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Law Cases
Tort Law Cases
Omissions: Liability of Public Authorities Cases

Gorringe v Calderdale MBC [2004] UKHL 15

Country:
United Kingdom
By Oxbridge Law Team
Lord Hoffmann
Lord Hutton

  • Plaintiff was in a car accident at a dangerous point in the road and sued R for negligence saying that it (the highway authority) should have painted a “slow” sign in the road so as to prevent accidents.

  • HL said there was no duty of care since the statutory duty to “maintain the highway” did not give rise to a duty of care or private enforcement. 

Lord Hoffmann

  • To infer a private duty of care from a statutory duty the public authority must have ‘assumed responsibility’ for the subject in question and there must be universal reliance.

Lord Hutton

  • To infer a private duty from a public one, it is necessary to look at parliament’s intent and whether the statute affords protection to a limited or limitless class of people. 

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