LA2001 May B2

LLB
BSc DEGREES WITH LAW

Tort law

Monday 23 May 2022

You have FOUR HOURS AND 15 MINUTES in which to write your answers.

You must answer the COMPULSORY questions in PART A and THREE from
the EIGHT questions in PART B.

You must answer all parts of a question unless otherwise stated.

© University of London 2022

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PART A

You must answer these COMPULSORY questions about the article “Giliker, P.
(2021). Can the Supreme Court halt the ongoing expansion of vicarious liability:
Barclays and Morrison in the UK Supreme Court? Tottel's Journal of
Professional Negligence, 37(2).”

1. (a) Why does the Supreme Court in Barclays refer to Armes as “the
most difficult case”?

(b) What was the impact of Mohamud v Wm Morrison

Supermarkets plc on the application of the “connection test”?

(c) Giliker asserts that Mohamud “represented a false step in the

law”. What, in her view, should have been the response of the
Supreme Court and why?

(d) What is Giliker’s opinion of the overall impact of the Supreme

Court decisions in Barclays and Morrison? Do you agree?

PART B

You must answer THREE questions in this section.

2. Linda is giving birth in Avonside Hospital, accompanied by her partner

Ian. They make it clear from the beginning that any blood transfusions
are contrary to their beliefs. After a long labour, a newly qualified
midwife, Polly, delivers a healthy baby boy. When Polly agrees to allow
Linda to walk to the toilet, Linda begins to bleed profusely. The
consultant obstetrician on duty, Mr Shah, is summoned. He informs the
couple that a blood transfusion will be necessary. Ian loses his temper
and threatens to throw a bottle at Mr Shah. Polly grabs Ian by the arm
and pushes him into the ensuite toilet and locks the door. While
conscious, Linda continues to protest but Mr Shah persuades her to
accept sedation “for pain relief”. While Linda is sedated, Mr Shah
administers a blood transfusion. Polly forgets about Ian, and he remains
locked in the toilet for two hours.

Advise the parties.

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3. In the town of Riverside, a department store is being converted into a
hotel. The owners of the site are Magnum Hotels and they have
contracted with Wilson & Sons to do the work on the conversion. There
are two entrances to the site, one from the street and one from a side
alley. On the street entrance is a large sign which reads: “Building sites
can be dangerous places. Please report to the office to collect a hard
hat.” Nadhim works in the Riverside Council Surveyor’s Department and
has come to inspect the building work. He enters from the street and
goes straight up the stairs to the first floor where he intends to inspect
the window. Nadhim trips on a length of pipe lying across the top of the
stairs and as he falls, he knocks over a light fixture and sustains a severe
head injury. That evening, Alice is walking down the side alley and
notices that the door to the building site is ajar. She enters to investigate
and, in the dark, becomes entangled in live electrical wires. Alice
sustains serious burns and her leather jacket is ruined.

Advise the parties.

4. Simon is employed by Greenland Supermarkets as a shelf stacker. His

job requires frequent trips to the stock room, where he accesses the high
shelves with a ladder. He has been concerned about the condition of the
ladder for some weeks and has notified his manager, Bella, about these
concerns. Bella has promised to look into the problem but has not done
so yet. One day, while Simon is on the ladder, his workmate, Tim, comes
into the stockroom. As a joke, Tim grabs the ladder and gives it a shake,
laughing. The ladder collapses and Simon falls to the floor, breaking his
ankle.

Over the coming months, the relationships between the employees at

Greenland Supermarkets deteriorate to the extent that Afeesha, another
shelf stacker, dreads coming to work. She begins to take frequent sick
leave. When Bella asks for an explanation, Afeesha replies that
everything at work is fine. Now Afeesha has had a nervous breakdown
and been signed off work indefinitely by the doctor.

Advise Simon and Afeesha.

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5. Pavel and Richard have been friends since childhood. One Saturday,
they decide to attend a rugby match at the grounds of their favourite
team, the Bevington Bears. The management of the Bears has long
been postponing essential repair works on the heating system in the
stadium stands. During halftime, while Richard goes to car to find his
wallet, a fire erupts in the stadium. Smoke begins to seep up beneath
Pavel’s seat in the stadium and Richard watches from the car park as
spectators, some burned, stumble from the stands. Pavel sustains
serious burns. Seema, a paramedic, sustains lung damage from smoke
inhalation when pulling Pavel from the flames. Julie, Pavel’s wife, is
watching the game on television at home, and sees the fire and the
rescue operation unfold in the area where she knows the men to be
sitting.

Pavel has become depressed during his recuperation from his injuries.
Richard was diagnosed with PTSD five years ago when he returned
home from his job as a war reporter. He is now unable to sleep and is
drinking excessively. Seema is stressed and considering leaving her job.
Julie spends two months helping to care for Pavel in hospital and seems
to have undergone a personality change.

Advise the parties regarding rights and liabilities.

6. ‘A man is not bound at his peril to fly from a risk from which it is another’s
duty to protect from, merely because the risk is known.’ (Sir Frederick
Pollock.)

Discuss this quote in relation to the evolution and current status of the
defence of voluntary assumption of risk, or volenti non fit injuria.

7. ‘There is a tendency, which has been remarked upon by many judges,

for phrases like “proximate”, “fair, just and reasonable”, and “assumption
of responsibility”, to be used as slogans, rather than practical guides to
whether a duty of care should exist on not.’ (Lord Hoffmann.)

Discuss, with reference to negligent misstatement.

8. A small block of expensive flats has recently been completed near to

St David’s Castle, a popular tourist attraction in the centre of the coastal
town of Seaview. The Ahmed family has moved into one of these flats,
which features large glass doors that open onto a wraparound balcony.
The family are distressed to discover that visitors to the Castle are
peering into their home with binoculars. Mr Ahmed has complained to
Historic Britain, who owns the Castle, but it claims that it can do nothing.
When Mr Ahmed threatens legal action, Historic Britain responds by
installing viewing telescopes on the castle ramparts, which causes
significant worsening of this apparent breach of privacy. Historic Britain
has now begun staging historic re-enactments in the Castle grounds at
weekends. These involve the firing of canons, the noise of which is
particularly distressing to the inhabitants of Seaview and the residents
of the veterans’ hospital in Seaview.

Advise the parties.

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9. ‘… [T]he publication of the photos and articles in question, of which the
sole purpose was to satisfy the curiosity of a particular readership
regarding the details of the applicant’s private life, cannot be deemed to
contribute to any debate of general interest to society despite the
applicant being known to the public.’ (Von Hannover v Germany.)

Discuss with reference to the tort of misuse of private information.

END OF PAPER

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