Economic Torts in UK Law

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Leading Cases
  • HM Revenue and Customs v Total Network SL
    • House of Lords
    • 12 Marzo 2008

    Such a proposition is not only inconsistent with the jurisprudence of tortious conspiracy, as Lord Walker has demonstrated and explained, but is inconsistent also with the historic role of the action on the case.

  • OBG Ltd and another v Allan and Others
    • House of Lords
    • 02 Mayo 2007

    To be liable for inducing breach of contract, you must know that you are inducing a breach of contract. It is not enough that you know that you are procuring an act which, as a matter of law or construction of the contract, is a breach. Nor does it matter that you ought reasonably to have done so. He took the information in the honest belief that the employee would not be in breach of contract.

    Nevertheless, the common thread is striking through a third party who might otherwise be doing business with your target, whether by buying his goods, hiring his barges or working for him or whatever. The refinement proposed by my noble and learned friend, Lord Hoffmann, is entirely consistent with the underlying principles to be deduced from the decided cases. It is also consistent with legal policy to limit rather than to encourage the expansion of liability in this area.

  • Meretz Investments NV v ACP Ltd
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 11 Diciembre 2007

    Although my conclusion on the issue of unlawful means makes it unnecessary to decide the point, I would support Arden LJ's view at [127] that it is a defence to an action for conspiracy to injure by unlawful means if the defendant not only acted to protect his own interests, but did so in the belief that he had a lawful right to act as he did.

  • JSC BTA Bank v Khrapunov
    • Supreme Court
    • 21 Marzo 2018

    Compliance with the criminal law is a universal obligation. By comparison, legal duties in tort or equity will commonly and contractual duties will always be specific to particular relationships. Their relevance may depend on the purpose of the relevant statutory provision, which may or may not be consistent with its deployment as an element in the tort of conspiracy. For present purposes it is unnecessary to say anything more about unlawful means of these kinds.

  • Michael Douglas (1st Respondent) Catherine Zeta-Jones (2nd Respondent) Nothern & Shell Plc (3rd Respondent) v Hello Ltd (1st Appellant) Hola S.A. (2nd Appellant) Eduardo Sanchez Junco (3rd Appellant)
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 18 Mayo 2005

    Professor Weir and most other writers, including Hazel Carty and Messrs Sales and Stilitz, are of the view that the gist of all the economic torts is the intentional infliction of economic harm. It is, however, very different from knowledge that economic harm will follow as a result of incidental consequences of conduct, when those consequences are not necessary steps in achieving the object of the conduct and are unsought.

  • Stocznia Gdanska SA v Latvian Shipping Company (No 2)
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 21 Junio 2002

    Where, as here, A (Latco) procures B's (Latreefers') breach of his contract with C (the yard), adopting it as his own because he is interested to do so, seeking a benefit for himself or a fortiori a detriment for C, and does so deliberately, knowingly and intending the breach to take place, then A puts himself in the way of incurring a liability, even though not himself a party to the contract, unless (i) he does not directly procure the breach, and (ii) he uses no (relevant) unlawful means, or (iii) he can claim some justification.

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Legislation
  • Civil Procedure Rules 1998
    • UK Non-devolved
    • 1 de Enero de 1998
    ... ... might render the defendant doubly liable under section 7 of the Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 ... the legality of which is or may be affected by a duty owed to an economic operator by virtue of regulations 89 or 90 of those Regulations (and for ... ...
  • Crime and Courts Act 2013
    • UK Non-devolved
    • 1 de Enero de 2013
    ... ... (133) In the Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977— ... An offence under section 199 of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (failure to prevent fraud ... ...
  • Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982
    • UK Non-devolved
    • 1 de Enero de 1982
    ... ... in so far as not already in force) by Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (c. 56), s. 219(1)(2)(b), Sch. 9 ... 30: Proceedings in England and Wales or Northern Ireland for torts to immovable property ... (1) ... ...
  • Consumer Protection(Northern Ireland) Order 1987
    • UK Non-devolved
    • 1 de Enero de 1987
    ... ... “the Department” means the Department of Economic Development; ... “gas” means— ... (a) any substance in a gaseous ... The Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 (1977 c. 32 The Torts (Interference ... ...
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Books & Journal Articles
  • Rethinking the Economic Torts
    • No. 72-4, July 2009
    • The Modern Law Review
    We propose a revised conceptual basis for the economic torts which is true to their historical role of regulating the competitive process. Claims that the economic torts are part of a wider princip...
  • John Murphy, The Province and Politics of the Economic Torts, Hart Studies in Private Law, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2022, 320 pp, hb £76.50
    • No. 86-1, January 2023
    • The Modern Law Review
    • 0000
  • Reviews
    • No. 65-3, May 2002
    • The Modern Law Review
    Books reviewed: Foster, The Ethics of Medical Research on Humans Vidmar, World Jury Systems Simpson, Human Rights and the End of Empire. Britain and the Genesis of the European Convention Carty, An...
    ... ... Conor Gearty* Hazel Carty , An Analysis of the Economic Torts , Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001, xxx + 295pp, hb £40.00 ... ...
  • Reviews
    • No. 62-2, March 1999
    • The Modern Law Review
    Books reviewed: McCoubrey: The Obligations to Obey in Legal Theory Halpin: Rights and Law: Analysis and Theory Harrison: Good Faith in Sales Weir: Economic Torts Prosser: Law and the Regulators Goo...
    ... ... Roger Brownsword* Tony Weir , Economic Torts , Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997, xiii + 130pp, hb £17.99. Weir’s ... ...
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Law Firm Commentaries
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