I propose to develop the relevant facts more fully in the context of each of these issues. 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. The social workers and the psychiatrists were retained by the local authority to advise the local authority, not the plaintiffs. 64. So in my view is an educational psychologist or psychiatrist and a teacher including a teacher in a specialised area, such as a teacher concerned with children having special educational needs. in that case. It trades under the name of the "Popular Flying Association" and it appears that either its main role or one of its main roles is to run that association. "Proximity" is, no doubt, a convenient expression as long as it is realised that it is no more than a label which embraces not a definable concept but merely a description of circumstances from which pragmatically, the courts conclude that a duty of care exists.". In other words, he could have been resuscitated on site and then transferred for more specific care. 63. It is sometimes said that there has to be an assumption of responsibility by the person concerned. held at p.557: "Is this a case in which it can be said that the plaintiff was closely and directly affected by the acts of the architect as to have been reasonably in his contemplation when he was directing his mind to the acts or omissions which are called into question? The principles alleged to give rise to a duty of care in this case are those of assumption of responsibility and reliance. The defendant in each case was a local authority. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control (2001 . Nor do I see why the fact that the Board is a non profit-making organisation should provide it with an immunity from liability in negligence. The Board assumes the responsibility of determining the nature of the medical facilities and assistance to be provided. When considering whether the Board owed Watson a duty of care, Ian Kennedy J. examined at some length the role played by the Board in imposing, by rules and regulations, the safety standards to be observed by those involved in professional boxing in this country. 95. Michael Watson MBE, born 15 March 1965, is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1984-1991. These recommendations Mr Hamlyn set out in a detailed paper for the Board two days later. No contest shall take place unless fully trained personnel are able to operate such resuscitation equipment are present throughout the promotion.". Match. 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 Watson v British Boxing Board of Control Ltd,l the Court of Appeal has upheld an unprecedented decision that a regulatory body can be liable for negligence in the exercise of its rule-making functions. He submitted that, having regard to the chaos prevailing at the end of the fight, Mr Watson would not have received medical attention for seven minutes, even if the Hamlyn protocol had been in place. The agreed time of reception at the hospital was 23.22. Get 1 point on providing a valid sentiment to this 88. In accordance with normal practice, the medical officers for the contest were nominated by the Southern Area Council. Get 2 points on providing a valid reason for the above had not been responsible for the claimant's asthma but it had caused the respiratory arrest and to this extent the L.A.S was the author of additional damage.". Without it, the system of personal injury compensation would not have survived. The witness best placed to deal with the consideration, if any, given to this matter would have been Mr Whiteson. The child was in a singularly vulnerable position. The setting of rules could be akin to the giving of advice and thus had an indirect influence on the occurrence of the injury. 27. In a Witness Statement in the present proceedings, Mr Watson stated that this accorded with his understanding as a boxer that the Board undertook responsibility for all the medical aspects of boxing, including the medical supervision of boxing contests, in the United Kingdom. a) Requirements as to protective covering for the ring floor and the corners (Rule 3.4). Search for more papers by this author. English case law has developed, with various twists and turns, in the problematic field of factual causation. Lord Steyn, however, gave short shrift to an argument based on assumption of responsibility: "Given that the cargo owners were not even aware of N.K.K. 52. Thus the necessary `proximity' was not made out. He was brought in by the education authority to assist it in carrying out its educational functions. The North Middlesex Hospital had no neurosurgical department, so Mr Watson was transferred by ambulance, still unconscious, to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. 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. The defendant company had a policy for achieving responsible gambling, . He won a historic High Court case in Sept 1999, raising questions about the future of the professional sport in the UK. . The Board, however, arrogates to itself the task of determining what medical facilities will be provided at a contest by (i) requiring the boxer and the promoter to contract on terms under which the Board's Rules will apply and (ii) making provision in those Rules for the medical facilities and assistance to be provided to care for the boxer in the event of injury. 