Essays - Vicarious Liability

Question 1

What is the vicarious essay topic?

Answer 1

Is it fair to impose vicarious liability?

Question 2

What is it unfair that employers are liable?

Answer 2

As the employers are liable even if they themselves didn’t commit the tort. Even if the employer was in a different country or if they did all they reasonably could to prevent the harm by warning against unauthorised activities.

Question 3

What case gave justification to make employers liable?

Answer 3

Christian brothers.

Question 4

What were the 5 reasons Christian bros used to justify employer liability?

Answer 4

1. The employer is more able to compensate the victims and should be covered by insurance
2. The act would more likely be part of the employer’s business activity
3. The act would more likely be part of the employer’s business activity.
4. The employer will have created the risk
5. The employer will have control over the employee.

Question 5

Why is it fair to hold employers liable for any tort committed?

Answer 5

If they want the benefits such as profit from creating these activities, they must carry the risk too. Also, the employers should be covered by insurance so they won’t have a direct impact on the employer themselves.

Question 6

What should liability for employers do?

Answer 6

Encourages employers to do all they can to protect from liability so they won’t have the issue of getting sued.

Question 7

Who are employers liable for?

Answer 7

Their employees

Question 8

How is it defined that the defendant is the employer?

Answer 8

That if they get to control someone they also become liable for them.

Question 9

What did Barclays rule?

Answer 9

That due to the doctor being an independent contractor, barclays didn’t have any control over him so they were not liable.

Question 10

What happened in Barclays?

Answer 10

Barclays sent potential employees to an independent doctor for a medical check-up where the doctor would assault the women. It was ruled that due to the doctor not being under the control of Barclays and being able to say no to his employers, the doctor was liable for the law suit.

Question 11

What did Uber rule?

Answer 11

As Uber had a lot of control over their drivers, they were considered employees.
For instance, Uber had control over their fees, allocated trips, routes and terms of the contract between drivers and customers.

Question 12

What was the ruling in the Deliveroo case?

Answer 12

The riders were not employees, as the riders had no specific working hours, they could work for a rival and could send substitutes, there was a lack of control, so they were not liable.

Question 13

When is the employer only liable for the employee?

Answer 13

When the employee are at work.

Question 14

What does it mean for the employee to be at work?

Answer 14

If they get to control the worker and the worker’s actions are in the employers’ benefit. I.E an authorised action in an unauthorised way. Only then does the employer become liable.

Question 15

What are two cases that show an employee at work and one not at work?

Answer 15

Morrisons data breach and Morrisons fight.

Question 16

What was the details of the Morrisons data breach?

Answer 16

An employee had a grudge against a colleague so he published the payroll data but tried to frame the colleague. However, the employee was an IT worker and was authorised to work with it. What made the employee liable is that he went home on a day off from work and hid his identity.

Question 17

What was the ruling in Morrisions data breach?

Answer 17

As his actions were not to benefit the company but to satisfy his own need for revenge against the hated colleague. So the employer wasn’t liable.

Question 18

What were the details in Morrisons’s fight?

Answer 18

A store clerk had a run in with a customer, they had a spat. The customer left the store, but the working followed him out dragged him out of his car and beat him up.

Question 19

What was the ruling in Morrison fight?

Answer 19

That is because the store clerk didn’t leave work and his actions although unauthorised were to benefit the employer, so Morrisons were liable.

Question 20

Why should it be fair that the employer should be liable?

Answer 20

As no matter whose fault it is, the victim is not at fault and should be compensated for any harm caused.
Chances are the company has more money to deal with the compensation, so it should be on them especially as they create the risk and benefits from it.