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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland > Tort Law

Contents 1 Introduction 2 General Negligence 3 Duty of Care 4 Notes and references 5 See also

Introduction

Negligence is a modern tort which has been developed by the Judiciary in the UK since the case of Donaghue v Stephenson^[1] first distinguished this as a novel tort, distinct from contract law.

Negligence has since been split into several subsection listed below.

• Nervous Shock
• Economic Loss
• Occupiers Liability
• Vicarious Liability

General Negligence

For an act to be proven negligent it is a requirement to show that;

1. A Duty of Care exists between the claimant and the defendant

2. There occured a clear breech of duty

3. Damage casued was of a foreseeable nature

Duty of Care

The original rule for defining duty of care was submitted alongside the ruling in Donaghue v Stephenson this stated that one should owe due consideration to one's neighbour, this being, those who are so closesly afected by one's actions that it is deemed that one ought to provide them with reasonable care and attention.

The "Neighbour Principle" was redefined in Caparo Industries v Dickman^[2] when the current test was put forward. Duty of care is now defined by the following formula;

1. Was the damage to claimant reasonably forseeable?

2. Was the relationship between the claimant and the defednent sufficiently proximate?

3. Is it just and reasonable to impose a duty of care?

Notes and references

1. ↑ Donaghue v Stephenson, [1932] AC 562
2. ↑ Caparo Industries plc v. Dickman, [1990] 2 AC 605

See also

• Find the notion "Negligence" in the UK legal internet