Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2004 08:16:24 +0100

From: Steve Hedley

Subject: Vicarious Liability Query

Not quite what you asked for, but close:

Moynihan v. Moynihan [1975] IR 192, Irish Supreme Court.

Defendant invites her adult daughter and her family to tea; the daughter makes the tea, and negligently leaves the pot where her own 2-year-old daughter can get at it; the 2-year-old suffers scalding. Held, by a majority, that the defendant is liable for her daughter's negligence.

"This power of control was not in any way dependent upon the relationship of mother and daughter but upon the relationship of the head of a household with a person to whom some of the duties of the head of the household had been delegated by that head. The position would be no different, therefore, from that of a case where the head of a household had requested a neighbour to come in and assist in the giving of a dinner-party because she had not any, or not sufficient, hired domestic help. It would produce a strange situation if in such a case the "inviter" should be vicariously liable for the hired domestic help who negligently poured hot sauce over the head of a guest but should not be equally liable for similar negligence on the part of the co-helper who was a neighbour and who had not been hired. In my view, in the latter case the person requested to assist in the service, but who was not hired for that purpose, is in the de facto service of the person who makes the request and for whom the duty is being performed." (per Walsh J).

Steve Hedley
Faculty of Law, University College, Cork

-----Original Message-----
From: Jason Neyers
Sent: 17 August 2004 19:53
Subject: ODG: Vicarious Liability Query

Dear Colleagues:

Can anyone think of a case of high authority where vicarious liability was imposed on a master for the tort of a domestic servant (i.e. maid, chauffeur, butler, etc) in a non-commercial setting (i.e. where the master was not using that servant to carry out a business)?

Thank you in advance for any assistance.

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