frost v chief constable of south yorkshire

Registered office: Creative Tower, Fujairah, PO Box 4422, UAE. School King's College London; Course Title LAW 10999; Uploaded By ColonelHeatKudu28. Both of them used to go out for drink once a week. In this instance police officers were seeking compensation on the basis that they had suffered psychiatric illness as a result of rescuing victims after the crush. Difficult point of law about the circumstances in which a defendant who owes a duty of care . [58] that the defendant was in breach of his duty of reasonable care and the claimants were entitled to recover damages. Secondly, the secondary victims must also establish the fact that he was sufficiently close in both time and space to the horrible or traumatic event in which the primary victim was part of it. This was a case which involved a huge disaster in the Hillsborough football stadium[23]. In this case, the defendants servant negligently left a motor lorry on a street with the engine running. The employer could have checked up on him during his . swarb.co.uk is published by David Swarbrick of 10 Halifax Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire, HD6 2AG. Similary, the defendant argued that, in the present case, the claimant was far away from the actual place of the accident and did not see what happened there. Fletcher v Commissioners for Public Works [2003] 2 I.L.R.M.94. However, in this case, Lord Hope[36] adopted the explanation given by Lord Oliver in Alcock and held that, since there was no sufficient close tie of love between the claimants and the deceased, so therefore the claimants were not entitled to establish a successful claim for psychiatric illness. In order for the claimant to successfully recover compensation the court needs to consider an amalgam of rules and exceptions as . In support of my opinion I will discuss and analyse the outcomes of a number of relevant law cases, namely, Dulieu v White and Son[1901]2 KB 669 , Hambrook v Stoke Bros [1925] 1 KB 141, McLoughlin v O Brian (1983) AC 410 310 AT 407, Alcock -v- The Chief Constable of South Yorkshire [1992] 1 AC 310, Page -v- Smith [1995] 2 All ER 736 AT 759, 761 per Lord Lloyd, White v The Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police[1992]1 AC.310. Mentioned Walker v Northumberland County Council QBD 16-Nov-1994 The plaintiff was a manager within the social services department. This essay aims to provide a critical evaluation of the common law duty of care for negligently inflicted nervous shock in the context of the above statement by Lord Steyn. Only recognisable psychiatric illness would qualify for in such claims. The court took the view that, none of the claimants were entitled to recover damages for psychiatric illness. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Define primary victim, Define secondary victim, What was the initial definition of psychiatric damage and more. In the case of Benson v Lee[62], the claimant was informed that her son had an accident and sustained injuries. The most commonly medically recognised illness of this type is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The court held that the defendant was liable for negligence and allowed the claimant to recover damages for psychaitric illness as the mental injury to the claimant was reasonably foreseeable by the defendant[65]. Frost v Chief Constable of Yorkshire Police [1997] 3 WLR 1194. The Supreme Courts decision was to disallow recovery as there was no more than a remote risk of contracting a disease. It was admitted by the defendants that the accident took place due to their negligence. Cited Mount Isa Mines Ltd v Pusey 1970 The court considered how progress is made in developing the law of liability for damages for psychiatric injury, saying The field is one in which the common law is still in course of development. She had been making a good recovery but then collapsed and died at home from pulmonary emboli, and thrombosis which were a consequence of the injury. The . He went to the psychiatrist and took medical treatment. In other words psychiatric shock was to be treated as direct personal injury. Eventually she died as a result of that injury. . Television signal, actionable nuisance, property right requirement for claimants. [34] Cases and Commentary on Tort, by Barbara Harvey & John Marston, 5th Edition. On August 18, 1955, the defendant, namely Mr. Sanderson went to the garage along with the claimant and his son for the purpose of collecting his car as they had decided to go out for holiday. The preliminary issue before the court was whether the existing law allows the claimants to bring an action for recovery of damages against the defendants or not. The question was whether, having regard to the fact that she had suffered sorrow and grief it would not be to . The House considered claims by police officers who had suffered psychiatric injury after tending the victims of the Hillsborough tragedy. .Cited James-Bowen and Others v Commissioner of Police of The Metropolis SC 25-Jul-2018 The Court was asked whether the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (the Commissioner) owes a duty to her officers, in the conduct of proceedings against her based on their alleged misconduct, to take reasonable care to protect them from . As a result of experiencing such a dreadful event she subsequently suffered severe nervous shock resulting in the form of psychatric illness. In that case, the defendant did not reasonably foresee that the claimant would suffer from psychiatric injury as she was too far away from the actual place of the accident. The present law in this area seems to be very rigid and restrictive for the secondary victims. Again, Griffith LJ[70] took the view that- although the claimants psychiatric injury was readily foreseeable but the defendants had no duty of care towards the claimant since that duty of care was