The Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd

Last updated

The Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd
Badge of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.svg
Court Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
Full case nameThe Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd & Ors
Argued27–29 October 2015
Decided20 April 2016
Neutral citation[2016] UKSC 18
Reported at[2016] WLR(D) 208
[2016] 2 WLR 1148
Case history
Prior historyAPPEAL from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd v Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime [2014] EWCA Civ 682 (20 May 2014), dismissing an appeal and allowing the claimants' cross-appeals from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd & Anor v The Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime [2013] EWHC 2734(Comm) (12 September 2013)
Holding
Section 2 of the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 does not extend to include compensation for consequential damages.
Case opinions
MajorityLord Neuberger, Lord Clarke, Lord Hughes, Lord Toulson and Lord Hodge
Area of law
Riot (Damages) Act 1886
Consequential damages

The Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co (Europe) Ltd [2016] UKSC 18 is a 2016 judgment of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom that provided an interpretation of section 2 to the Riot (Damages) Act 1886.

Contents

Facts

The case concerns an incident that took place during the 2011 England riots. On 8 August 2011 a gang broke into a warehouse owned by Sony DADC in Enfield. After stealing goods from the warehouse they proceeded to start a fire that destroyed the warehouse and the goods that remained inside.

The insurers, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group, made a claim under section 2 of the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 but a dispute arose surrounding the quantification of loss. The MOPC argued that compensation should only extend to the physical damage whereas the insurers argued that it should also include consequential damages.

Judgment

High Court

The High Court held that section 2 only provided for compensation for the physical damage suffered and not any consequential loss of profits or rent. [1]

Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal reversed the decision of the High Court and held that section 2 provided a right to compensation for all heads of loss. The Master of the Rolls, Lord Dyson stated:

It does not matter whether consequential losses such as loss of profits were recoverable from a trespasser in tort in 1886. In principle, section 2(1) covers all heads of loss compensable under English law for damage to property caused by trespassers in the course of a riot and the heads of compensation recoverable are to be determined with reference to the English law of damages as it develops over time.

Paragraph 123, [2014] EWCA Civ 682

Supreme Court

In the lead judgment Lord Hodge emphasised that the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 must be considered in the context of previous legislative history. Compensation following a riot was first provided for by Parliament in the Riot Act 1714 and although the scope of compensation was not defined; subsequent case law made it clear that "statutory compensation was confined to physical damage to property." [2] On this basis the Supreme Court unanimously allowed the appeal by the MOPC.

Aftermath

In the wake of the 2011 riots it was felt that the wording of the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 was archaic and therefore created uncertainty as regards interpretation. [3] As such section 10 of the Riot Compensation Act 2016 repealed the Riot (Damages) Act 1886. [4] Furthermore, section 8(2) of the 2016 Act now makes it clear that compensation will not generally extend to consequential damages. [5]

Reaction

The law firm that represented the MOPC in the case stated that "With many claims for consequential loss dependent on the outcome of this case, today's Supreme Court decision will likely save the UK taxpayer upwards of £80m." [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at law, the loss must involve damage to property, or mental or physical injury; pure economic loss is rarely recognised for the award of damages.

A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable by the state. While criminal law aims to punish individuals who commit crimes, tort law aims to compensate individuals who suffer harm as a result of the actions of others. Some wrongful acts, such as assault and battery, can result in both a civil lawsuit and a criminal prosecution in countries where the civil and criminal legal systems are separate. Tort law may also be contrasted with contract law, which provides civil remedies after breach of a duty that arises from a contract. Obligations in both tort and criminal law are more fundamental and are imposed regardless of whether the parties have a contract.

Hadley & Anor v Baxendale& Ors [1854] EWHC J70 is a leading English contract law case. It sets the leading rule to determine consequential damages from a breach of contract: a breaching party is liable for all losses that the contracting parties should have foreseen. However, if the other party has special knowledge that the party-in-breach does not, the breaching party is only liable for the losses that he could have foreseen on the information available to them.

Liability insurance is a part of the general insurance system of risk financing to protect the purchaser from the risks of liabilities imposed by lawsuits and similar claims and protects the insured if the purchaser is sued for claims that come within the coverage of the insurance policy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">English tort law</span> Branch of English law concerning civil wrongs

English tort law concerns the compensation for harm to people's rights to health and safety, a clean environment, property, their economic interests, or their reputations. A "tort" is a wrong in civil law, rather than criminal law, that usually requires a payment of money to make up for damage that is caused. Alongside contracts and unjust enrichment, tort law is usually seen as forming one of the three main pillars of the law of obligations.

<i>Rylands v Fletcher</i> Landmark House of Lords decision on tort law

Rylands v Fletcher (1868) LR 3 HL 330 is a leading decision by the House of Lords which established a new area of English tort law. It established the rule that one's non-natural use of their land, which leads to another's land being damaged as a result of dangerous things emanating from the land, is strictly liable.

