FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND LAW

ACADEMIC YEAR 2019/20

Assessment Instructions
Assessment Details

Module Code: UJUUKU-30-2

Module Title: Law of Torts

Assessment Component: A

Submission will be made by: using a normal Blackboard submission portal in the Assignments
folder of this module on Blackboard

Assessment opens: 09:00hrs 18th May 2020

Deadline/Submission closes: 09:00hrs 19th May 2020

Assessment Weighting: 60 per cent of total module mark

N.B. all times are 24-hour clock, British Summer Time (BST)

Important Information - Referencing and Assessment Offences

As is usual for an exam, for this assessment you are not expected to include full referencing, i.e.
you are not expected to use footnotes, create a bibliography or to comply with OSCOLA
referencing styles. However, you are encouraged to cite relevant case law, statutes and the
sources of key theories and arguments etc.

Text-matching software (e.g. SafeAssign) is used to check every submission against other
submissions made at the same time, previous submissions to UWE and other universities, and
internet sources. When submitting your work, you will be required to confirm that the work is
your own.

It is an assessment offence to copy work from any source, including your own previous
assessments, and present it as your own work for this assessment, or to provide your own work
to others. It is an assessment offence to work with others on the assessment in any way.

Paraphrasing by changing individual words but keeping essentially the same sentences or
structures from other sources is not acceptable and will be detected by text-matching software:
please write in your own words and style to convey your own learning.

UWE’s Assessment Offences Policy outlines potential offences including plagiarism, collusion,
self-plagiarism and sharing of assessment submissions, and it is your responsibility to

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understand this policy and avoid potential offences. Details of what constitutes plagiarism and
how to avoid it can be found on UWE’s Study Skill’s plagiarism pages.

Formatting

Please use the following file format: Word (i.e. .doc or .docx file formats). We cannot ensure
that other formats are compatible with markers’ software and cannot guarantee to mark
incorrect formats.

At the start of your answers, please include the module name and your student number (not
your name).

Please indicate clearly which questions you are answering.

Please use Times New Roman/Arial/Calibri 12 point for your answers and double spacing.

Instructions for submission

You must submit your assignment before the stated deadline by electronic submission
through Blackboard.

 It is your responsibility to submit your assessment in a format stipulated above.

 You can submit as many times as you like up to end of the 24-hour submission period.
Only the last successful submission will be marked.

 There is no late submission permitted on this timed assessment.

 Do not leave submission to the very last minute.

 The date and time of your submission is taken from the Blackboard server and is recorded
when your submission is complete, not when you click Submit.

 It is essential that you check that you have submitted the correct file(s), and that each
complete file was received.
Submission receipts are accessed from the Coursework tab.
Further guidance and support during assessment

Technical support
See UWE’s IT support pages for support with software for home and immediate technical
issues. Note that a limited service may be available due to ongoing UK restrictions, and

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therefore please report issues as soon as possible. If it is not possible to resolve them, personal
circumstances will be offered.

Instructions

 There are no multiple-choice questions. There is only one section in the exam, there will be
4 questions in total, from which you will have to answer 2 questions. The questions will be
based on the following topics: Damages for Personal Injury (problem question), Occupiers’
Liability (problem question), Trespass to Land (essay question) and Nuisance (problem
question).
 The 2 questions are equally weighted i.e. each question is worth 50% of the exam mark.
 As is usual for an exam, for this assessment you are not expected to include full referencing,
i.e. you are not expected to use footnotes, create a bibliography or to comply with OSCOLA
referencing styles. However, you are encouraged to cite relevant case law, statutes and the
sources of key theories and arguments etc.
 Multiple submissions can be made to the portal, but only the final one will be accepted.
Please save your work frequently and ensure it is submitted within the 24-hour period.
Unlike a coursework, there is no 24-hour late submission window.
 This is an individual assessment: do not copy and paste work from any other source. Text-
matching software will be used on all submissions – more detail provided above.
 There is a word limit for each exam question of between 1000-1250 words. This is
provided as a guide as to what we would expect a student to write for each answer. It is not
a requirement that every answer must be at least 1000 words. However, anything after the
maximum word count of 1250 will not be marked, in line with UWE’s Word Count Policy.