8. Contracts between boxer and manager and boxer and promoter have to be in standard form, providing expressly that the parties will observe the Board's rules. It shall be adequately lit, have an examination couch and possess hot and cold running water. The facilities provided accorded with the advice to medical officers issued by the Board's Medical Committee, to which I referred earlier. After recovering consciousness, he sued the BBBC in negligence, and was awarded approximately 1 million by the High Court of Justice, who determined that the relationship between the BBBC and Watson was sufficient to create a duty of care. 123. It made provision in its rules for the medical precautions to be employed and made compliance with these rules mandatory.. It has limited liability. The Board was involved in an activity which gave it, not merely a measure of control, but complete control over and a responsibility for a situation which would be liable to result in injury to Mr Watson if reasonable care was not exercised by the Board. On 24 September 1999 Ian Kennedy J., gave judgment in favour of Mr Watson against the Board. Where there is a potential for physical injury, I do not believe that I have to go beyond the traditional concept of neighbourhood to find a duty where there is, as here, a clearly foreseeable danger. Herbert Smith, London. The Notice of Appeal contended that there was no evidence that, had the rules contended for by Mr Watson been in place, he would have been treated any differently; the Judge should have found that none of the doctors present, nor the ambulance man, would have intubated the claimant, whatever equipment had been available, because he was breathing spontaneously. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control[2001] QB 1134was a case of the Court of Appeal of England and Walesthat established an exception to the defence of consent to trespass to the personand an extension of the duty of care expected in cases of negligence. In the final round, Watson lost consciousness and was taken to the hospital, arriving there nearly half an hour after the end of the fight and received resuscitation treatment. 101. * The Board failed to require a medical examination of Mr Watson immediately following the conclusion of the contest. The plaintiff's allegation is that during this process an alternative gearbox was fitted without the appropriate and corresponding substitution of a propeller which matched the substituted gearbox. It was also important to have a prior arrangement with the hospital with a neurological unit, and with that unit placed on standby. This appears to be an attempt to import into the law of negligence concepts of public law. This would mean an appointment of a Senior Medical officer specifically for the major event and then two other doctors on duty to ensure that there were always two doctors at the ringside while a major contest was taking place.". 100. First published on Wed 5 Oct 2022 07.44 EDT The murky business of boxing was thrown into a fresh crisis when the promoter Eddie Hearn refused to accept a ruling by the British Boxing Board. It seems to me that this is almost implicit in Mr Walker's argument that to issue such a requirement expressly, was to instruct a doctor as to how to perform his duty. Mr Watson collapsed unconscious within a minute or so of this. In the course of his work he assesses a pupil whose lack of progress at school has been causing concern all round: to teachers and parents alike. The doctors should decide between them who will remain ringside and who will undertake the emergency treatment should the need arise. Search for more papers by this author. Mr Hamlyn said, and I accept, that there would have been very few British neurosurgeons who at this time would have questioned the need to put up a line and administer this diuretic in a case such as the present. Appeal from 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. Some boxers employed their own doctors. 129. 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. A duty of care at this stage had been conceded by the Ministry of Defence, but in Capital and Counties v. Hampshire this Court commented at p.1038 that this was not surprising as the deceased was under the command of the officer concerned. The essence of Mr Watson's case is that there should have been a system under which such equipment would not merely be available, but used immediately in the event of a brain injury. This has left him paralysed down the left side and with other physical and mental disability. This decision turned, essentially, on considerations of policy in relation to the role of a classification society in the context of the complex arrangements for sharing, limiting and insuring the risks inherent in carriage of goods by sea. The education of the pupil is the very purpose for which the child goes to the school. Attempts have been made, within Parliament and outside, to bring about the banning of the sport of boxing. I find this distinction between instructions as to duties and instructions as to how to perform duties elusive and over subtle. 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. Lord Woolf M.R. In fact the Board had required a third doctor to be present and that an ambulance should be in attendance. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control The Importance of Evidence in Proving a Breach of Duty Rugby Rugby is a dangerous sport with heavy body collisions between players and regularly, multiple players at any given time. This sequence can result in cumulative damage to the brain, leading sooner or later to death. She claimed in negligence and occupiers liability. 3.9 each boxer must be examined after every contest and a report sent to the Board or Area Council concerned if necessary. What it does do does at least reduce the dangers inherent in professional boxing. It acts as a regulatory rule making body. 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. A Respondent's Notice was served contending that the Judge could and should have drawn an adverse inference from his failure to give evidence. A book of rules and regulations 58 pages in length provides, in detail, for the manner in which professional boxing is to be carried on. It examines the ability of insurers to influence legislation relevant to the tort system. Once resuscitation, or stabilisation has taken place, the next stage is neuro-surgery to remove the haematoma and seal any ruptured veins or arteries. The professionals were employed or retained to advise the local authority in relation to the well being of the plaintiffs but not to advise or treat the plaintiffs". 