Seminar 17 - Tort by Claire Turner

(a) Just as Alice is sitting down in a chair, but before she has touched it, Beryl, who has crept up from behind, whips the chair from under her. Alice falls to the ground and sustains a fractured coccyx.

claire43 — 2020-03-03 12:29:30 UTC

Battery - definition - Collins v Wilcock - unlawful infliction of application of force.

Scott v Shepherd - indirect but sufficient causal link

Defence - fooling around and not intentional.

Claimant - intentional pulling the chair away knowing she will fall to the ground (Hopper v Reeves)

(b) Charles is asleep on his seat in a cinema. His feet are stretched out, blocking passage along the row of seats. Duncan, who wishes to pass, shakes Charles vigorously by the shoulder. Charles awakes with a start and falls from the seat, sustaining serious injury to his collar bone.

claire43 — 2020-03-03 12:35:21 UTC

Battery

Direct and intentional - vigorously shaken him.

Defence argue - only way to wake him up - social touching? Collins v Wilcock - conduct acceptable in everyday life.

Consequences - don't need to be foreseen consequences.

(c) While driving his car Edgar is cut up by Freda, who is driving a large lorry. Edgar shakes his fist at Freda, and leans out of the window of his car to shout that he will ‘swing for her’. Freda laughs and drives away.

claire43 — 2020-03-03 12:42:42 UTC

(d) Jeremy points a toy gun at Kate as a practical joke. Kate, who is short-sighted, thinks that the gun is real, and faints, hitting her head on the edge of a table.

claire43 — 2020-03-03 12:45:22 UTC

claire43 — 2020-03-03 12:49:49 UTC

John gets chatting to Norma in a wine bar one evening. They both have a lot of wine to drink and both discover that they are film fanatics. At closing time, Norma accepts John’s invitation to come and look over his collection of film and cinema memorabilia, which he keeps in a room on the second floor of his house.

On arrival in the room, John lunges at Norma, exclaiming, “If I hadn’t had that last bottle of wine, I know exactly what I’d like to do to you, my dear”.

Norma, repelled by his advance, seizes a large brass candlestick (apparently an old film prop) and strikes John with it, causing a gash to his cheek. She then collapses unconscious as a result of the wine she has consumed.

John dashes out of the room, closing the door so violently that it is jammed shut. When Norma recovers consciousness about an hour later she tries to attract John’s attention by shouting and banging on the door. John hears her but ignores her.

John’s house is built into a hillside. The window of the room where Norma is, which is open, provides access to the garden at ground level at the back of the house. This is the first time Norma has visited John’s house.

Discuss whether or not any torts against the person have been committed.

Edgars liability for assault

2025-02-25 14:41:49 UTC

Definition- Causing someone to apprehend the immediate infliction of unlawful force (Fagan).

Claimant - words (Ireland) combined raised fist and shout. Intention to cause her to apprehend application of force.

Defence - The threat was not actionable because they were both in moving cars (Ireland) (Thomas v NUM) - Objective test- Freda laughs is evidence that it wasn't objectively reasonable apprehend any threat of immediate danger