Psychiatric Injury Flashcards
What 3 things are needed for a claim of psychiatric injury to succeed?
1) their injury is a recognised psychiatric injury AND
2) causation is present AND
3) claimant is a primary or secondary victim
What 2 cases do we use for recognised psychiatric injury
Frost v chief constable of South Yorkshire
Reilly v Merseyside regional health authority
What is causation in psychiatric injury
There must be a casual link between the defendants breach of duty and the damage.
What case do we use for causation in psychiatric injury?
Calascione v Dixon
What are the 2 types of victims of psychiatric injury
Primary
Secondary
What are primary victims
Those at the scene of the incident who are within the zone of danger created by defendants negligence and suffer mental injury. Must be foreseeable that they could have suffered some form of physical injury.
What 3 things does a primary victim need
1) in zone of danger
2) physical harm is foreseeable
3) actually suffer psychiatric harm
Why did dulieu v white & sons become a primary victim
There was physical harm and she was in zone of danger
What is Donachie v Chief constable of greater Manchester an example of
C does not need to be involved in accident to claim primary
What rule did page v smith make clear
Psychiatric injury itself does not need to be foreseeable as long as physical is.
What 2 things makes someone a secondary victim
Witnessed the accident itself or it’s aftermath
Suffered psychiatric damage
Why could bourhill v young not claim for psychiatric injury?
Not in zone of danger
No physical harm
What are the 2 most important cases for secondary victims
Mcloughin v Obrein
Alcock v chief constable of South Yorkshire police
What 4 criteria are needed for a secondary victim psychiatric claim?
1) reasonably foreseeable that a person of normal fortitude would have suffered psychiatric injury as a result of claimant negligence
2) close ties of love and affection between C and person in accident
3) proximity in time and space
4) c must perceive the accident or immediate aftermath with their own senses
What case do we use for secondary victims damage being reasonable foreseeable
Paige v smith
