James George, James George. 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. The relevant findings of the Judge were as follows:-. He contended that they were in breach of this duty with the consequence that he did not receive the immediate medical attention at the ringside that his condition required. Cargo owners sued the classification society N.K.K. At p.1172 he summarised his conclusion as follows:-. Negligence in Public Policy Case Summaries - LawTeacher.net The doctors who were actually present were not aware of the desirability of immediate resuscitation of a victim with a brain haemorrhage. d) The rule that a boxer must be medically examined before every contest. At this meeting Mr Hamlyn expressed the view that it was vital that at the ringside there should be the right doctors with the right equipment. PFA was not a commercial undertaking. The Board argued that, until they received such advice, they could not reasonably be expected to alter their recommendations and rules in relation to ringside treatment. Each emphatically concluded that it was. Later that day, there was a rise in intra-cranial pressure and a second operation was performed, on this occasion by Mr Hamlyn, to remove a new collection of blood and staunch a bleeding vein and artery. The phrase means simply that the law recognises that there is a duty of care. 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. He went on to hold that, in relation to the child abuse cases, the statutory scheme was incompatible with the existence of a direct common law duty of care owed by the local authorities. He did not, however, identify any obvious stepping stones to his decision. His comment that "it would only have added three minutes or so if he had waited until he was summoned" suggests to the contrary. Test. He received only occasional visits of inspection by the duty ratings. That phrase can be misleading in that it can suggest that the professional person must knowingly and deliberately accept responsibility. iii) that the breach of duty alleged did not cause Mr Watson's injuries. If it was held liable it might withdraw from its work, or have to pass on the cost of increased insurance to the detriment of small aircraft operators. In other words, he could have been resuscitated on site and then transferred for more specific care. 20. The movement of the brain within the skull may rupture veins, or more rarely an artery, inside the head leading to bleeding which builds up into a blood clot or haematoma. [3] Kennedy held that there was a "sufficient nexus" between Watson and the BBBC to create a duty of care, and that Watson's consent to the fight (which would normally be considered a defence of volenti non fit injuria) was not a consent to the inadequate safety measures. Watson V British Boxing Board Of Control 2001 Crossword Answer The ambulance took him to North Middlesex Hospital, which was less than a mile away. Ringside medical facilities were available, but did not provide immediate resuscitation. In this case the following matters are particularly material: 1. An example of the ongoing review of safety standards was the Board's decision, in August 1991, that: "In future three Board Medical Officers would be appointed when a major contest was taking place. IMPORTANT:This site reports and summarizes cases. The ambulance should be prepared to go direct to the Neurological unit that had been placed on stand-by. 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. A press release issued in the 1980's', stated: "In the last 20 years, the medical protection of British professional boxers has become the Board's main raison d' trethrough its Medical Committee set up in 1950, it has provided British professional boxing with an unrivalled set of medical safety checks and balances.". We have been referred to no case where a duty of care has been established in relation to the drafting of rules and regulations which have governed the conduct of third parties towards a claimant. The Board is non-profit making. 2. Apart from issues of statutory duty, the question arose in each group of cases whether (i) the local authorities owed, at common law, a duty of care to the children when considering their needs and (ii) whether professionals advising on the needs of children owed a duty of care to those children which, if broken, rendered the local authorities vicariously liable. The Board has argued that until this accident no-one had suggested that they should institute this protocol. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1134 was a case of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales that established an exception to the defence of consent to trespass to the person and an extension of the duty of care expected in cases of negligence. 107. This decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, who noted that the BBBC had a duty not only to ensure that injuries did not occur, but that injuries were properly treated. The Court of Appeal drew a correct analogy with the doctor instructed by an insurance company to examine an applicant for the life insurance. It was Mr Walker's submission that there was no reliance. 37. He distinguished the fire and police `rescue' cases on the ground that: "This was not a case of general reliance, but specific reliance. It made provision in its Rules for the medical precautions to be employed and made compliance with these Rules mandatory. There is a general reliance by the public on the fire service and the police to reduce those risks. The education of the pupil is the very purpose for which the child goes to the school. 67. This sequence can result in cumulative damage to the brain, leading sooner or later to death. A British doctor's duty to offer help in emergencies outside of a I see no reason why the rules should not have contained the provision suggested by the Judge. 