34. At this stage it is enough to note that the advice set out the professional expertise expected of the medical officers and details of equipment needed to perform their duties. The Judge referred (Transcript p.17) to the question of whether to attach a duty of care to the facts of the present case would be an acceptable incremental extension of established liabilities, or too long a step. Many of the matters considered under the heading of proximity are also relevant to the question of whether it is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty of care in this case. Search for more papers by this author. Had the Board simply given advice to all involved in professional boxing as to appropriate medical precautions, it would be strongly arguable that there was insufficient proximity between the Board and individual boxers to give rise to a duty of care. I found this submission unrealistic. If Mr Watson has no remedy against the Board, he has no remedy at all. In 1989 it was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee. They alleged that the local authorities had provided services under which, in one case, educational psychologists and, in the other, advisory teachers provided advice to teaching staff and parents as to whether children had special educational needs. In 1991 there were only about 550 active boxers, of which almost all were semi-professional. First, Watson is apparently the first reported case in which the English There is no statutory basis for this. . The Board exercises its control of professional boxing through a system of eight Area Councils, subject to overall control by Stewards and Committees. Michael Watson was injured in a boxing match supervised by the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC or BBBC), which was expected . said: "In my opinion authorities who run a hospital, be they local authorities, government boards, or any other corporation, are in law under the selfsame duty as the humblest doctor. I see no reason why the rules should not have contained the provision suggested by the Judge. The facilities include a scheme which enables members to construct and fly their own light aircraft. As already stated, no tournament is allowed to commence or continue without one doctor sitting ringside. Again I disagree. Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor IN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE Case No: QBENF1999/1137/A2 COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION) ON APPEAL FROM THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION (THE HON MR JUSTICE IAN KENNEDY) Tuesday 19th December 2000 THE MASTER OF THE ROLLS LORD JUSTICE MAY LORD JUSTICE LAWS Respondent/Claimant Mr Walker accepted that if Mr Watson had specifically asked the Board for advice as to the precautions that he ought to have in place for his fight, and the Board had given advice, the Board would have been under a duty to exercise care in giving that advice. The Board argued that this demonstrated that the standard applied by the Judge was too high. Once proximity is established by reference to the test which I have identified, none of the more sophisticated criteria which have to be used in relation to allegations of liability for mere economic loss need to be applied in relation to personal injury, nor have they been in the decided cases.". The request for an ambulance was accepted. Learn. In any event, option B was the one that was undertaken. The head teacher, being responsible for the school, himself comes under a duty of care to exercise the reasonable skills of a headmaster in relation to such steps as a reasonable teacher would consider appropriate to try to deal with such under-performance. Medical knowledge does not enable one to say what, on the balance of probabilities, would have been the outcome if the protocol had been in place and followed. In Marc Rich & Co v. Bishop Rock Ltd [1996] AC 211 a classification surveyor had surveyed a vessel laden with cargo and given it a clean bill of health. 98. First he submitted that the Board exercises a public function which it has assumed for the public good. The onlookers derive entertainment, but none of the physical and moral benefits which have been seen as the fruits of engagement in many sports.". It seems to me that, but for the intervention of the Board, the promoter would probably owe a common law duty to the boxer to make reasonable provision for the immediate treatment of his injuries. The arrival of the ambulance was greatly delayed without any reasonable explanation. I do not find this surprising. 107. In such a case the authority running the hospital is under a duty to those whom it admits to exercise reasonable care in the way it runs it: see Gold v Essex County Council [1942] 2 K.B. As part of the health service it should owe the same duty to members of the public as other parts of the health service. It was also important to have a prior arrangement with the hospital with a neurological unit, and with that unit placed on standby. It made provision in its Rules for the medical precautions to be employed and made compliance with these Rules mandatory. 117. No medical assistance was provided. On the evidence I consider that the Judge was entitled to find that, even if resuscitation had not been commenced until after help was summoned, it would probably have resulted in a significantly better outcome for Mr Watson. But although the cases in which the courts have imposed or withheld liability are capable of an approximate categorisation, one looks in vain for some common denominator by which the existence of the essential relationship can be tested. It is always better to err on the side of caution and even if a boxer has recovered sufficiently to leave the ring unaided, if and when he returns to the dressing room he exhibits any sign of persistent concussion or admits to any persistent headaches, visual disturbance or vomiting he should be immediately transferred to the local hospital where the expert advice of Neurologists and Neurosurgeons can be obtained. Each case involved the performance by the local authority of duties imposed under statute for the benefit of children. The fight had taken place in accordance with the rules of the British Boxing Board of Control Ltd., ("the Board"). There had been a number of similar cases in the 1980's. It does not follow that the decision in this case is the thin end of a wedge. