Negligence in Tort Case Summaries
Detailed description of negligence cases, covering duty of care and breach. Includes the facts of the case, a short summary of the ratio and important quotes from the judges' reasoning.
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NEGLIGENCE & DUTY OF CARE
NEGLIGENCE AS AN INDEPENDENT TORT
As an independent tort, negligence dates from the late 19th century. It was not until Donoghue v Stevenson
in 1932 that the general elements were accepted as; a relevant duty of care owed by the defendant to the
plaintiff, and a breach of that duty which caused the damage of the plaintiff. At common law, the damage
must not be too remote a consequence of the defendant s liability, as required by legislation as well.
THE CONCEPT OF A DUTY OF CARE
A duty of care is the legal obligation to avoid conduct which involves the unreasonable risk of damage to
others, functioning as a control device that allows courts to determine the circumstances under which
liability for negligent conduct should exist.
Approaches to novel cases have included the incremental approach (on a case by case basis), and the salient
features approach. Lord Atk...
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