Omissions CASES

October 4, 2025

National Case Law Archive

Lady justice with law books

Sutradhar v Natural Environment Research Council [2006] UKHL 33

A Bangladeshi national sued a UK research council for his arsenic poisoning, arguing it had a duty to test for arsenic when surveying water in Bangladesh. The House of Lords held no duty of care existed as the survey's purpose was different. Facts The claimant, Mr Sutradhar, a citizen of Bangladesh, suffered from skin lesions caused by arsenic poisoning after drinking water from a well in his village. The defendant, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), is a UK-based public body. Its subsidiary, the British Geological Survey (BGS), conducted a hydrogeological survey of groundwater resources in Bangladesh, funded by the

October 4, 2025

National Case Law Archive

Lady justice next to law books

Stovin v Wise [1996] UKHL 15

A motorcyclist was injured at a dangerous junction. He sued the council for failing to exercise its statutory power to remove an obstruction. The House of Lords held the council was not liable for this omission, establishing that a statutory power does not create a common law duty of care. Facts The plaintiff, Mr Stovin, was seriously injured when his motorcycle collided with a car driven by the defendant, Mrs Wise, at a T-junction. Visibility at the junction was dangerously restricted by a bank of earth on land owned by British Rail. The highway authority, Norfolk County Council, was aware