Ex turpi causa non oritur actio is a legal doctrine which states that a plaintiff will be unable to pursue legal relief and damages if it arises in connection with their own tortious act. Particularly relevant in the law of contract, tort and trusts, ex turpi causa is also known as the illegality defence, since a defendant may plead that even though, for instance, he broke a contract, conducted himself negligently or broke an equitable duty, nevertheless a claimant by reason of his own illegality cannot sue. The UK Supreme Court provided a thorough reconsideration of the doctrine in 2016 in Patel v Mirza.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian tort law</span> Aspect of Canadian law

Canadian tort law is composed of two parallel systems: a common law framework outside Québec and a civil law framework within Québec. Outside Québec, Canadian tort law originally derives from that of England and Wales but has developed distinctly since Canadian Confederation in 1867 and has been influenced by jurisprudence in other common law jurisdictions. Meanwhile, while private law as a whole in Québec was originally derived from that which existed in France at the time of Québec's annexation into the British Empire, it was overhauled and codified first in the Civil Code of Lower Canada and later in the current Civil Code of Quebec, which codifies most elements of tort law as part of its provisions on the broader law of obligations. As most aspects of tort law in Canada are the subject of provincial jurisdiction under the Canadian Constitution, tort law varies even between the country's common law provinces and territories.

An adequate remedy or adequate remedy at law is part of a legal remedy which the court deems satisfactory, without recourse to an equitable remedy This consideration expresses to the court whether money should be awarded or a court order should be decreed.. Adequate remedy at law refers to the sufficient compensation for the loss or damages caused by the defendant with a proper monetary award. The court must grant the adequacy of remedy that will lead to a "meaningful hearing". Whether legal damages or equitable relief are requested depends largely on,whether or not the remedy can be valued. Both two elements, compensation and the meaningfulness of hearing, provide a proper way to have an adequate remedy. The word "meaningfulness" of hearing in the law process is the assumption that the defendant compensated must be meaningful for the injured party where the defendant made a fully covered compensation for all the losses. Hence, the hearing in which cannot give any right amount of compensation award or settlement is not "meaningful", and the unavailability of the compensation will lead to an inadequate remedy. The adequate remedy at law is the legal remedies by meaning it is satisfactory compensation by way of monetary damages without granting equitable remedies.

Insurance bad faith is a tort unique to the law of the United States that an insurance company commits by violating the "implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing" which automatically exists by operation of law in every insurance contract.

Loss of use is the inability, due to a tort or other injury to use a body part, animal, equipment, premises, or other property. Law.com defines it as "the inability to use an automobile, premises or some equipment due to damage to the vehicle, premises or articles caused by the negligence or other wrongdoing of another."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riot (Damages) Act 1886</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Riot (Damages) Act 1886 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It authorised the payment of compensation, from the police fund of the police area in question, to persons whose property had been injured, destroyed or stolen during a riot. The Act was repealed and replaced by the Riot Compensation Act 2016 which received royal assent on 23 March 2016.

Theodore Huckle is a Welsh barrister. He served as the first and to date only independent professional Counsel General for Wales, the statutory Law Officer to the Welsh Government, during the governmental term of the 4th Assembly/Senedd. Upon nomination by the First Minister, his appointment was approved by the Senedd and formally made by the Queen on 21 July 2011, although he had been acting Counsel General from his birthday on 27 May 2011.

<i>Ropaigealach v Barclays Bank plc</i>

Ropaigealach v Barclays Bank plc [2000] QB 263 is an English land law case, concerning mortgage arrears and a rare mortgage over a family home which had a right to enter a home and sell it without a court order.

<i>Jetivia SA v Bilta (UK) Limited</i> (in liquidation) 2015 decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Jetivia SA v Bilta (UK) Limited [2015] UKSC 23 is a UK company and insolvency law decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom in relation to (i) the attribution of unlawful acts of a director to the company where the company is the victim of the unlawful act, and (ii) the extent to which liability for fraudulent trading under section 213 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has extraterritorial effect.

<i>R v Jogee</i> 2016 British landmark legal case on joint enterprise

R v Jogee[2016] UKSC 8 was a 2016 judgment of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom that reversed previous case law on joint enterprise. The Supreme Court delivered its ruling jointly with the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which was considering an appeal from Jamaica, Ruddock v The Queen [2016] UKPC 7.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riot Compensation Act 2016</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Riot Compensation Act 2016 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repeals the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 and modernizes the procedures for the payment of compensation to persons whose property has been injured, destroyed or stolen during a riot.

<i>Hayward v Zurich Insurance Company plc</i>

Hayward v Zurich Insurance Company plc [2016] UKSC 48 was a 2016 judgment of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom that allowed an insurer to set aside a settlement agreement because of fraudulent misrepresentation by the claimant even when the insurer had misgivings about the claim prior to settling.

<i>Bocardo SA v Star Energy UK Onshore Ltd</i>

Bocardo SA v Star Energy UK Onshore Ltd [2010] UKSC 35 is a UK enterprise law case, concerning oil and gas. It held a landowner also owned the strata and minerals, unless they conveyed it, in common law or statute, to someone else, so an oil company making wells 800 to 2,900 feet below the surface was trespass, and had to pay compulsory purchase compensation under the Mines Act 1966 s 8(2).

<i>Cox v Ergo Versicherung AG</i>

Cox v Ergo Versicherung AG[2014] UKSC 22 is a judicial decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom relating to the conflict of laws and the assessment of damages following a road traffic accident.

References

  1. [2013] EWHC 2734 (Comm)
  2. Paragraph 30, [2016] UKSC 18
  3. Explanatory Notes to the Riot Compensation Act 2016
  4. Section 10, Riot Compensation Act 2016
  5. Section 8, Riot Compensation Act 2016
  6. "Mayor Boris Johnson wins London riot compensation case". BBC News . BBC. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016.