125. As for the argument that the local authorities were vicariously liable for negligence on the part of those giving them advice, Lord Browne-Wilkinson held at pp.752-3: "The claim based on vicarious liability is attractive and simple. The Judge's findings in relation to breach of duty appear from the following passages in his judgment: "The standard response where the presence of subdural bleeding is known or suspected has been agreed since at least 1980, which is to intubate, ventilate, sedate, paralyse, and in Britain at least, to administer Manitol. This concludes my consideration of cases dealing with the assumption of responsibility to exercise reasonable care to safeguard a victim from the consequences of an existing personal injury or illness. Thereafter the effect of delay was less important, although brain damage occurred cumulatively until death. The most material part of this reads: "The Senior Medical Officer shall arrange for full and adequate resuscitation equipment (including intubation and ventilation equipment) to be available at the ringside of the venue. The article examines this regulatory framework; where traditional attitudes about the social desirability of sport and acceptance of harm support an autonomous self-regulatory approach, often insulated from the full application of the criminal law. This contention had some similarities to submissions made in relation to the Popular Flying Association in Perrett v Collins. That, however, did not prove to be the position. 9. at p.258 as follows: "The third defendants are a trading company incorporated under the companies Acts. I do not believe that the evidence admits of any accurate answer to this question but that is by no means an uncommon situation in cases of this sort. In this way the Board reduces this aspect of the promoter's responsibility to the boxer to the contractual obligation to comply with the requirements of the Board's Rules in relation to the provision of medical facilities and assistance. The Judge accepted that this was the case but ruled that in the final analysis that it was for the Court to determine whether even the most widely followed practice was acceptable. This is an argument which might appeal to boxing enthusiasts, but would not be accepted by the British Medical Association. In 1991 the Board had about twelve hundred licence holders and members of which about five hundred and fifty were active boxers. Nearly half an hour elapsed between the end of the fight and the time that he got there. Held: A certifying . He submitted that the Board would presumably owe the same duty to boxers who came from abroad to box and persons who were not yet boxers, and perhaps not even born, when the rules were made. 5. In the event, without explanation, he was not tendered as a witness and objection was taken to the use of his witness statement. Mr Morris, commenting in his Witness Statement on the Statement of Claim, stated: "We do collaborate with the medical profession, indeed we believe that our Rules are as good as currently can be devised, taking into account the medical interests of the boxers, and the requirements of the sport itself. The word puzzle answer watson v british boxing board of control 2001 has these clues in the Sporcle Puzzle Library. It carried out this function by making and imposing rules dealing with the safety of boxers, by approving medical officers and by giving detailed guidance as to the qualifications and equipment those officers should bring to the ringside. rejected the submission that any negligence on the part of Mr Usherwood was only an indirect cause of the crash. Plainly, however, the longer the delay, the more serious the outcome. The rise in pressure inside the skull caused by the haematoma results in distortion of the brain. 3.10 The promoter shall procure that at all promotions a stretcher is available for use near the ring. It is clear on the authorities that the duty to take reasonable care to prevent further harm and to effect a cure is founded on the acceptance of the patient as a patient, which carries with it an implicit undertaking to care for the patient's needs. 107. On the law relied upon by the Judge, this was all that Mr Watson needed to succeed. It is not so much that responsibility is assumed as that it is recognised or imposed by the law.". This can, of itself, result in the restriction of the supply of oxygen to the brain. "As a general rule a sufficient relationship will exist when someone possessed of a special skill undertakes to apply that skill for the assistance of another person who relies upon such skill and there is direct and substantial reliance by the plaintiff on the defendant's skill. In the subsequent action for personal injuries, this Court held that the ambulance service had been in breach of a duty of care in failing to arrive promptly. iii) Those taking part in the activity, and Mr Watson in particular, relied upon the Board to ensure that all reasonable steps were taken to provide immediate and effective medical attention and treatment to those injured in the course of the activity. A defendant seeking to disturb the findings of fact of a trial Judge in relation to causation undertakes a hard task. The doctors required by the rules to be present at a contest had to be doctors who had been approved by the Board. Creating your profile on CaseMine allows you to build your network with fellow lawyers and prospective clients. 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. Next Mr. Walker argued that if the Board had made its Rules pursuant to a statutory power it would be tolerably clear that it could not be held liable in negligence in relation to the manner in which it chose to exercise its discretion. a) A requirement that a boxer must be medically examined before being granted a licence, together with a list of medical conditions that preclude the grant of a licence. Despite this statement, Ian Kennedy J. suggested that where there was a potential for physical injury there was no need to go beyond the test of foreseeability in deciding whether a duty of care existed, relying on Perrett v. Collins [1998] 255. The Board called to give evidence Mr Peter Richards, a Consultant Neuro-Surgeon with Charing Cross Hospital between 1987 and 1995. Match. In that case Hobhouse L.J. But once the decision is taken to offer such a service, a statutory body is in general in the same position as any private individual or organisation holding itself out as offering such a service. He had particular experience of brain injuries caused by sporting activities. observed