Without assuming prior legal knowledge, books in the Directions series introduce and guide readers through key points of law and legal debate. Questions, diagrams, and exercises help readers to engage fully with each subject and check their understanding as they progress. This book covers all the core areas of tort law, combining an engaging approach with plenty of learning features. It provides a detailed introduction to the key principles of tort law, and illustrates the points of law through discussions of important court cases. Key cases are discussed to illustrate the main principles of tort law; they help to bring the subject to life, allowing students to see how the law operates in practice. This new edition of the text includes increased focus on the influence of human rights on tort law. It is fully updated with recent case law highlighting how quickly tort law is developing particularly.
Book
Carol Brennan
Without assuming prior legal knowledge, books in the Directions series introduce and guide readers through key points of law and legal debate. Questions, diagrams, and exercises help readers engage fully with each subject and check their understanding as they progress. This book covers all the core areas of tort law, combining an engaging approach with plenty of learning features. It provides a detailed introduction to the key principles of tort law, and illustrates the points of law through discussions of important court cases. Key cases are discussed to illustrate the main principles of tort law; they help to bring the subject to life, allowing students to see how the law operates in practice. This new edition of the text includes increased focus on the influence of human rights on tort law. It is fully updated with recent case law highlighting how quickly tort law is developing particularly.
Chapter
1. Introduction
This introductory chapter begins by providing examples of torts. It then discusses the aims of the law of torts, the most significant being compensation and deterrence. Part of the justification for a tort is that it identifies what actions should be avoided and deters people from engaging in them. It is essential to know that action is wrongful, but a tort action may over-deter or under-deter. It may over-deter where the perception of the chance of liability is exaggerated. It may under-deter where either the chances of somebody suing to enforce their rights are small, or where the consequences to the individual tortfeasor may be slight. Originally tort was about ‘shifting’ or ‘transferring’ the loss from the victim to the defendant (corrective justice). The defendant themselves paid compensation to the victim. However, those days are gone and we are now in an era of ‘loss distribution’. In other words, it is not the defendant who pays, but their employers or, more accurately, their employer’s insurer. The chapter then considers the study of torts. Tort law is almost wholly a case-driven subject and therefore a good knowledge of the cases and what they stand for is essential. The chapter presents three steps to studying cases.
Chapter
1. Introduction
This introductory chapter begins by providing examples of torts. It then discusses the aims of the law of torts, the most significant being compensation and deterrence. Part of the justification for a tort is that it identifies what actions should be avoided and deters people from engaging in them. It is essential to know that action is wrongful, but a tort action may over-deter or under-deter. It may over-deter where the perception of the chance of liability is exaggerated. It may under-deter where either the chances of somebody suing to enforce their rights are small, or where the consequences to the individual tortfeasor may be slight. Originally tort was about ‘shifting’ or ‘transferring’ the loss from the victim to the defendant (corrective justice). The defendant themselves paid compensation to the victim. However, those days are gone and we are now in an era of ‘loss distribution’. In other words, it is not the defendant himself who pays, but it will be their, or their employer’s, insurer. The chapter then considers the study of torts. Tort law is almost wholly a case-driven subject and therefore a good knowledge of the cases and what they stand for is essential. The chapter presents three steps to studying cases.
Chapter
14. Skills for Success in Coursework Assessments
Dr Karen Dyer and Dr Anil Balan
Each Concentrate revision guide is packed with essential information, key cases, revision tips, exam Q&As, and more. Concentrates show you what to expect in a law exam, what examiners are looking for, and how to achieve extra marks. This chapter discusses how students can structure their answers to coursework questions, and exposes common errors that students make when undertaking coursework. The starting point for obtaining a good grade in an exam is to answer the question set. It is even more important to do so for coursework questions, as students are usually given plenty of time to plan and prepare their answers, and to ask for additional support if needed. Whether answering a problem question or an essay question, students are required to produce a convincing argument using ‘evidence’ from case law, statutory provisions, and academic literature.
Chapter
13. Rylands v Fletcher
Without assuming prior legal knowledge, books in the Directions series introduce and guide readers through key points of law and legal debate. Questions, diagrams, and exercises help readers to engage fully with each subject and check their understanding as they progress. Rylands v Fletcher was an 1868 case that gave birth to a rule imposing strict liability for damage caused by the escape of dangerous things from land. The tort in Rylands v Fletcher differs from nuisance because it does not consider the involvement of the defendant in a continuous activity or an ongoing state of affairs. What distinguishes Rylands v Fletcher from actions in negligence is that there is no need for the existence of a duty of care and its breach, along with the questionable place of personal injury as an actionable type of damage. This chapter examines the tort in Rylands v Fletcher and the nature of the rule that arose from it. It also considers recent case law developments concerning Rylands v Fletcher and their impact on the current state of the law. Finally, the chapter evaluates the defences pertaining to Rylands v Fletcher.
Chapter
17. Breach of Statutory Duty
All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing able students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter deals with the action for breach of statutory duty, an action in tort meant to remedy harm caused by a breach of the duty. It first considers the distinctiveness of the tort of breach of statutory duty, with particular reference to the question of whether the breach gives rise to liability at common law. It then looks at case law involving civil liability for breach of industrial safety, citing Groves v Wimborne (Lord) [1898] 2 QB 402 and its significance in the context of workplace injuries. It also discusses cases dealing with ‘social welfare’ legislation and ‘public law duties’ as well as civil liberties before concluding with an assessment of the effect of the restrictive approach to the action for breach of statutory duty on the tort of negligence.
Chapter
13. Rylands v Fletcher
Without assuming prior legal knowledge, books in the Directions series introduce and guide readers through key points of law and legal debate. Questions, diagrams, and exercises help readers engage fully with each subject and check their understanding as they progress. Rylands v Fletcher was an 1868 case that gave birth to a rule imposing strict liability for damage caused by the escape of dangerous things from land. The tort in Rylands v Fletcher differs from nuisance because it does not consider the involvement of the defendant in a continuous activity or an ongoing state of affairs. What distinguishes Rylands v Fletcher from actions in negligence is that there is no need for the existence of a duty of care and its breach, along with the questionable place of personal injury as an actionable type of damage. This chapter examines the tort in Rylands v Fletcher and the nature of the rule that arose from it. It also considers recent case law developments concerning Rylands v Fletcher and their impact on the current state of the law. Finally, the chapter evaluates the defences pertaining to Rylands v Fletcher.
