Tort of Negligence Study Notes

Introduction to the Tort of Negligence

  • Negligence: breach of legal duty to take care, resulting in damage to the claimant (Winfield).

Stages of a Negligence Claim

  1. Duty of Care
  2. Breach of Duty (Factual and Legal)
  3. Causation (Complete or Partial)
  4. Defenses and Remedies

Duty of Care

  • Imposed legally in relationships (employer-employee, parent-child, doctors-patients).
  • Determined by precedents and analogies from previous cases.

Key Cases

  • Donoghue v Stevenson (1932): Established duty of care for manufacturers to consumers using the Neighbour Principle.
  • Caparo v Dickman (1990): Defined the three-part test for establishing duty of care, focusing on foreseeability, proximity, and fairness.

The Neighbour Principle

  • Individuals who are closely affected by one's actions should be considered in the duty of care.
  • Legal certainty vs. justice.

Incremental Approach

  • Categories of negligence can evolve; decisions are based on existing precedents and situations.
  • New categories can be recognized through analogy and justified extension.

Omissions in Negligence

  • General rule: no duty to act (pure omissions). Exceptions include special relationships, assumed responsibilities, created risks, and control over third parties.

Public Duty and Police Liability

  • Police have limited liability for non-action; must consider policy implications such as public interest and responsibility to protect citizens.