In a raft of recent case law, the principles of the doctrine of vicarious liability have been noticeably relaxed. Central to vicarious liability are two principles: did an employee commit the tort and was the tort committed while acting within the course of employment? If the answer to both questions is yes then the employer will be held vicariously liable for the tortious acts of the employee and it will have to pay compensation, which will be assessed by the court unless settled between the parties.
Considering the first element, an important decision was reached recently in Cox. Cox, while employed as the catering manager at HMP Swansea, was injured in an accident caused by the negligence of a prisoner. As part of her job, Cox was required to supervise prisoners who served in the prison kitchen. One prisoner, against instructions, attempted to carry two large sacks of rice, whereupon injury occurred when the sacks were accidentally dropped directly onto Cox’s back. The prisoners had been paid for their work.
Your organisation does not have access to this article.
Sign up today to give your students the edge they need to achieve their best grades with subject expertise
Subscribe
