Black v Braer Corporation and Others
| Jurisdiction | Scotland |
| Judgment Date | 30 July 1998 |
| Date | 30 July 1998 |
| Court | Court of Session (Outer House) |
Outer House of the Court of Session
Before Lord Gill
Scots law - damages - compensation for oil pollution - psychological damages not excluded
An action for compensation under sections 1 and 12 of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 might competently extend to personal injuries arising by way of stress, anxiety and depression.
Lord Gill, sitting in the Outer House of the Court of Session, so held allowing an action of damages at the instance of Derrick Black against the Braer Corporation and others to proceed to proof.
Mr James Drummond Young, QC and Mr Raj Jandoo for the pursuer; Mr Robert Howie for the first and second defenders; Mr Colin Tyre for the third defenders.
LORD GILL said that the pursuer sought compensation for personal injuries.
He pled a number of conditions he claimed to have suffered; some were physical, relating to his respiratory tract and some were psychological. The latter was said to have result from damage caused oily spray from the tanker Braer to his fields, crops and livestock.
His Lordship referred to the terms of sections 1(1) and 20 of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 and to section 4(1) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1974.
The argument for the defenders had been that "damage" in the statutory provisions did not cover every type of loss caused by contamination.
It was accepted that "damage" extended to personal injury, but, it was argued, did not extend to stress, anxiety and depression. The psychological effects complained of were merely damage caused by damage.
For the pursuer, it was argued that there was a direct link averred between the alleged psychological symptoms and the pollution. It was a matter for proof for the pursuer to establish the precise nature of his condition and to establish whether or not in the circumstances he had a relevant claim.
In his Lordship's view, the starting point was the concession made by the defenders that "damage" in the definition sections...
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