Torts connected to land: Nuisance

Question 1

What is a private nuisance?

Answer 1

When action can be taken as there has been unalwful interference with a person’s use or enjoyment of land coming from a neighbouring land

Question 2

What can a claim be?

Answer 2

Indirect - smoke, smell, noise
Direct - damage to property, trees

Question 3

What case can be used for an indirect claim?

Answer 3

Halsey v Esso Petroleum

Question 4

What case can be used for physical damage?

Answer 4

St Helens v Tipping

Question 5

What can’t be claimed through private nuisance?

Answer 5

Personal Injury
Negligence
Malone v Laskey

Question 6

What are the parties to an action?

Answer 6

The Claimant
The Defendant

Question 7

The claimant

Answer 7

Must have an interest in the land e.g., owner/tenant
Use or enjoyment of land has been affected by the interference

Question 8

Hunter v Canary Wharf?

Answer 8

A member of the owner’s family, if don’t have interest, can’t claim

Question 9

McKenna v British Aluminum

Answer 9

Children affected by fumes and smells, no interest in land, able to claim

Question 10

The defendant

Answer 10

Person causing/allowing nuisance
Can’t have interest in land/family member

Question 11

Who could the defendant be?

Answer 11

Local Authority
Tetley v Chitty

Question 12

When can the Occupier still be liable?

Answer 12

If didn’t cause it but didn’t deal with it

Question 13

What happened in Leaky v National Trust?

Answer 13

Slippage of natural natural mound damaged claimant’s cottage
Defendant liable as they knew slippage might happen and failed to prevent it
Due to natural causes

Question 14

When will it be reasonable to claim?

Answer 14

Noise
Smell
Vibrations

Question 15

When won’t it be reasonable to claim?

Answer 15

TV signal
Loss of view
Right to light

Question 16

What happened in Laws v Florinplace Ltd?

Answer 16

Residents able to claim nuisance when shops, houses and restauranats were converted into the sex shops

Question 17

What happened in Thompson-Schwab v Costaki?

Answer 17

Running a brothel was seen to be a nuisance

Question 18

What happened in Fearn and Others v Tate Galley?

Answer 18

Overlooking doesn’t fall into nuisance as we have the right to view - told them to move or put curtains up

Question 19

What is prima - facie?

Answer 19

An obvious nusiance at first glance like physical damage

Question 20

What happens if the nuisance is not prima facie?

Answer 20

The courts will establish the resonable factors

Question 21

What are the different reasonable factors?

Answer 21

Locality
Duration
Sensitivity
Malice

Question 22

What is locality?

Answer 22

The character of the neighbourhood will be considered to estbalish whether the nuisance is reasonable

Question 23

What happened in Kennaway v Thompson?

Answer 23

Successfull is nuisance claim as locality of area changed

Question 24

What must the nusiance be ?

Answer 24

Continuous
Unreasonable times of day

Question 25

What happened in Crown River Cruises Ltd v Kimbolton Fireworks?

Answer 25

20 mins firework was held to be a nuisance

Question 26

What is sensitivity?

Answer 26

Not reasonable for D to be liable if C is particularly sensitive

Question 27

What happened in Network Rail Infrastrucutre v Morris?

Answer 27

Amps of electric guitar being sensitive to track circuit was not foreseeable so D not liable

Question 28

What is malice?

Answer 28

A deliberatley harmful act

Question 29

What happened in Hollywood Silve Fox Farm v Emmett?

Answer 29

Shooting the guns near the Mink was malice was D was liable

Question 30

What are the defences for nuisance?

Answer 30

Prescription Consent Moving to nuisance Social benefit Statutory Authority Planning Permission

Question 31

What is prescription?

Answer 31

If action carried out for at least 20 yrs with no complain, D may have prescriptive right to continue

Question 32

What happened in Sturges v Bridgman?

Answer 32

Prescrpton failed as nuisance only began when consulting room was built

Question 33

What is consent?

Answer 33

Full defence If consented, D not liable C won't receive any damaged

Question 34

What is moving to the nuisance?

Answer 34

Always fails May argue only suffering nuisance as they moved closer but will fail Miller v Jackson

Question 35

What is social benefit?

Answer 35

If D provides benefit, action may be reasonable

Question 36

What happened in Miller v Jackson?

Answer 36

Community use of cricket ground outwighed private use of garden so as not a nuisance

Question 37

What happened in Adams v Ursell?

Answer 37

Fish and chip shop was causing nusiance due to smell

Question 38

What is statutory authority?

Answer 38

If Parliament passes law which allows nuisance to happen, won't be a nuisance Allen v Oil Gulf Refining

Question 39

What is planning permission?

Answer 39

Not an absolute defence Just evidence If character of neighbourhood does change, could lead to nuisance being reasonable

Question 40

What happend in Gillingham Borough Council v Medway Dock Co?

Answer 40

No actionable nuisance because granting planning permission changed the character of neighbourhood

Question 41

What are some remedies?

Answer 41

Injunctions Damages

Question 42

What are prohibitory nuisances?

Answer 42

Order D to stop causing nuisance

Question 43

What are positve nuisances?

Answer 43

Make D do something Coventry v Lawrence

Question 44

What is abatement?

Answer 44

Entering D's premises to prevent further nuisances