Online Exam

Instructions to Candidates:

Candidates must answer TWO questions.

Each answer must not exceed 1250 words.

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Each question answered is worth 50% of the overall exam mark.

1. Explain to what extent (if at all) it is true to say that, for the purposes of
the tort of trespass to land, a landowner’s rights continue to an unlimited
extent:

a. above ground level;

AND

b. below ground level.

Please answer both parts of the question. Each part carries equal weight.
Please remember your overall answer for question 1 must not exceed
1250 words.

2. Cindy was a passenger in a light aircraft which had been chartered by a local
charity. The flight was Cindy’s prize for having the winning ticket in a raffle held by
the charity. The aircraft made an emergency crash-landing in a field, entirely as a
result of the negligence of Denis, the self-employed pilot. Cindy had not properly
fastened her safety belt, despite being told to do so by Denis before the crash.

Cindy was a 30 year old chartered surveyor and she was so severely injured in the
crash that she will never work again and cannot have children. She has severe cuts
to her hands and face and is so embarrassed by the disfigurement to her face that
she has become reluctant to leave her home. Before the crash, Cindy was a keen
amateur violinist and has now been advised by her doctors that she will be unable
to play the violin again. Cindy had a personal accident insurance policy (which she
paid for) which has paid out a large sum of money on account of her injuries.
Cindy’s unemployed boyfriend, Enoch, has been caring for Cindy and will continue
to do so for the foreseeable future.

Explain and apply the principles that will be used to calculate the
compensation payable in tort by Denis.

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3. Bristol City Council (BCC) own and manage ‘Redfern’, a 5 acre estate. This estate
contains gardens, a children’s playground and a lake, and is open to the public to
use upon payment of a fee.

Last August, Dina and Balraj took their 5 year old son Manav to ‘Redfern’ for a
family day out. Whilst Dina and Balraj were deep in conversation with some friends
they had bumped into, Manav got bored and wandered off to explore his
surroundings. He came across a bush with red fruit on it that looked like berries.
The red fruit is poisonous and should not be eaten. In front of the bush there was a
sign which stated, ‘Do not touch or eat the fruit’. Attracted by the fruit, Manav
picked and ate one and as a result fell seriously ill.

Meanwhile, Balraj, in his search for his son Manav, entered the children’s
playground area. While in the playground, Balraj sat down on a bench which had
recently been installed by Funto Ltd. The bench collapsed and as a result Balraj was
injured. BCC had hired Funto Ltd., a Bristol based building company with a
questionable reputation, to install the bench. Due to financial constraints, BCC had
hired Funto Ltd to install the bench as they were cheap.

On the other side of the estate, Rachel, aged 14, was sitting near the lake with her
friends. As it was a warm day, she decided to take a dip in the lake to cool off,
despite a clear sign which said, ‘Danger! Do not enter the water’. As she waded out
into the water, Rachel hit her foot on a metal container, causing injury to her foot.
The metal container was lying on the bed of the lake and due to the dark colour of
the water, was not visible either from the shore or from the surface of the water.

Advise Bristol City Council (BCC) as to their potential liability (if any)
under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 and Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984.

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4. In 2017, Donkin Power Limited (“Donkin”) was granted planning permission to
construct and operate a plant at Newtown for the production of electricity from
domestic waste. Whilst it was recognised that the plant would create considerable
noise, this disadvantage was found by the planning authority to be outweighed by
the benefit to the local community of having its own, exclusive source of electric
power and by the additional employment that the plant would bring to the area.

Donkin commenced operating the plant in 2018 and succeeded in minimising the
resulting noise so that only the inhabitants of those few houses in the immediate
vicinity have been materially affected. One of these houses, owned and occupied
by Anna, was built by her in 2019. Another of these houses, occupied by Ben, is
owned by Ben’s wife, who left Ben a year ago and has not been heard of since.

The inhabitants of the affected houses are now threatening to take legal action
against Donkin, complaining that the noise from the plant at night is seriously
disturbing their sleep.

Explain the advice that you would give to Donkin as to its liability (if any)
in tort and the remedies available to the claimants should such liability be
established.

END OF PAPER