LW201-6-FY-CO:
Tort Law
2024/25
Essex Law School
Colchester Campus
Full Year
Undergraduate: Level 6
Current
Thursday 03 October 2024
Friday 27 June 2025
30
25 May 2023
Requisites for this module
LW101 or LW108
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
LLB M100CS Law,
LLB M100MS Law,
LLB M103 Law (Senior Status)
This 30 credit module covers the key topics required for an understanding of English tort law, and complements students’ previous study of other areas of the law of obligations.
The module will introduce students to the duty of care and the principles of civil liability for negligence. Students will learn how to apply principles and caselaw in tort to scenarios such as psychiatric harm, economic loss, negligence by omission and the liability of public bodies. The module also covers the principles of vicarious liability.
Later in the module, students will learn about so-called ‘land torts’ and consider the relevant principles of occupiers' liability regimes and how these augment the additional controls of the use of land, found in the principles of nuisance and the rule in Rylands v Fletcher.
By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:
- Understand the duty of care and how a claim in negligence may arise.
- Apply the principles of negligence liability in specific duty-based scenarios.
- Demonstrate a thorough understanding of the policy issues that underpin the imposition of liability.
- Show a clear understand of the divisions and borders between the various liability regimes governing the use of land.
- Read, understand and critically analyse judicial decisions.
- Apply the relevant case-law and principles to appropriate problem scenarios.
The module will include coverage of the following topics:
Specific Duty Scenarios
- Occupiers' Liability
- Nuisance and Rylands
- Vicarious Liability
- Economic Loss
- Psychiatric Harm
Non-standard Duty Scenarios and Further Elements of a Tort
- Non-standard Duty scenarios (Donoghue to Caparo and beyond)
- Breach of Duty
- Causation in Fact
- Causation in Law
- Defences, Damages and Remedies
The module will be delivered by a weekly 2-hour lecture and a weekly 1-hour tutorial.
-
-
Horsey, K. and Rackley, E. (2021a) 'Occupiers' Liability', in
Tort Law. 7th edn. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, pp. 319–338. Available at:
https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/986932.
-
Horsey, K. and Rackley, E. (2021b) 'Special Duty Problems: Psychiatric Harm', in
Tort Law. 7th edn. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, pp. 102–112. Available at:
https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/986932.
-
Horsey, K. and Rackley, E. (2021c) 'Special Duty Problems: Psychiatric Harm', in
Tort Law. 7th edn. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, pp. 112–137. Available at:
https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/986932.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's
reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
Coursework |
Essay (LW201 Tort Law) |
|
75% |
Practical |
Multiple Choice Quizzes - Continuous Assessment (LW201 Tort Law) |
|
25% |
Exam |
Main exam: In-Person, Open Book (Restricted), 195 minutes during Summer (Main Period)
|
Exam |
Reassessment Main exam: In-Person, Open Book (Restricted), 195 minutes during September (Reassessment Period)
|
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Anthony Griffin, Administrator, telephone: 01206 872529 email: agriffin@essex.ac.uk
No
No
No
No external examiner information available for this module.
Available via Moodle
No lecture recording information available for this module.
Essex Law School
* Please note: due to differing publication schedules, items marked with an asterisk (*) base their information upon the previous academic year.
Disclaimer: The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its Module Directory is accurate and up-to-date. Exceptionally it can
be necessary to make changes, for example to programmes, modules, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include a change of law or regulatory requirements,
industrial action, lack of demand, departure of key personnel, change in government policy, or withdrawal/reduction of funding. Changes to modules may for example consist
of variations to the content and method of delivery or assessment of modules and other services, to discontinue modules and other services and to merge or combine modules.
The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will also keep students informed appropriately by updating our programme specifications and module directory.
The full Procedures, Rules and Regulations of the University governing how it operates are set out in the Charter, Statutes and Ordinances and in the University Regulations, Policy and Procedures.