restricted to the people on the road nearby. Held: Psychiatric injury is a recognised form of personal injury, and no statute . In 1997, the claimant initiated an action for psychiatric illness against the defendant. In the case of bystanders, it is not generally foreseeable by the defendants that such a person would suffer from psychiatric injury. swarb.co.uk is published by David Swarbrick of 10 Halifax Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire, HD6 2AG. So, it was held by the court that the claimant was entitled to recover damages even though she suffered psychiatric illness through the fear of her childrens safety, not through the fear of her own physical injury or safety. The courts both in England and Ireland have endeavoured to limit the scope of liability for psychiatric illness, by establishing a set of criteria that a claimant/s must fulfil in order to be entitled to compensation. *You can also browse our support articles here >. About after two hours she was informed by a neighbour of the road accident in which her family members were involved. You would be correct that rescuers are generally an excluded category of primary victim, as seen in cases like White v CC of South Yorkshire Police (if family cannot claim, rescuers should not be allowed to) . There is indeed a sense of remoteness in this case. The courts in different cases have recognized different type of psychiatric illnesses. the purpose test (Banque Bruxelles Lambert SA v Eagle Star Insurance Co Ltd); the assumption . The first is to wipe out recovery in tort for pure psychiatric injury. [55] As per Denning LJ [1953] 1 All ER 617 at page 625. In this case the plaintiff was exposed to asbestos dust. However, Mr. Bankes, Atkin and Sargant L.JJ. The requirement that the secondary victims must be physically present to the accident or its immediate aftermath was for the first time established by Lord Wilberforce in the case of Mcloughlin v O Brian[42] which subsequently had been approved by the House of Lords in the leading case of Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire[43]. In this case, the court was concerned whether the claimants fall into the category of secondary victims and therefore entitled to bring an action against the defendants. X CsGPL)8eDD(!#V+x 6g9%RlTJ%R "XL9$Q)pTFb%irDs!(;wx*9y_yr:!,y|(*ch1Y.qT%f#R4xSn"4;I.lMO.d==Z:B|dU6t()M.|^~,fmO'8\W?O@OVC\%rESn,IPx$|`S|}KBn|oX]vhaa\]ncWi=tMGcvg7v~M&ClWAb]n~_uuzAU60\T!lnV_ '0HPT l#H:+pQ )cmlu-'46:ut(:&:h 1=i?|\A dY;dzCP(@QD}XMSV/bVS:|x(v@7|, ,mFFL [g59gNqTeB@)V&l33%f@)6a87<>Vb3{,>gkWBPz|}y.H%g -m(-1HN]>0Ns6t Z~\ L6M The case for such a course has been argued by Professor Stapleton. Such a duty of care must be aplied to everyone in the vicinity particularly to a mother who had the fear for psysical safety to her children. Interestingly, it was also stated the purpose of the visit was to identify the body and not to aid the injured or rescue victims as in other compensation cases. As secondary victims they, like the bystanders or spectators, were not entitled to recover damages for their psychiatric illness. The case centred upon the liability of the police for the nervous shock suffered in consequence of the events of the Hillsborough disaster . [24] Cases and Commentary on Tort, by Barbara Harvey & John Marston, 5th Edition. The law has imposed lots of requirements for the secondary victims before they can successfully make a psychiatric injury claim. They said that the defendants negligent treatment allowed the attack to take place. This . So, however, in the light of the above case decisions it has been obvious that the secondary victim must establish proximity of relationship or close tie of love and affection in order to establish a claim for psychiatric illness. In order to support this argument, the claimant relied on the decision of the case in In re Polemis and Furness, withy & Co. Ltd[47]. [23] Davie M (1992) Negligently Inflicted Psychiatric Illness: The Hillsborough Case in the House of Lords 43 Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly 237. The mother came across the tricycle which was lying underneath the taxicab but failed to see the boy. In this chapter, I argue that Alcock was an essentially conservative decision, rather than the reactionary one which it is often assumed to have been . It was held by the court that (according to the decision of Bourhill case), the defendant owes no liability towards the claimant although there was a liability in relation to the accident of the boy. Dulieu v White and Sons (1901) 2 K.B. Info: 3380 words (14 pages) Essay So, therefore, a secondary victim is someone who suffers from psychiatric illness through the fear of other persons safety or injury. The Greatorex v Greatorex and another[37]is another case in which the question arose whether a defendant owes any duty of care towards the claimant for not causing him a psychiatric injury by self inflicted injuries. CA"$a& ,@jj DCn*Bt!\&;i~(JkGAI40-,,l_66PK$UHCT)FnpdC\uJ*C.W@tjJ9mG9#=8 }+,CPkkHYUTVJ_6YGw.=t]C8yjb[(B~*bhO]ijp+2C+asL!!