Corr v IBC Vehicles Ltd [2008] UKHL 13 (27 February 2008)

Mr Corr suffered severe physical and psychological injuries in a workplace accident caused by his employer's negligence. He developed severe depression and committed suicide six years later. The House of Lords held that his suicide was a foreseeable consequence of his depression and the employer remained liable under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976.

Facts

Mr Thomas Corr was employed as a maintenance engineer by IBC Vehicles Limited. On 22 June 1996, he suffered severe injuries when an automated machine struck him, nearly decapitating him and severing most of his right ear. He underwent painful reconstructive surgery and suffered persistent physical problems including headaches, tinnitus and unsteadiness. He also developed post-traumatic stress disorder and severe clinical depression.

His depression worsened over time. He experienced flashbacks, nightmares, and increasingly strong feelings of hopelessness. He was hospitalised for treatment including electro-convulsive therapy. On 23 May 2002, nearly six years after the accident, Mr Corr committed suicide by jumping from a multi-storey car park while suffering from a severe depressive episode.

Issues

The central issue was whether Mr Corr’s death by suicide was caused by the employer’s wrongful act within the meaning of section 1 of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, entitling his widow to recover damages. The employer raised several defences:

Scope of duty

Whether the employer’s duty of care extended to protecting against self-harm.

Foreseeability

Whether suicide was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the breach.

Novus actus interveniens

Whether Mr Corr’s deliberate act of suicide broke the chain of causation.

Unreasonable conduct

Whether the suicide was unreasonable conduct breaking causation.

Volenti non fit injuria

Whether Mr Corr voluntarily consented to his death.

Contributory negligence

Whether damages should be reduced for Mr Corr’s contribution to his death.

Judgment

The House of Lords unanimously dismissed the appeal on liability, holding the employer liable for Mr Corr’s death.

Lord Bingham, delivering the leading opinion, held that once it was accepted that depression was a foreseeable consequence of the accident, the claimant did not need to establish that suicide itself was foreseeable. Suicide was a not uncommon consequence of severe depression. Mr Corr’s suicide was not a novus actus interveniens because it was not a voluntary, informed decision by a person of sound mind, but rather the response of someone suffering from a severely depressive illness that impaired his capacity for reasoned judgment.

Lord Bingham rejected the application of the M’Naghten test of insanity, noting there was no need for such a blunt instrument in civil law. He assessed contributory negligence at 0%, finding no blame should attach to Mr Corr for consequences of a situation created by his employer’s breach.

Lord Scott agreed on liability but would have reduced damages by 20% for contributory negligence, noting Mr Corr retained some autonomy in his decision.

Lords Walker, Mance and Neuberger agreed with Lord Bingham on liability. Lords Mance and Neuberger left open the possibility that contributory negligence deductions could be appropriate in other cases but declined to make any reduction given the lack of proper argument on the point.

Implications

This case establishes important principles regarding employer liability for psychiatric consequences of workplace accidents:

• Where physical injury is foreseeable, psychiatric injury including severe depression is also recoverable
• Suicide can be a foreseeable consequence of severe depression without needing to be independently established as foreseeable from the original accident
• A deliberate act of suicide does not necessarily break the chain of causation where it results from mental impairment caused by the defendant’s breach
• The M’Naghten test of insanity is inappropriate for civil liability purposes
• Courts must take a nuanced approach to questions of autonomy and responsibility when mental capacity is impaired

The decision reinforces the principle that tortfeasors must take their victims as they find them, and that modern understanding of psychiatric illness should inform legal analysis of causation and responsibility.

Verdict: Appeal dismissed. The employer was held liable for Mr Corr's death under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976. No reduction for contributory negligence was made.

Source: Corr v IBC Vehicles Ltd [2008] UKHL 13 (27 February 2008)