Tort Seminar 4 - Student instructions PDF

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NORTHUMBRIA LAW SCHOOL M LAW (EXEMPTING) LLB (HONS) LAW LLB (HONS) LAW WITH BUSINESS LLB (HONS) LAW WITH INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS 2018/2019 LW5003 TORT LAW

SEMINAR 4: NEGLIGENCE – BREACH OF THE DUTY OF CARE INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS Subject Areas

This Seminar will cover: 

Negligence - Breach of Duty



Negligence – The standard of care



Negligence – The factors relevant to determining a breach of duty



Negligence – Tools to help establish a breach of duty

Skill(s)

This Seminar will develop the following skill(s): 

Fact Management



Case analysis



Problem-solving

LW 5003 TORT LAW – SEMINAR 4 – INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS

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Aims

This Seminar aims to: 

Introduce you to the topic of breach of the duty of care



Explore the rules relating to the standard of care



Explore the factors relevant to establishing a breach of duty

Outcomes

By the end of this Seminar, you will be expected to: 

Understand the objective nature of the standard of care



Recognise the standard of care applying to ordinary activities, skills and children



Understand and apply the factors considered in determining whether a duty is breached



Recognise and apply tools to help the Claimant to establish a breach of duty



Evaluate different approaches and application of relevant case law



Develop a strategy for answering a problem question on this topic

Preparation

Please read (or view) the items listed as ‘Essential Reading’ in the section below.

If

you have time or wish to do so, read (or view) the items listed as ‘Additional recommended reading’ in the section below.

Please prepare to address the following 2 tasks in this Seminar: 

Task 1: Scenarios– Please prepare notes on this task, before the Seminar. We will discuss answers in the Seminar



Task 2: Tackling (part of) a Problem Question – Please prepare full notes on this task. You may find it helpful to prepare a full answer. We will discuss approaches to this Task in the Seminar.

It should take you approximately 3 [THREE] hours to prepare for this Seminar.

LW 5003 TORT LAW – SEMINAR 4 – INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS

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Essential Reading

1.

Lecture materials: Your lecture notes and the slides for the following Tort Law lectures: 

Negligence – Breach of the duty of care 1 – The defendant’s characteristics



Negligence – Breach of the duty of care 2 – The circumstances

2.

Textbook: Chapter 8, ‘Breach of Duty: the standard of care’

3.

Cases: You should understand the relevant principles from the following cases:

Breach of duty – standard of care Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks (1856) 11 Ex 781 Bolam v Friern General Hospital Management Committee [1957] 1 WLR 582 Bolitho v City and Hackney Health Authority [1998] AC 232 Dunnage v Randall [2016] 2 WLR 839 Mullin v Richards [1998] 1 WLR 1304 Nettleship v Weston [1971] 2 QB 691

Breach of duty factors Bolton v Stone [1951] AC 850 Glasgow Corporation v Muir [1943] AC 448 Haley v London Electricity Board [1965] AC 778 Latimer v AEC Ltd [1953] AC 643 Overseas Tankship (UK) Ltd v Miller Steamship Co. Pty (‘The Wagon Mound’ (No.2) [1967] 1 AC 617 Paris v Stepney Borough Council [1951] AC 367 Roe v Ministry of Health [1954] 2 All ER 131 Tomlinson v Congleton Borough Council [2004] 1 AC 46 Watt v Hertfordshire County Council [1954] 1 WLR 835

Res ipsa loquitur Barkway v South Wales Transport Co Ltd [1950] 1 All ER 392 Scott v London & St Katherine Docks Co (1865) 3 H&C 596

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A note about reading cases Please note that you are not required to read the whole of each case (unless you wish!). It is important that you understand the principle or proposition for which each case stands. If you know how any principle or proposition applies to the facts of the case, this can help you to remember the principle or proposition, and identify any similarity or difference from the facts in a problem question. Use the Digital Reading List to access the report of the case and read the headnote for each case at least, and then (ideally) the relevant passage(s) identified in the headnote in support of the proposition, principle or application stated in the headnote.

You will find the cases on the Digital Reading List for this module. Digital Reading List To access the digital Reading List, click on the ‘Reading List’ tab from the module BlackBoard homepage, or by navigating to readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk and searching for the module reading list for LW5003. Click on ‘show’ next to ‘Table of Contents’ and then navigate to the area of the digital Reading List covering the relevant teaching Seminar. You will then be able to find cases and other materials and click through directly to the relevant content.

4.

Statutes: You should understand the relevant principles from the following statutory materials:

Compensation Act 2006 s.1 Social Action, Responsibility and Heroism Act 2015, ss.1-4

A note about statutory provisions You will find the relevant statutory provision on the Digital Reading List. You might want to print out, read and mark up any relevant statutory provision. Remember that you can take an unmarked statute book into your assessment. Nearer to the assessment, you may wish to buy a statute book and then add a page marker to the relevant page in your unmarked statute book, taking care not to write in or mark the statute book.