that there was no evidence of any of the asserted potential effects of a finding of negligence against PFA. In laying down Rules for the benefit of boxers generally, however, Mr Walker submitted that the Board was under no duty of care. The Judge went on to review such statistical evidence as there was in relation to the frequency of occurrence of head injuries in boxing and observed that there had been no evidence to suggest that the Board considered and balanced the difficulty of providing the adequate response to the risks of head injury against their frequency of occurrence and severity of outcome. This was drawn to the attention of the duty Petty Officer, who organised a stretcher, had the rating carried to his cabin and placed on his bunk in the recovery position, in a coma. Michael Watson suffered a near-fatal brain injury and spent 40 days in a coma after boxing against Chris Eubank, who still struggles to comprehend what happened on that fateful night 110. Order: Appal dismissed with costs on the issues of liability and causation here and below, those costs to be assessed forthwith on to Legal Services Assessment; 18,000 in Court to be paid out in part satisfaction of those costs forthwith; detailed assessment on standard basis; Legal Services Commission taxation; application for permission to appeal to House of Lords refused. Again I disagree. the concern of the Board for the physical safety of boxers is reflected in many of the Board's rules and regulations. None of the three doctors present went to his assistance until requested to do so. 343, Denning L.J. These can be divided into three categories: i) rules designed to ensure that a boxer is not permitted to fight unless he is fit. The fight had taken place in accordance with the rules of the British Boxing Board of Control Ltd., ("the Board"). Learn. [2] He was given no oxygen, and first sent to a hospital which lacked a neurosurgery unit. The BBBC had a series of rules on the medical coverage needed for boxing matches, which required two doctors to be present at all times. The relevant allegations of negligence can be summarised as follows: * The Board failed to inform itself adequately about the risks inherent in a blow to the head; * The Board failed to require the provision of resuscitation equipment at the venue, together with the presence of persons capable of operating such equipment. 76. It is to make regulations imposing on others the duty to achieve these results. Michael Watson was a boxer who, on 21 September 1991, fought Chris Eubank under the supervision of the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBC), the British professional boxing governing body. There is no more justification for a blanket immunity in their cases than there was in Capital & Counties Plc v Hampshire Country Council [1997] QB 1004. As part of the health service it should owe the same duty to members of the public as other parts of the health service. I turn to the distinctive features of this case. 6. 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. Later, after referring to Lord Bridge's speech in Caparo at p.261, he said: "Thus when a case fits into a category where the existence of a duty of care and a potential liability in the tort of negligence has already been recognised, the more elusive criteria to which Lord Bridge referred for dealing with cases that go beyond the recognised category of proximity do not arise.". These considerations lead to the final point made by Mr Walker in the context of proximity. A. He held that anyone with the appropriate expertise would have advised the adoption of such a system. Once brought into contact with the plaintiffs, the professionals owed a duty properly to exercise their professional skills in dealing with their `patients', the plaintiffs. Each doctor is expected to attend a tournament fully equipped to cover all emergencies. The BBBC had a series of rules on the medical coverage needed for boxing matches, which required two doctors to be present at all times. 40. Learn. The patient can then be taken straight to the nearest neurosurgical unit. 428 Nield J. drew a distinction between a casualty department of a hospital that closes its doors and says no patients can be received, in which case he would, by inference, have held there was no duty of care, and the case before him where the three watchmen, who had taken poison, entered the hospital and were given erroneous advice, where a duty of care arose. The British Boxing Board of Control have confirmed they are moving their base to Cardiff from London. 68. Dr Ross, who was a member of the Medical Committee for a number of years before the Watson fight, was asked whether he remembered discussions about treatment in the ring of head injuries before that fight. 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. If any doubt arises concerning a boxer's condition then referral to a local hospital for emergency treatment or advice should be undertaken and a report sent to the Board. If, which I doubt, this conclusion represents any step beyond what is already settled law, I am fully persuaded it is a proper one to take.". A case that is instructive is the English case of Watson v British Boxing Board of Control ([2001] 2 WLR 1256), the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBC) was held liable for the injuries sustained by Michael Watson. The Claimant would have been resuscitated within a few minutes of 23.00 and in St. Bartholomews by 23.45 at the latest. The aircraft crashed and the Plaintiff sustained personal injuries. 1, 43-44, where he said: "It is preferable, in my view, that the law should develop novel categories of negligence incrementally and by analogy with established categories, rather than by a massive extension of a prima facie duty of care restrained only by indefinable `considerations which ought to negative, or to reduce or limit the scope of the duty or the class of person to whom it is owed.". 22. Such duty does not depend on the existence of any contractual relationship between the person causing and the person suffering the damage. 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.

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