April 2012 #104 – Law Journals

The Animals Act 1971: Horse play

Roger Harris discusses the implications of the latest authority ‘The basic concept underpinning the Animals Act 1971 is that a keeper of an animal should be liable for damage caused by his animal if he knew that the animal might be dangerous in the circumstances.’ It is now almost ten years since the Animals Act …

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Costs: The other fixed costs regime

Paul Jones highlights technical challenges to the MoJ scheme that will face an uphill struggle ‘The court held that, absent an express provision dealing with a failure to comply with para 6.10, there was no automatic exiting of the MoJ portal where there was non-compliance.’ As the debate surrounding reform to the legal costs system …

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Unlocking Damages: Compensation in catastrophic injury cases

Robert Weir QC explores the tactics and pitfalls involved in running a personal injury case he recently settled for a locked-in client. ‘In 2011, Miss W made a crucial interim payment application seeking enough funds to allow her to pay for her own private care regime. It was essential to Miss W’s case to be …

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Burden Of Proof: Pleading limitation

Philip Turton provides practical advice for claimants and defendants ‘In a case where the claimant has not issued proceedings in time, an appropriate paragraph in the defence identifying that fact, and pleading expressly that the claim is statute-barred by s11(4) of the Limitation Act 1980, should be enough to “get the ball into play”.’The expiry …

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RTA: MIB agreement

Anna Macey considers the limits of recovery ‘Ex turpi causa is rarely used in RTA claims because there are policy arguments in favour of allowing an individual to succeed in their claim for damages, not least to prevent the costs falling on the state.’ In a recent case the Court of Appeal held that ex …

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Credit Hire: Bent back to basics: end of the spot hire rate

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Vaughan Jacob reviews the practical implications of the decision in Bent v Highways and Utilities Construction ‘A claimant can claim interest if they have proved that they have suffered loss of money by reason of the defendant’s tort, subject to remoteness and a failure to mitigate.’On 24 November 2011, the Court of Appeal handed down …

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Infant Settlements: Recovery of costs

Matthew Hoe examines the latest guidance for assessment ‘Defendants will be prepared to pay for some elements of children’s small claims costs but not all. There is a dividing line to be drawn between those costs that relate to the damages claim and those that relate to the approval.’ With almost 800,000 road traffic accident …

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Highway Actions: Attacking the section 58 defence

Colm Nugent contemplates the burden of proof required to establish the statutory defence ‘In support of the section 58 defence, the Highway Authority will (normally) rely upon the classification of the area of highway concerned and the frequency of the inspection in accordance with the “New Code of Practice for Highways Maintenance”.’Highway tripping cases fall …

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