\Bx*V'G/8W-d8y~M=_T\$eZA In modern times, the issue of liability for nervous shock still remains a contentious issue. The father immediately started helping his son to release his trapped foot out. Hamrook v Stokes Bros (1925) 1 K.B. The Plaintiff had a pre-existing chronic fatigue syndrome, which manifested itself from time . There are many examples where it has been seen that a person after sustaining a genuine shock could not recover damages for psychiatric illness only because of being failure to establish the fact that there was sufficient proximity of the secondary victim in time and place with the accident. Firm Rankings. Afterwards she went down to the corridor and came across one of her children crying who had fer face cut and discoloured with mud and soil. Common Law - Evidence Law - Amissibility of Evidence Essays - Use Our Free Law Essays To Help You With Your Law Course Codification of Directors Duties was Unnecessary. Although the policy of the court seems to pose a substantial barrier or obstacle to the success of claims of this sort, but the court has justified this policy by showing an intention to restrict wide range of potential claimants who can bring successful action. v The Chief Constable Of South Yorkshire Police ( [1997]1 All E R.540), their Lordships holding by a majority of 3 to 2 that the claims of the police officers had been rightly dismissed by the trial judge . Courts must therefore act in company and not alone. of Ireland (1884) illustrate that even though no physical injury occurred, the plaintiff was clearly in physical danger and therefore was allowed recovery. To satisfy physical proximity to the accident or its immediate aftermath might be considered as another major obstacle for the secondary victims where there is an issue of establishing a claim for the psychiatric illness. u $VnI=vJ--EmC\A$2Tat9iamg~>k,H7^V TJ=7jdv'6M:c 7c{}N8o}~p7k;? Keywords: rescue; compensation for hillsborough rescuers. So, in this situation- Singleton LJ. It was the case of Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire, [11] where Lord Oliver for the first time drew the attention to the distinction between the primary and secondary victims. In-house law team, White and Others v Chief Constable of the South Yorkshire Police [1999] 2 AC 455, NEGLIGENCE PSYCHIATRIC DAMAGE LIABILITY TO RESCUERS DISTINCTION BETWEEN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY VICTIMS. reversed Court of Appeal decision in Frost v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire [1997] 1 All ER 540, which found Ps were primary victims as rescuers; The appellants who had been present at the stadium during the match but failed in their action because they could not establish the fact that the primary victims were sufficiently close to them. Although the term has been replaced by psychiatric illness but it reflects the approach of the law in such cases[2]. Registered office: Creative Tower, Fujairah, PO Box 4422, UAE. This time the ground for appeal was whether the defendants could have reasonably foreseen the psychiatric illness suffered by the claimants or secondary victims. At common law a distinction is drawn between what is merely the ordinary emotion of grief, anxiety, fear and transient shock which does not constitute sufficient damage and the recognisable psychiatric illness that is established by expert medical evidence. He had known Smith just as a colleague for few years. Section A The codification of directors duties was an unnecessary step. However, they did not fulfill a number of criteria (Wilberforce test as in previous case). In Alcock case, the House of Lords took the view that- the secondary victims will be entitled to establish a claim and recover damages for psychiatric injury if he can establish the fact that, the defendant could have reasonably foreseen that he would suffer from a psychiatric illness due to the negligent act as there was proximity of relationship between both the primary and secondary victims. In Page v Smith this distinction was further developed. Sir Cliff Richard OBE V The British Broadcasting Corporation; The Chief Constable Of South Yorkshire Police [2018] EWHC 1837 (Ch) Summary. His Lordship further continued that, the present case is distinguishable from the case of King v Phillips[61]. He was seriously injured. [60]did not agree with the arguments put by the defendant but he agreed with the decision given by Salmon J. The requirement of immediate aftermath principle was firmly established in the case of Mcloughlin v O Brian[67]. Again, there was neither any duty of care towards the claimant not to inflict any kind of physical injury or harm to himself nor there was any duty to the claimant not to cause him psychiatric injury by means of exposing him to the sight of the defendants self-inflicted injuries[40]. Her claim was struck out, but restored on appeal. . [31] As per Lord Oliver [1992] 1 AC 310 at page 415-416. Again this development of the proximity of relationship in this case seems quite unfair to some of the claimants who were seeking compensation as they would not have been aware previously of this .The principle of proximity of time and place was also applied in this case, where a claimant failed to recover. Evidence Law - Admissibility of Evidence Essays. It was the case of King v Phillips[44] in which the claimant having suffered psychiatric illness failed to establish a claim against the defendant as the court considered that the victim was far away from the accident. It seems apparent from the Alcock case judgments that the court will only emphasize on close tie of love and affection before allowing any secondary victims to establish a claim and recover damages for psychiatric illness. The term is used to describe psychiatric injury or illness which is caused by the defendant. ( as what happened in this particular case ) . The carriageway was too high that any person fell from that distance would unlikely to survive. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of LawTeacher.net. In my opinion, this case illustrates a change of approach in relation to nervous shock recovery. In order for the claimant to successfully recover compensation the court needs to consider an amalgam of rules and exceptions as well as different categories of claimants, which . Having heard the scream the father (claimant) rushed into the spot and found his son with his foot trapped by the cars wheel. So, the law in this area seems to be very rigid and complicated for the secondary victims. In the case of Frost v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police[5], the court considered the post traumatic disorder to be a recognizable psychiatric injury. 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