Hales v Kerr
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Date | 1908 |
| Court | Divisional Court |
Evidence - Negligence - Negligent Course of Conduct - Dangerous Practice - Single Act or Omission - Evidence of similar Acts or Omissions.
The plaintiff in an action of negligence alleged that he had contracted an infectious disease through the negligence of the defendant, a barber, in using razors and other appliances in a dirty and insanitary condition. In support of his case he tendered the evidence of two witnesses who deposed that they had contracted a similar disease in the defendant's shop:—
Held that, as the negligence alleged was not an isolated act or omission, but was a dangerous practice carried on by the defendant, the evidence of these witnesses was admissible.
APPEAL from the judge of the county court of Surrey holden at Kingston.
The plaintiff was employed as a billiard-room manager. The defendant kept a barber's shop. The plaintiff in his particulars of claim alleged that he employed the defendant to shave him between September, 1906, and October 9, 1907, and that by reason of the negligence of the defendant or his servant in using razors and other appliances in a dirty and insanitary condition the plaintiff on or about October 9, 1907, contracted a disease known as barber's itch, which incapacitated him from following his employment as a billiard-room manager. The plaintiff claimed 30l. damages, including medical expenses and loss of earnings.
The plaintiff deposed that on October 9, 1907, he went to the defendant's shop to be shaved; that a barber in the defendant's employment, while shaving the plaintiff, cut him slightly on the throat and then rubbed the cut with a towel and applied a powder-puff; that very soon afterwards the cut became inflamed, and that a disorder known as barber's itch, or ringworm of the beard, subsequently developed. He stated that he had never visited any barber's shop other than the defendant's, and his testimony went to negative the possibility of his having contracted the disorder from any other source. The doctor who attended the plaintiff stated that he had examined him on October 12 and found a distinct ringworm on his neck; and that any instrument which was unclean might have transmitted the microbe of the disease. He further stated that, in his opinion, antiseptics ought to be used, and that if reasonable precautions are taken there is very little risk of infection.
Two witnesses, named Cheverton and Currie, called for the plaintiff stated that in September, 1907, they had been shaved at the defendant's shop and had contracted the same disorder. One of these witnesses had been cut in two places by a...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Wicklow County Council v Fenton (No 2)
...LOUIS MORIARTY AND EILEEN MORIARTY Respondents Citations: WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT 1996 S57 WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT 1996 S58 HALES V KERR 1908 2 KB 601 Synopsis: PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT Waste management Waste management - "Polluter pays" principle - Interpretation of Waste Management Act, 1996 -......
-
Michael Obrien and Chief Constable of The South Wales Police/
...with it. Instances are Brown v Eastern & Midlands Railway Co (1889) 22 QBD 391; Moore v Ransome's Dock Committee (1898) 14 TLR 539 and Hales v Kerr [1908] 2 KB 601." 46 In Sattin v National Union Bank Ltd (CAT 21 st February 1978; (1978) 122 SJ 367) the plaintiff was claiming damages arisin......
-
Alcoa Minerals of Jamaica Incorporated v Broderick
...deal with it. Instances are: Brown v. Eastern Midlands Railway Co. [1889] 22 QBD 391, Moore v Ransome's dock Committee (1898) 14 TLR 539, Hayles v. Kerr [1908] 2 KB 601.” 73 (11B) What did the scientific evidence of the respondent prove 74 Lena Whyte, a Metallurgist of the Bureau of Standar......
-
Mood Music Publishing Company Ltd v De Wolfe Ltd
...is able to deal with it. Instances are: Brown v. Eastern Railway (1889) 22 Q. B. D. 391, Moore v. Ransome's Dock (1898) 14 T. L. R. 539, Hales v. Kerr (1908) 2 K. S. 601. 17 The matter in issue in the present case is whether the resemblances which "Girl in the Dark" hear to "Sogno Nostalgic......
-
Case Management, Similar Fact Evidence in Civil Cases, and a Divided Law of Evidence
...not think in terms of prejudice to the defendant, but in82 E & PCASE MANAGEMENT, SIMILAR FACT EVIDENCE, AND A DIVIDED LAW OF EVIDENCE1 [1908] 2 KB 601.2 Again, in Sattin vNational Union Bank Ltd (1978) 122 SJ 367, where S sought damages following thedefendant’s bank’s loss of a diamond he h......