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04 November 2011 / Lucy Wyles
Issue: 7488 / Categories: Features , Personal injury
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Leap of faith

Lucy Wyles dives headfirst into the latest personal injury developments

As Mrs Justice Thirlwall DBE stated in a recent case, there is always risk in swimming and diving, in any pool. It is a sad fact that swimming and diving accidents can result in catastrophic injuries.

Doubtless as a consequence of this, the common law case law is peppered with seminal cases arising from swimming or diving accidents—examples include Tomlinson v Congleton Borough Council [2003] UKHL 47, [2003] 3 All ER 1122 on occupiers’ liability, Evans v Kosmar Village Holidays [2007] EWCA Civ 1003, [2008] 1 All ER 530 on the duties of a tour operator and Owusu v Jackson [2005] QB 801, [2005] 2 All ER (Comm) 577 on jurisdiction.

This article will examine two recent High Court decisions which follow this trend, in that they arose from such accidents, and in which fundamental principles of liability were considered. Both concerned the confines of the duty of care owed to a pool-user.

Grimes v Hawkins

The case of Grimes v Hawkins

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NEWS
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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