header-logo header-logo

15 May 2008
Issue: 7321 / Categories: Case law , Public , Law digest , Damages
printer mail-detail

Tort

4 Eng Ltd v Harper and another [2008] EWHC 915 (Ch), [2008] All ER (D) 400 (Apr)

 

There is no objection in principle to recovery of damages for loss of a chance in an action for deceit.

 

If the loss of the chance is damage directly caused by the defendant’s deceit, it is as much within the scope of damages for deceit as payments or liabilities in fact made or incurred by the claimant or as damages for the loss of profits in a hypothetical alternative business established on the balance of probabilities.

 

If damages for loss of a chance were recoverable in negligence, they should also be recoverable in deceit. Moreover, the foreseeability of a head of loss is irrelevant in the award of damages for deceit. A loss is too remote only if it is not in the eyes of the law directly caused by a defendant’s deceit (Mr Justice Richards at 44 and 46).

 

Issue: 7321 / Categories: Case law , Public , Law digest , Damages
printer mail-details

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys senior leadership appointments

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths strengthens London Construction and Engineering practice with two strategic senior hires

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins announces strategic hire to deepen skills base in the social business sector

NEWS
More than 100 teams from the legal and financial services sectors competed in five sports at the 51st Law Society RFC Festival of Sport earlier this month
Part-time status need only be an effective cause of less favourable treatment, rather than the sole cause, the Supreme Court has held in Augustine v Data Cars
Britain’s new acknowledgement that Israel’s occupation is unlawful, and accompanying settlement-goods ban and sanctions, is significant but overdue, argue Danny Friedman KC and Victor Kattan in NLJ this week
New planning fee rises, wider trade union access rights and a service-by-email trap feature in Stephen Gold’s latest Civil Way
Existing defamation law can respond to AI ‘hallucinations’, but allocating responsibility will prove harder where outputs reach users without human intervention
back-to-top-scroll