HD and Dean's List Full Course Notes

Description

HD and Dean's List Extensive Complete Course Notes. Covering every topic and lecture for the whole term. Topics covered: Week 1 (Introduction to Torts and the Civil Liability Act): Classification of torts (intentional torts vs actions on the case), theoretical foundations of tort liability (corrective justice, distributive justice, deterrence, vindication, feminist theory), structure and scope of the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW), critical threshold question under CLA s 3B, alternatives to the fault-based system (NZ Accident Compensation Scheme, Workers Compensation Act 1987, Motor Accidents Compensation Act 1999, NDIS, NIIS). Week 1 (Private Nuisance): Interference with the enjoyment of land, elements of private nuisance, defences and remedies. Week 2 (Duty of Care: General Approach): The five elements of negligence, the neighbour principle (Donoghue v Stevenson), Heaven v Pender and the privity requirement, the unforeseeable plaintiff (Chapman v Hearse), paradigm vs novel cases, the salient features approach (Caltex v Stavar), legal coherence (Sullivan v Moody), scope of the duty of care and how to express it with content (Romeo v Conservation Commission). Week 2 (Duty of Care: Mental Injury): Consequential mental harm vs pure mental harm (CLA s 27), recognised psychiatric illness (DSM-5, ICD-11), the CLA s 32(1) normal fortitude test, CLA s 32(3) for consequential mental harm, CLA s 32(2) circumstances for pure mental harm (sudden shock, witness at scene, nature of P-victim relationship, pre-existing P-D relationship), damage limitations under CLA ss 30, 31 and 33, key cases: Crump v Equine Nutrition Systems, Annetts v Australian Stations, Wicks v State Rail Authority. Week 3 (Duty of Care: Occupiers' Liability): Who is an occupier, the modern unified duty of care (Australian Safeway Stores v Zaluzna), liability for third party acts on premises including criminal acts (Modbury Triangle v Anzil). Week 3 (Duty of Care: Pure Economic Loss): Consequential vs pure economic loss, the floodgates concern, Category 1: negligent misstatement (Hedley Byrne v Heller, Esanda v Peat Marwick), Category 2: negligent act causing PEL (Perre v Apand), vulnerability as a key salient feature. Week 4 (Duty of Care: Public Authorities): CLA ss 41, 42, 43A, policy vs operational distinction, four categories of PA duty (statutory duty, statutory power, general reliance, special statutory power), McHugh J's 6-point test from Crimmins v Stevedoring, Graham Barclay Oysters v Ryan on general reliance. Weeks 4 to 5 (Breach of Duty): CLA s 5B(1) three-step factual breach analysis (foreseeable risk, not insignificant, reasonable person would have taken precautions), CLA s 5B(2) calculus of negligence (probability, seriousness, burden, social utility), key cases: Wyong v Shirt, Bolton v Stone, Paris v Stepney, Romeo v Conservation Commission, E v Australian Red Cross. Standard of care: the objective reasonable person, modifications for children (McHale v Watson), persons with mental illness (Carrier v Bonham), learner drivers (Imbree v McNeilly), professionals (Rogers v Whitaker), CLA s 5O peer professional opinion defence, CLA s 5P preservation of Rogers v Whitaker for failure to warn, Sparks v Hobson on the interaction of ss 5B and 5O. Week 7 (Causation: Factual Causation and Scope of Liability): CLA s 5D overview, the but-for test (Adeels Palace v Moubarak), material contribution exception (CLA s 5D(2)), what P would have done (CLA s 5D(3)), novus actus interveniens and the principle from Haber v Walker, case analysis of Chapman v Hearse, Mahony v Kruschich, State Rail Authority v Chu, Haber v Walker, McKew v Holland, Caterson v Commissioner for Railways. Remoteness of harm: The Wagon Mound (No 1), the three qualifications (precise manner, precise extent, eggshell skull rule). Weeks 7 to 8 (Defences to Negligence): Contributory negligence (CLA ss 5R-5S): standard of care for P, causal connection, apportionment (Pennington v Norris, Podrebersek v Australian Iron and Steel), key cases: Consolidated Broken Hill v Edwards, Hatch v Alice Springs Town Council, Froom v Butcher, Mackenzie v The Nominal Defendant. Voluntary assumption of risk: knowledge of obvious and non-obvious risks (CLA ss 5F, 5G), voluntary acceptance (Carey v Lake Macquarie CC). Dangerous recreational activity defence (CLA ss 5K, 5L): recreational activity, dangerous recreational activity, materialisation of obvious risk, Singh bhnf v Lynch. Week 8 (Concurrent Liability: Vicarious Liability and Non-Delegable Duty): Vicarious liability three-step analysis: employee vs independent contractor (multi-factorial test from Stevens v Brodribb and Hollis v Vabu), course of employment (Salmond test), causation. Course of employment scenarios: London CC v Cattermoles, Poland v John Parr, Keppel Bus Co v Sa'ad, French v Sestlii, Joel v Morison. Non-delegable duty of care: Burnie test (control and responsibility plus vulnerability), recognised categories, key cases: Burnie Port Authority v General Jones, Northern Sandblasting v Harris, NSW v Lepore. Week 9 (Damages): General principles: restitutio in integrum, once and for all, P's discretion, compounded of prophecy and calculation. Head 1: past loss of earnings (CLA s 12, 3x AWE cap). Head 2: future loss of earnings (CLA s 13: four-step calculation including most likely future circumstances, outgoings, lost years, contingencies), Sharman v Evans and Wynn v NSW Insurance Ministerial Corp. Head 3: medical expenses on a cost-benefit basis. Head 4: gratuitous attendant care (CLA s 15: attendant care services, reasonable need, 6hr/6month threshold, 40hr AWE cap), Griffiths v Kerkemeyer and Van Gervan v Fenton. Discount rate 5% (CLA s 14). Non-economic loss (CLA s 16): threshold 15% most extreme case, cap $693,500 indexed, Skelton v Collins, worked examples from Khan v Polyzois and Wighton v Arnot. Week 10 (Breach of Statutory Duty): BSD as a separate and independent tort, the six elements (private right to sue, class of persons, type of harm, nominated defendant, breach, causation), detailed analysis of each element with key cases: Matthews v SPI Electricity, Pask v Owen, Read v Croydon Corporation, Gorris v Scott, Mummery v Irvings, Darling Island Stevedoring v Long, Galashiels Gas Co v O'Donnell, John Pfeiffer v Canny.