Tort Law 04 – Public Authorities
Are public authorities capable of being sued in negligence?
- Yes – but there are some special circumstances.
- Policy plays a big role.
- There is often a balance to be struck between the rights of the
individual and those of society as a whole.
- There can be overlap with other areas of law, particularly: human
rights jurisprudence, public law and problems of definition/scope.
Police failure to catch a criminal
Hill v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire [1989]
- The claimant was the mother of Jaqueline Hill. Jaqueline was the
final victim of the so-called ‘Yorkshire Ripper’, Peter Sutcliffe.
- West Yorkshire Police had interviewed Sutcliffe numerous times as a
part of their investigation.
- Instead, they focused on other suspects including. A hoaxer called
‘Wearside Jack’.
- The claim against West Yorkshire police was that they had been
negligent in their investigations and, as a result, Jaqueline had died.
- The claim failed on the twin grounds of proximity and for policy
reasons – there was no special connection between Sutcliffe and
Jaqueline prior to him killing her: she was simply one of many, many
potential victims.
- “In some instances, the imposition of liability may lead to the excise
of a function being carried on in a detrimentally defensive frame of
mind.” Per Lord Keith.
- “The imposition of a duty of care upon police officer in this type of
situation would detract from the police’s primary purpose of
catching criminals…” Lord Keith.
- “If this action lies, every citizen will be able to require the court to
investigate the performance of every policeman. If the policeman
concentrates on one crime, he may be accused of neglecting
others…” Lord Templeman.
Osman v Ferguson [1993]
- Ahmet Osman’s teacher, Victor Paget-Lewis, developed an
unhealthy obsession with Ahmet and another boy (LG).
- Paget-Lewis began to stalk and harass Ahmet and his family – he
committed numerous acts of criminal damage.
- Paget-Lewis changed his name to ‘Ahmet Osman’.
Are public authorities capable of being sued in negligence?
- Yes – but there are some special circumstances.
- Policy plays a big role.
- There is often a balance to be struck between the rights of the
individual and those of society as a whole.
- There can be overlap with other areas of law, particularly: human
rights jurisprudence, public law and problems of definition/scope.
Police failure to catch a criminal
Hill v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire [1989]
- The claimant was the mother of Jaqueline Hill. Jaqueline was the
final victim of the so-called ‘Yorkshire Ripper’, Peter Sutcliffe.
- West Yorkshire Police had interviewed Sutcliffe numerous times as a
part of their investigation.
- Instead, they focused on other suspects including. A hoaxer called
‘Wearside Jack’.
- The claim against West Yorkshire police was that they had been
negligent in their investigations and, as a result, Jaqueline had died.
- The claim failed on the twin grounds of proximity and for policy
reasons – there was no special connection between Sutcliffe and
Jaqueline prior to him killing her: she was simply one of many, many
potential victims.
- “In some instances, the imposition of liability may lead to the excise
of a function being carried on in a detrimentally defensive frame of
mind.” Per Lord Keith.
- “The imposition of a duty of care upon police officer in this type of
situation would detract from the police’s primary purpose of
catching criminals…” Lord Keith.
- “If this action lies, every citizen will be able to require the court to
investigate the performance of every policeman. If the policeman
concentrates on one crime, he may be accused of neglecting
others…” Lord Templeman.
Osman v Ferguson [1993]
- Ahmet Osman’s teacher, Victor Paget-Lewis, developed an
unhealthy obsession with Ahmet and another boy (LG).
- Paget-Lewis began to stalk and harass Ahmet and his family – he
committed numerous acts of criminal damage.
- Paget-Lewis changed his name to ‘Ahmet Osman’.
