What’s in a name, asks Dominic Regan
This charming man realised recently that several significant cases involved a party named Smith. Indeed, the Smith population has made a remarkable contribution to our jurisprudence.
The colourful George Carman QC was responsible for a new head of injury damages, thanks to his advocacy in Smith v Manchester Corporation [1974] EWCA Civ 6. Mr Carman lived an exotic life. Let me put it like this; few at the Bar get visits from heavies seeking to recover gambling debts. A Smith award, as it is universally called, is for the risk of handicap in the labour market. Mrs Smith was injured at work and there was a lingering disability. Her employers were benevolent and kept her on at her same rate of pay so no loss was evident. However, what the court recognised was that if she lost that job then, on the open labour market, she would have been a less attractive proposition to a potential employer and it would be harder to secure a new job.
