if over 18 and applies in the correct manner
- purposive judge said that the law did not consider criminals/murderers
Royal College of Nursing v DHSS 1981
- Abortion Act 1967: must be a ‘registered medical practitioner’ to carry out an abortion
- College used nurses
- Mischief rule judge said that the reason for the remedy was for abortions to be carried out safely by a trained professional. didn’t get sued
Re Sigsworth 1935
- Administration of Estates Act 1925
- Sigsworth killed his mother she died intestate
- Act states that money goes to remaining spouse or issue
- Judge modified law to include other relatives
LNER v Berriman
- no one supervised Berriman whilst oiling the tracks
- he was crushed by a train
- LNER wouldn’t compensate wife, as law stated in order for a watchman to be required workmen must be ‘repairing or relaying tracks’
- no compensation - literal rule judge
Pinner v Everett
literal rule definition- give words their ordinary, natural and dictionary meaning
Whiteley v Chappell
- Chappell used dead mans identity to vote
- an offence to ‘impersonate anyone entitled to vote’
- not liable, dead person not entitled
Fisher v Bell
- Bell displayed flick knives in shop window
- Restriction of Offensive Weapons Act 1957: “it is against the law to sell or offer to sell offensive weapons”
- contract law- a display is not an offer to sell, it is an invitation to treat
Allen
- Offences Against the Person Act 1861: offence to marry again without the previous marriage being ended in divorce
- Defence, crime impossible to commit
- golden rule judge: 2nd definition of marriage to go through the ceremony
Heydon’s case 1584
What is the true reason for the remedy- mischief rule
Smith v Hughes 1960
- prostitute in open window/balcony
- street offences act 1959: offence to solicit ‘in the street or a public place’
- found guilty
-LCJ Parker: ‘everyone knows this was an act to clean the streets’ ‘it didn’t matter where the soliciting was coming from’
Corkery v Carpenter
- rode a bike drunk
- Licensing Act 1872- illegal to be ‘drunk in charge of a carriage’
- true reason for the remedy- can’t control, could cause an accident and dangerous for the public
- liable
Pepper v Hart 1993
Hansard allowed to be used by judges
Jones v Tower Boot Co Ltd
- Jones a machine operative- suffered physical and verbal racial discrimination
- claimed racial discrimination against employer’s under vicarious liability
- could only sue if the actions were ‘during the course of employment’
- legal meaning- couldn’t be doing any unauthorised acts- not authorised to discriminate
-technically not liable but purposive judge ignored legal meaning- intention behind the Race Relations Act was to stop racial abuse
R v Howe
- Howe and older man killed 2 people in public toilets
- Howe’s defence argued duress
- no common law
-ratio- duress is not a defence to murder
R v Gotts
- told to kill his mother, or his father would kill him
- stabbed her in the face so she wouldn’t die
- defence was duress, no common law for attempted murddr
- obiter dicta for R v Howe ‘duress not a defence for attempted murder’