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. The Board controlled every aspect of that activity. The decision is of interest for several reasons. I have not heard evidence to the effect that the Board or its medical advisers had before this incident considered, and for some reason decided not to follow, what may not unfairly be called this protocol. The ordinary test of reasonable skill and care is the correct one to apply. Questions of what was fair and reasonable did not arise. So far I have not dealt with the question of reliance by Mr Watson on the exercise of care by the Board. 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. These cases turned upon the assumption of responsibility to an individual. 83. The contest was sponsored not by the Board, but by the World Boxing Organisation (WBO). They argued that if they had failed to exercise reasonable care, this was not the direct cause of the Plaintiff's injuries - the direct cause being that the aircraft had been designed in a manner that made it unairworthy. 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. 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. At the end of the contest one doctor remains ringside, the other should follow both contestants back to the dressing room and should at least check that both boxers are in a satisfactory condition and if not instigate any treatment that is required, preferably in the treatment room provided. That is true as a fact. The third category is of particular importance in the context of this action. In such a case the authority running the hospital is under a duty to those whom it admits to exercise reasonable care in the way it runs it: see Gold v Essex County Council [1942] 2 K.B. At the end of December 1991 the net assets of the Board were about 352,000. IN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE Case No: QBENF1999/1137/A2, (1) BRITISH BOXING BOARD OF CONTROL LIMITED, (2) WORLD BOXING ORGANISATION INCORPORATED, (Transcript of the Handed Down Judgment of, Smith Bernal Reporting Limited, 190 Fleet Street, Tel No: 020 7421 4040, Fax No: 020 7831 8838, - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -, Mr C Mackay, QC and Mr Neil Block (instructed by Myers Fletcher & Gordon) appeared on behalf of the Respondent/Claimant. 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. The Board assumes the responsibility of determining the nature of the medical facilities and assistance to be provided. He was brought in by the education authority to assist it in carrying out its educational functions. In an opinion read by Phillips MR, the court upheld Kennedy's decision, noting that it "broke new ground". Asser International Sports Law Blog | Guest Blog - Mixed Martial Arts In addition to the two doctors required by the rules, there was, on the direction of the Board, a third medical officer present. I agree that this appeal should be dismissed for the reasons given by Lord Phillips M.R. In the event Mr Walker did not put this pleaded Ground of Appeal at the forefront of his argument. Later in the judgment the Judge suggested, by implication, that the Board's rules should have included a requirement that a boxer who was knocked out, or seemed unfit to defend himself, should be immediately seen by a doctor. The architect, by reason of his contractual arrangement with the building owner, was charged with the duty of preparing the necessary plans and making arrangements for the manner in which the work should be done. about 23.01. 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. Any loss of consciousness was short lived - he regained his feet and walked to his corner. No medical assistance was provided. All involved in a boxing contest were obliged to accept and comply with the Board's requirements. 6. [7] Paying the compensation granted to Watson, which was eventually reduced to 400,000, led to the BBBC selling their London headquarters and moving to Wales. 125. 53. 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. The purpose of his assessment was to enable him to give expert advice to the education authority about the child. Mr Watson collapsed unconscious within a minute or so of this. 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. Lord Phillips MR Gazette 22-Mar-2001, Times 02-Feb-2001, [2000] EWCA Civ 2116, [2001] QB 1134, [2001] PIQR 16 Bailii, Bailii England and Wales Citing: Considered Perrett v Collins, Underwood PFA (Ulair) Limited (T/a Popular Flying Association) CA 22-May-1998 The plaintiff was a passenger in an aircraft which crashed, and there was a preliminary issue as to the liability to him of those who certified that the aircraft was fit to fly. 117. The provision made by those rules in relation to medical assistance was plain. 2. But it has never been a requirement of the law of the tort of negligence that there be a particular antecedent relationship between the defendant and the plaintiff other than one that the plaintiff belongs to a class which the defendant contemplates or should contemplate would be affected by his conduct. The propeller was mismatched to the gearbox. 32. Indirect Influence on the Occurrence of Injury. An ambulance should be on site from the start of the tournament, possibly with a crew of trained para-medics. The medical room should be situated in close proximity to the boxer's dressing rooms and be reasonable accessible to and from the ring. Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor - Casemine 119. These facts bring the Board into close proximity with each individual boxer who contracts with a promoter to fight under the Board's rules. It was accepted that, if the survey had been negligent the loss of the cargo was a foreseeable consequence. 33. The Judge did not find that the lapse of time between Mr Watson becoming unconscious and Dr Shapiro being called to assist was critical. 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.