October 2, 2025
Mr Murphy purchased a house built on a defective concrete raft foundation which had been approved by the council's independent consulting engineers. When cracks appeared and the house became dangerous, he sold it at a loss. The House of Lords departed from Anns v Merton, holding that local authorities owe...
September 30, 2025
James Mitchell, aged 72, was fatally assaulted by his neighbour James Drummond following years of threats and anti-social behaviour. Mitchell's widow and daughter sued Glasgow City Council, their landlord, alleging the Council owed a duty of care to warn Mitchell about a meeting with Drummond concerning potential eviction. The court...
September 30, 2025
Joanna Michael made a 999 call reporting threats from her ex-partner. Due to communication failures between two police forces, officers arrived too late and she was murdered. The Supreme Court held police owed no common law duty of care to protect individuals from third-party violence absent an assumption of responsibility,...
September 30, 2025
The widow of a man who died from lung cancer sued a tobacco manufacturer for negligence. The court dismissed the claim, finding she had failed to prove that any breach of duty by the company caused her husband to smoke. Facts The pursuer, Mrs McTear, brought an action for damages...
September 30, 2025
Mrs McLoughlin suffered severe psychiatric illness after arriving at hospital to find her family seriously injured and her daughter dead following a road accident caused by the defendants' negligence. The House of Lords held she could recover damages for nervous shock despite not witnessing the accident itself, establishing that liability...
September 30, 2025
A cargo ship developed hull cracks during a voyage. A classification society surveyor initially recommended permanent repairs but reversed this decision, allowing the vessel to sail with temporary repairs. The ship sank, losing all cargo. Cargo owners sued the classification society in negligence. The House of Lords held no duty...
September 30, 2025
Mrs Malone, a licensee occupying premises through her husband's employment, was injured when a cistern bracket fell. The Court of Appeal held she could not sue the property owners for nuisance (having no proprietary interest) or negligence (no contractual duty owed to her). This case established that only those with...
September 30, 2025
A lorry driver negligently injured his father while reversing in a yard during employment. The employer, held vicariously liable, sought indemnity from the driver. The House of Lords held that employees owe an implied contractual duty of care to employers and rejected implied terms protecting drivers from personal liability through...
September 30, 2025
Boys at a residential school were sexually abused by the warden employed to care for them. The House of Lords held that the school owners were vicariously liable for the warden's torts, as his wrongdoing was closely connected with his employment duties of caring for the children, overruling the restrictive...
September 30, 2025
Soil and debris fell from the National Trust's hillside onto neighbouring properties due to natural geological instability. The Court of Appeal held that landowners owe a duty of reasonable care to prevent naturally occurring hazards on their land from damaging neighbours' property, following Goldman v Hargrave. Facts The National Trust...
September 30, 2025
A mother sued Pembrokeshire County Council in negligence after her children's names were wrongly placed on the Child Protection Register. The court struck out the negligence claim, following D v East Berkshire, holding that social workers investigating suspected child abuse owe no duty of care to parents suspected of abuse...
September 29, 2025
An asthmatic woman suffered respiratory arrest after the London Ambulance Service took 34 minutes to respond to an emergency call, when it should have arrived within 20 minutes. The Court of Appeal held that the ambulance service owed a duty of care to the claimant once the call was accepted,...
September 29, 2025
A claimant in a personal injury case sued his expert witness psychologist for negligently signing a joint statement that damaged his case and led to a reduced settlement. The Supreme Court abolished the immunity from negligence claims that expert witnesses had previously enjoyed when providing evidence for their instructing clients....
September 29, 2025
Parents wrongly suspected of child abuse sought damages for psychiatric injury caused by doctors' negligent misdiagnosis. The House of Lords held that healthcare professionals investigating child abuse owe no duty of care to parents, only to the child, due to the potential conflict of interest between protecting children and parents'...
September 24, 2025
Police officers sued the Commissioner alleging breach of duty in defending civil proceedings brought against her based on their alleged misconduct. The Supreme Court held that no duty of care was owed to officers to conduct litigation so as to protect their economic or reputational interests, as imposing such a...
September 24, 2025
A 13-year-old girl was struck by a car after stepping out from behind a school minibus. The driver was travelling too fast and failed to keep proper lookout. The Supreme Court reduced the girl's contributory negligence from 70% to 50%, holding both parties equally responsible for the accident. Facts On...
September 24, 2025
A hotel collapsed due to a massive landslip caused by natural cliff instability. The hotel owners sued the local council who owned the land between the hotel and the sea. The Court of Appeal held that while a measured duty of care existed regarding land support, liability was limited to...
September 24, 2025
The mother of Jacqueline Hill, murdered by Peter Sutcliffe (the 'Yorkshire Ripper'), sued West Yorkshire Police for negligence in failing to apprehend him sooner. The House of Lords held that police owe no duty of care to individual members of the public in investigating crime, and public policy considerations supported...
September 24, 2025
Four employees claimed damages for psychiatric illness caused by workplace stress. The Court of Appeal established practical principles for employer liability in occupational stress cases, allowing three appeals and dismissing one. The court held that foreseeability of psychiatric harm to the specific employee is the threshold question. Facts Four appeals...
September 24, 2025
A bungee jumping operator sued an HSE inspector for negligent advice given to local councils, which led to improvement and prohibition notices being served against his business. The Court of Appeal held that no duty of care was owed by inspectors to business owners for economic loss caused by enforcement...
September 24, 2025
Mrs Gwilliam, aged 63, was injured using a 'splat-wall' at a hospital charity fair due to negligent setup by an independent contractor. The contractor's insurance had lapsed. The Court of Appeal considered whether the hospital owed a duty to check the contractor's insurance and whether that duty was breached. Facts...
September 24, 2025
A fire officer attended an accident scene where his son had been injured through his own negligent driving. The father suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after witnessing his son's injuries. The court held that a person who inflicts injuries upon himself owes no duty of care to third parties who suffer...
September 24, 2025
Mrs Gorringe was severely injured when her car collided with a bus at a road crest. She sued the highway authority for failing to paint warning signs on the road. The House of Lords held that neither the statutory duty under section 39 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 nor...
September 24, 2025
Children were scalded when a tea urn was dropped in a narrow passage at a tea room managed by the Corporation. The House of Lords held that the manageress could not reasonably have foreseen the accident occurring from permitting the urn to be carried through, and thus no negligence was...
September 22, 2025
Mrs Geary sustained tetraplegia after sliding down banisters in a pub and falling backwards onto the marble floor below. She sued the pub owners for negligence. The court held that she had voluntarily assumed an obvious and inherent risk, and the defendant owed no duty to protect her from her...
April 27, 2026
National Case Law Archive
April 27, 2026
National Case Law Archive
April 27, 2026
National Case Law Archive