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1734 - Law Journals Case: Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1734 Case Report: Andrew Risk v Rose Bruford College [2013] EWHC 3869 (QB) 12 King's Bench Walk (Chambers of Paul Russell QC) | Personal Injury Law Journal | March 2014 #123 Moreover, it is clear that no such duty of care exists, even though there may be close physical proximity, simply because one party is a doctor and the other has a medical problem which may be of interest to both". Serious brain damage such as that suffered by Mr Watson, though happily an uncommon consequence of a boxing injury, represented the most serious risk posed by the sport and one that required to be addressed. expressed a similar view in Marc Rich & Co. v Bishop Rock Ltd [1994] 1 WLR 1071 at 1077: "Whatever the nature of the harm sustained by the plaintiff, it is necessary to consider the matter not only by inquiring about foreseeability but also by considering the nature of the relationship between the parties; and to be satisfied that in all the circumstances it is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty of care. 110. There are features of this case which are extraordinary, if not unique. The local council had waived a requirement that the balustrade meet the . It seems to me that the authorities support a principle that, where A places himself in a relationship to B in which Bs physical safety becomes dependant upon the acts and omissions of A, As conduct can suffice to impose on A a duty to exercise reasonable care for Bs safety. and Had the board simply given advice to all involved in professional boxing as to appropriate medical precautions, it would be strongly arguable that there was insufficient proximity between the board and individual boxers to give rise to a duty of care. Therefore, it is said, it is nothing to the point that the social workers and psychiatrist only came into contact with the plaintiffs pursuant to contracts or arrangements made between the professionals and the local authority for the purpose of the discharge by the local authority of its statutory duties. His evidence was that it was his practice to use it where a patient was experiencing breathing difficulties. 129. held that. Cargo owners sued the classification society N.K.K. 4. [1997] QB 1004 at 1034. 83. He was also given an injection of Manitol, a diuretic that can have the effect of reducing swelling of the brain. One group of cases involved statutory duties imposed on local authorities for the purpose of protecting children from child abuse. The duty will be owed to the victim of a road accident who is received by the hospital unconscious. In particular, the Board controlled the medical assistance that would be provided. i) that it owed no duty of care to Mr Watson; ii) that if it owed the duty alleged, it committed no breach; and. At this meeting Mr Hamlyn expressed the view that it was vital that at the ringside there should be the right doctors with the right equipment. He did so, notwithstanding, so it was alleged, that the mismatch between gearbox and propeller made the aircraft unairworthy. [8], "BBC Sport Poignant end to Watson's epic journey", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Watson_v_British_Boxing_Board_of_Control&oldid=1049029766, This page was last edited on 9 October 2021, at 12:23. 44. There was no contract between the parties, but boxers had to fight under the Boards rules. In these circumstances there is no close proximity between the services and the general public. 116. Mr Morris told the court that he would expect the Medical Committee, and its Chief Medical Officer, to keep abreast of developments in sports medicine that impacted on the safety of boxers in the ring. 42. It is supplied to amateur flyers in a kit form which they can then assemble for themselves. 105. [6] This was an extension to the previous duty of care under negligence, and also serves as an exception to the rule under trespass to the person that a defendant will not be liable for personal harm caused in sporting matches which the claimant consents to. 82. In any event I believe that this point vanishes when causation is considered. More significantly, he would not be in a position to know whether the provisions that the Board required to be put in place represented all that it was reasonable to provide for his safety. He was held at North Middlesex Hospital until 23.55 to ensure that he was stabilised for the onward journey, and then taken to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. 114. The numbers of those to whom the duty is alleged to be owed in the present case are not incompatible with the requirements of proximity. There was a contrast with a fire or a crime, where an unlimited number of members of the public could be affected and the damage could be to property or only economic. Subsequently they were incorporated in the Rules by an addition to Regulation 8. Plainly, however, the longer the delay, the more serious the outcome. But at the same time it countenances and gives its blessing to contests where the safety arrangements are those of its making. Watson v British Board of Boxing Control: QBD 12 Oct 1999 A governing body of a sport, had a duty to insist on arrangements for sporting events, held under its aegis, to ensure proper access to medical aid. On the law relied upon by the Judge, this was all that Mr Watson needed to succeed. In my judgement in the present cases, the social workers and the psychiatrist did not, by accepting the instructions of the local authority, assume any general professional duty of care to the plaintiff children. 124. The education of the pupil is the very purpose for which the child goes to the school. 17. 45. In consequence, the pupil fails to receive the appropriate educational treatment and, as a result, his educational progress is retarded, perhaps irreparably. England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division), Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor. The plaintiffs submitted that that which is most closely analogous is that of doctor and patient or health authority and patient. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control (2001 . Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Robinson v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police 2014, East Suffix River Catchment Board v Kent, Reeves v Commissioner of Police and more. This sequence can result in cumulative damage to the brain, leading sooner or later to death. ", "But where an educational psychologist is specifically called in to advise in relation to the assessment and future provision for a specific child, and it is clear that the parents acting for the child and the teachers will follow that advice, prima facie a duty of care arises. at p.258 as follows: "The third defendants are a trading company incorporated under the companies Acts. Throughout these contests the boxers' performance should be noted and any untoward medical problems arising should be reported to the Area Council or Board. At the outset, however, I propose to identify some significant features of the present case, which place it outside any established category of duty of care in negligence. Likewise, a doctor who happened to witness a road accident will very likely go to the assistance of anyone injured, but he is not under any legal obligation to do so, save in certain limited circumstances which are not relevant, and the relationship of doctor and patient does not arise. Found Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor useful? The board, however, went far beyond this. 6. 