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| Yonge v Toynbee | |
|---|---|
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| Full case name | Yonge v Toynbee |
| Decided | 1910 |
| Citation(s) | [1910] 1 KB 215 |
| Keywords | |
| insanity | |
Yonge v Toynbee [1910] 1 KB 215 is a case in British law regarding the legal effects of a party entering a contract, and later discovered to be insane.
The plaintiff commenced defamation action in the court against the defendant and instructed the lawyers W and Sons to act on their behalf. During these proceedings and unbeknown to their lawyers, the plaintiff was declared legally insane.
As a result, the plaintiff's legal action was struck out by the court by the defendant and then sought costs from W and Sons on the basis that they had no legal authority to represent the plaintiff, as the plaintiff was insane, even though they had no knowledge at the time. The defendant was not legally liable for the costs because of the plaintiff's insanity.
The defendant's lawyers were liable for costs, as their implied agency to act on the behalf of their defendant ended with the insanity of their client.
A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action originated in the United States and is still predominantly an American phenomenon, but Canada, as well as several European countries with civil law, have made changes in recent years to allow consumer organizations to bring claims on behalf of consumers.
The insanity defense, also known as the mental disorder defense, is an affirmative defense by excuse in a criminal case, arguing that the defendant is not responsible for their actions due to a psychiatric disease at the time of the criminal act. This is contrasted with an excuse of provocation, in which the defendant is responsible, but the responsibility is lessened due to a temporary mental state. It is also contrasted with the justification of self defense or with the mitigation of imperfect self-defense. The insanity defense is also contrasted with a finding that a defendant cannot stand trial in a criminal case because a mental disease prevents them from effectively assisting counsel, from a civil finding in trusts and estates where a will is nullified because it was made when a mental disorder prevented a testator from recognizing the natural objects of their bounty, and from involuntary civil commitment to a mental institution, when anyone is found to be gravely disabled or to be a danger to themself or to others.
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