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Further reading (optional, but recommended)

If you wish to understand the topic of Negligence: Breach of Duty further, and to test your knowledge of these topics, you may wish to consider: 

the end-of-chapter questions in your recommended Textbook for Chapter 8, ‘Breach of Duty: the standard of care’, on page 243,



any relevant Annotated Problem Questions in the Appendix to the recommended Textbook (pages 647 to 664).



any materials for Chapter 8 on the Online Resource Centre,which can be accessed by clicking on this link

Materials for the Seminar

Bring the following materials with you to the Seminar: 

Your recommended Textbook



Relevant lecture materials



Your preparation for the Short Answer Questions in Task 1



Your outline answer to the part of the Problem Question for Task 2



Any relevant case law/statutes.

Schedule of Activities

TIME

ACTIVITY

GROUP

00.00 - 00.05

INTRODUCTION AND REGISTRATION Registration and Introduction to Seminar

00.05 - 00.30

TASK 1: SCENARIOS Discussion and consideration of answers to

Tutor

Small groups

the Scenarios in Task 1 TASK 2: TACKLING PART OF A PROBLEM 00.30 - 00:45

QUESTION Identifying the issues in the question Defining key concepts (with authority) Explaining how concepts operate Applying to the facts of the problem question. FEEDBACK, SUMMARY AND WRAP-UP LW 5003 TORT LAW – SEMINAR 4 – INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS

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Whole group

00.45 - 00.50

Feedback on activities in the Seminar Reflection from students on the Seminar.

Tutor, with group Students individually

Rationale

In this Seminar, you will build skills in identifying issues that arise in applying the Tort Law principles to different fact patterns in this area. This will help you to spot relevant issues in any question on this topic that might arise in the assessment. You will also be able to practice applying principles to the different fact patterns in a focussed way, efficiently and effectively, and using authority. This will help you to answer any question on this topic that might arise in the assessment.

Feedback opportunities

This Seminar will provide feedback in the following way(s): 

Feedback from your tutor, given verbally in the Seminar



Feedback from other students, in your discussions about the preparation and the tasks



An Answer Guide for the Seminar, if applicable

You should make a note of any feedback given, which will be helpful as part of your learning and revision.

Revision tip The questions in the Tort assessment may include some of the areas covered in your seminars. We strongly recommend that you keep notes of the work you do in seminars as you go along, and keep them in order. This will help with your revision and may help you in the assessments.

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SEMINAR TASK 1: SCENARIOS

Please prepare answers to these short questions in advance of the Seminar, for discussion in the Seminar. Please try to identify relevant authority to support your answers. Scenario 1 Bob is outside painting the first storey window of his shop, which faces onto the High Street. He is standing on a tall ladder. A pot of paint falls from the ladder and hits Maureen who is walking by.

Explain the standard of care expected of Bob towards Maureen.

Identify and apply factors relevant to determining whether Bob is in breach of his duty to Maureen.

Scenario 2 Billy, a two-year-old child, falls into two feet of water.

Nathan, a passer-by,

decides to intervene. He lifts Billy out of the water. Billy is unconscious. Nathan tries to resuscitate him. In doing so, Nathan breaks one of Billy’s ribs. Identify and apply factors relevant to determining whether Nathan is in breach of his duty to Billy.

How, if at all, would your answer differ if Nathan were an on-duty paramedic who had been called to the scene?

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Scenario 3 It is Caitlin’s birthday. She is aged 11 years old. One of her birthday presents is a remote controlled helicopter, which was given to her by her mother, Denise. As Caitlin is playing with the helicopter, with her mother nearby, she loses control of the helicopter and the helicopter collides with Ed. Ed is injured. Explain the standard of care expected of Caitlin and Denise towards Ed.

How, if at all, would your answer differ is Caitlin was aged: (a) 3 years old; (b) 17 years old; (c) 24 years old. Identify and apply factors relevant to determining whether Caitlin is in breach of her duty to Ed.

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SEMINAR TASK 2: TACKLING PART OF A PROBLEM QUESTION

Please prepare an outline structure and full notes (or a full answer) to this part of a problem question. Use authority in support of your answer.

Mary is suddenly taken ill. David, her husband, decides to drive her to hospital, despite having been warned by his doctor not to drive. David is quite a nervous driver, having just passed his driving test the previous week. On the way to the hospital he collapses at the wheel and the car careers across the road. John, who is travelling in the opposite direction, swerves to avoid David's car and crashes into a lamp-post, sustaining severe injuries.

Explain the standard of care expected of David towards Mary and John.

How, if at all, would your answer differ if: (a) David was usually quite a nervous driver; (b) David was a very confident driver usually; (c) David was a learner driver, who had not yet passed his test? Identify and apply factors relevant to determining whether David is in breach of his duty to Mary/John.

Explain, with reason, what additional

information (if any) you consider relevant.

Would it make any difference to any claims by Mary and John if David was prosecuted for an offence of driving without due care and attention arising from this accident, and (a)

convicted; or

(b)

found not guilty.

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Follow up

After the Seminar, please complete the following:

1.

Write-up your notes of the Seminar, to include any feedback on your preparation (from the tutor, or other students) and any other points discussed in the seminar

2.

If you are unsure of anything arising from the seminar, please: 

get in touch with your Seminar tutor;, or



email the module tutor; or



raise a question by creating a new thread on the Discussion Area for the module (found on the left-hand side of the module homepage on BlackBoard).

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