29. In consequence this special need was not addressed, to the detriment of the child. The time was now 23.08. The final point taken by the Board was that they did not receive advice in relation to the desirability of ringside resuscitation until after Mr Watson's injuries. The Board did not insure against liability in negligence. On 24 September 1999 Ian Kennedy J., gave judgment in favour of Mr Watson against the Board. Search for more papers by this author. Citation. The doctor does not, by examining the applicant, come under any general duty of medical care to the applicant. An operation was carried out to remove a moderate size haematoma and to close such veins as were found to be oozing blood. I turn to the law. These facts bring the Board into close proximity with each individual boxer who contracts with a promoter to fight under the Board's rules. Nothing that I have heard persuades me that there was any impracticality, whether in terms of manpower or in cost to the promoters, in the Board having included such a requirement in their rules. 32. Mr Walker also suggested that a finding in favour of Mr Watson in this case would involve postulating that other sporting regulatory bodies, such as the Rugby Football Union, owed duties of care to the participants in their sports in relation to their rules and regulations. We have been referred to no case where a duty of care has been established in relation to the drafting of rules and regulations which have governed the conduct of third parties towards a claimant. What it does do does at least reduce the dangers inherent in professional boxing. agreed with Hobhouse L.J. CLUE. .Cited Sutradhar v Natural Environment Research Council HL 5-Jul-2006 Preliminary Report of Risk No Duty of Care The claimant sought damages after suffering injury after the creation of water supplies which were polluted with arsenic. In other words, as there were no circumstances which made it unfair or unreasonable or unjust that liability should exist, there is no reason why there should not be liability if the arrival of the ambulance was delayed for no good reason. Mr Watson's case, in essence, was that there should have been a different regime in place - Mr Walker described it as an intensive care unit at the ringside. These rules included provisions for medical inspection of boxers and for the attendance of two doctors at a fight. Elr, Recueil JP 01.02 3 a) Case of Michels v USOC (United States Court of Appeals - 7th circuit, 16 August 1984)40 B. The defendant in each case was a local authority. [2], The case first went to the High Court of Justice, where Kennedy, J, gave his judgment on 24 September 1999, awarding Watson around 1 million in damages. Lord Nicholls posed and answered the following question at p.802: "Take a case where an educational psychologist is employed by an education authority. iii) to decide whether these principles should be applied so as to give rise to a duty of care in the present case. . In my view the Claimant makes his case on causation when he shows, as he has done, that with the protocol in place he would have been attended from the outset by a doctor skilled in resuscitation, who would have made any necessary inquiries of the neurosurgeons at St. Bartholomews, who would themselves have been on notice. In such circumstances A's conduct can accurately be described as the assumption of responsibility for B, whether `responsibility' is given its lay or legal meaning. As Mr Morris accepted, by reason of its control over boxing the Board was in a position to determine, and did in fact determine, the measures that were taken in boxing to protect and promote the health and safety of boxers. 92. Indirect Influence on the Occurrence of Injury. ii) The Board assumed responsibility for determining the details of the medical care and facilities which would be provided by way of immediate treatment of those who received personal injuries while taking part in the activity. 5. The statutory obligations in relation to certifying airworthiness was designed, at least in substantial part, for the protection of those who might be injured if an aircraft was certified as being fit to fly when it was not. While it might be possible to rationalise the reason for the duty by postulating that there is a general reliance by citizens upon the National Health Service to provide reasonable care in the case of a medical emergency, English law has set its face against this line of reasoning. In order to explain these allegations, I propose to summarise the evidence on: * the nature of injuries such as those suffered by Mr Watson; * the manner in which such injuries were treated in hospital in 1991; * the manner in which such injuries should have been treated at the ringside and. It seems to me that the authorities support a principle that where A places himself in a relationship to B in which B's physical safety becomes dependent upon the acts or omissions of A, A's conduct can suffice to impose on A, a duty to exercise reasonable care for B's safety. There is no question but that anyone with the appropriate expertise would have advised such a system whatever reservations they may have had, as had Professor Teasdale, about its ultimate utility.". Once resuscitation, or stabilisation has taken place, the next stage is neuro-surgery to remove the haematoma and seal any ruptured veins or arteries. I shall revert to the details of this when I come to consider the question of breach. 94. Before confirming, please ensure that you have thoroughly read and verified the judgment. Center circle: In the center circle, jot down the name of your stated goalin this case, Create an Audio Educational Program. To hold that, in such circumstances, the head teacher could properly ignore the matter and make no attempt to deal with it would fly in the face, not only of society's expectations of what a school will provide, but also the fine traditions of the teaching profession itself. In an open letter to BMA delegates, written some time in the 1980's, Dr Whiteson, the Chief Medical Officer to the Board, wrote "The British Boxing Board of Control is justifiably proud of its reputation of being in the vanguard of the protection of professional boxers."