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WHAT IS THE DEGREE OF PROBABILITY THAT DAMAGE WILL BE DONE IN CASES INVOLVING BREACH OF DUTY

Care must be taken in respect of a risk that is reasonably foreseeable. Nearly all human actions involve some risk of damage, but not every risky act will result in liability.  Bolton v Stone [1951] 1 All ER 1078   The plaintiff was injured on the highway by a cricket ball hit from the defendants’ ground. The ball had been hit 100 yards and cleared a 17-foot fence which was 78 yards from the batsman. The evidence showed that the ball had only been hit out of the ground six times in the previous 30 years. The defendants were found not to have been negligent, as the risk was so small that the reasonable man would have been justified in disregarding it. This case was also argued in nuisance, but counsel conceded that if he could not succeed in negligence, he could not succeed in nuisance. The key question here was the degree of probability rather than the costs of prevention but in a later case (Shine v London Borough of Tower Hamlets [2006] All ER ...
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LAW OF TORT: LIABILITY FOR OMISSION IN LAW

In Donoghue v Stevenson (1932), Lord Atkin referred to ‘acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour’. The reference to omissions here was to an omission in the course of positive conduct, for example, if a person is driving a car and omits to apply the brakes. At this time the conventional view was that there was no liability in negligence for a simple failure to act for another person’s benefit. Example X has fallen into a river and is drowning. X calls out for help. Y is walking along the river bank and hears X. There is a lifebelt provided on the bank but Y walks past and does nothing. In these circumstances there is no liability on Y as he does not owe X a duty of care, unless there is a relationship between X and Y which gives rise to a duty to act positively. What would be the position if Y embarked on a rescue attempt and then withdrew, making X’s position worse? By embarking on a positive act, does Y undertak...
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President’s PhD Scholarships at Imperial College London

Brief description: If you are a high performing undergraduate or Master’s student and have a strong desire to undertake a PhD programme at a world class research institution, you could be selected to receive full tuition fees and a generous stipend for a PhD place at Imperial College London. The President’s PhD Scholarships aims to provide up to 50 research students with great potential the opportunity to work within their chosen research field with the support of an excellent supervisor. Host Institution(s): Imperial College London, UK Level/Field of study: Eligible PhD Programmes offered at the University Number of Awards: 50 Target group: Students of any nationality Scholarship value/duration: Successful candidates will receive the following financial support for up to 3.5 years: •  Full funding for tuition fees •  A stipend of £21,200 per annum to assist with living costs •  A c...
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