Duty of care flashcards

Question 1

Neighbour principle (Donoghue)?

Accepted Answer

You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions you can reasonably foresee would injure your neighbour — those closely and directly affected by your conduct.

Question 2

Caparo three-stage test?

Accepted Answer

1) Harm reasonably foreseeable; 2) sufficient proximity/relationship; 3) fair, just and reasonable to impose duty.

Question 3

Established duty — road users?

Accepted Answer

All road users owe other lawful road users a duty (Nettleship v Weston — learner driver held to same standard).

Question 4

Established duty — employers?

Accepted Answer

Employers owe employees a duty to provide safe system of work, equipment, and competent colleagues (Wilsons & Clyde Coal v English).

Question 5

Established duty — manufacturers?

Accepted Answer

Manufacturers owe end-users a duty in product cases (Donoghue v Stevenson).

Question 6

When is Caparo used?

Accepted Answer

For novel duty situations not already covered by established categories — policy stage often decisive.

Question 7

What is the 'neighbour principle' from Donoghue v Stevenson?

Accepted Answer

The principle that you owe a duty of care to persons so closely and directly affected by your act that you ought reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when directing your mind to the acts or omissions in question.

Question 8

What are the three stages of the Caparo test?

Accepted Answer

1. Was the damage reasonably foreseeable? 2. Was there a relationship of proximity between the claimant and defendant? 3. Is it fair, just, and reasonable to impose a duty of care?

Question 9

In which type of case is the Caparo test applied?

Accepted Answer

It is applied in novel or problematic duty situations where there is no existing precedent that establishes a duty of care between the parties.

Question 10

Give two examples of an 'established duty of care'.

Accepted Answer

1. A driver owes a duty of care to other road users (*Nettleship v Weston*). 2. A doctor owes a duty of care to their patient (*Wilsher v Essex AHA*).

Question 11

What public policy reason was central to the decision in Hill v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire?

Accepted Answer

The court decided it was not 'fair, just, and reasonable' to impose a duty on the police towards a specific member of the public for failing to apprehend a criminal, as this could lead to defensive policing and divert resources from crime-fighting.

Question 12

What is the general legal rule regarding liability for omissions?

Accepted Answer

There is no general duty to act to prevent harm. Liability in negligence is typically based on positive acts, not failures to act (omissions).

Question 13

Name an exception to the 'no duty for omissions' rule.

Accepted Answer

Where the defendant has assumed a responsibility for the claimant's welfare, e.g., the ambulance service accepting a 999 call in *Kent v Griffiths*.

Question 14

When can someone be liable for the act of a third party?

Accepted Answer

When they have a high degree of control over the third party, as seen in *Home Office v Dorset Yacht Co*, where prison officers were liable for damage by escaped trainees.

Question 15

Why was there no duty of care owed by the police in *Michael v Chief Constable of South Wales*?

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court held it was not fair, just, and reasonable to impose a duty on police for how they handle emergency calls, as it could lead to defensive practices and resource allocation issues. There was no assumption of responsibility.

Question 16

What is the key principle from *Smith v Eric S Bush*?

Accepted Answer

A surveyor who provides a valuation for a property purchase owes a duty of care to the buyer who relies on it, especially for modest residential properties, as there is a 'special relationship' and reasonable reliance.