He won a historic High Court case in Sept 1999, raising questions about the future of the professional sport in the UK. In fact the Board had required a third doctor to be present and that an ambulance should be in attendance. The educational psychologist was professionally qualified. * the treatment actually provided to Mr Watson. 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 peculiar features of the duty of care alleged are as follows: i) the duty alleged is not to take reasonable care to avoid causing personal injury. Its experience, contacts and resources exceed his own. The first challenge to the Judge's finding on breach of duty was that he applied the wrong test. 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. The Board also argued that the nearest hospital with an Accident and Emergency Department was so close that a system which delayed the possibility of resuscitation for the few minutes that would be necessary to get to the hospital, was satisfactory. These considerations lead to the final point made by Mr Walker in the context of proximity. at p.262 which I have set out above. 64. 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.". Mr Watson's case, in essence, was that there should have been a different regime in place - Mr Walker described it as an intensive care unit at the ringside. His comment that "it would only have added three minutes or so if he had waited until he was summoned" suggests to the contrary. 93. In Watson v British Boxing Board of Control Ltd,l the Court of Appeal has upheld an unprecedented decision that a regulatory body can be liable for negligence in the exercise of its rule-making functions. The body set up by the Board that gave particular consideration to safety standards was a Medical Committee, sometimes referred to as The Medical Panel, that was set up in 1950. It is to make regulations imposing on others the duty to achieve these results. 84. The Board's Grounds of Appeal argued that in making policy decisions, the Board ought not to be held to be negligent unless such decisions were found to be wholly irrational. Similarly none of the particular difficulties which arise in relation to economic loss arise in relation to the causing of personal injury. Serious brain damage such as that suffered by Mr Watson, though happily an uncommon consequence of a boxing injury, represented the most serious risk posed by the sport and one that required to be addressed. 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. [2] He was given no oxygen, and first sent to a hospital which lacked a neurosurgery unit. There he arrived in the scanning room at 00.30 on 22nd September. 108. The North Middlesex Hospital had no neurosurgical department, so Mr Watson was transferred by ambulance, still unconscious, to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. 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. observed that there was no evidence of any of the asserted potential effects of a finding of negligence against PFA. Mr Watson should have been resuscitated on losing consciousness and then taken directly to the nearest hospital with a neurosurgical capability, which should have been standing by to operate without delay. 23. The hospital should be requested to confirm that a Neuro-Surgeon would be on stand-by. 56. The diagnosis is hopelessly wrong. None of the three doctors present went to his assistance until requested to do so. 110. After the operation Mr Watson was taken to the intensive care unit where he arrived at 04.45. He further alleged that had he received that treatment, he would not have sustained permanent brain damage. Establish an accurate diagnosis as to the intracranial pathology. Mr Watson was one of a defined number of boxing members of the Board. 3.9 each boxer must be examined after every contest and a report sent to the Board or Area Council concerned if necessary. Mr Usherwood had authority, under an Order made pursuant to the Civil Aviation Act 1982 to certify that the aircraft was fit to fly. Any such inspector has to be approved by the association". The precise nature of the company's constitution is not covered by the evidence. 24. The next ground advanced by the Board in support of the contention that the Judge applied too high a standard, was that there was no evidence that any other boxing authority in the World imposed more rigorous requirements than those of the Board's rules. England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division), Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor. radio When carrying out the assessment and advising the education authority, did the psychologist owe a duty of care to the child? That phrase can be misleading in that it can suggest that the professional person must knowingly and deliberately accept responsibility. He held that he was left in no doubt that the Board was in breach of its duty in that it did not institute some such system or protocol as that which Mr Hamlyn was later to propose. 79. The Plaintiffs were children with dyslexia. This is a further factor which tends to establish the proximity necessary for a duty of care. [2] The case was then appealed to the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, where a 3-judge panel consisting of Phillips MR, May LJ and Laws LJ delivered their judgment on 19 December 2000. A doctor must be available to give immediate attention to any boxer should this be required. Ringside medical facilities were available, but did not provide immediate resuscitation. Rule 23 of the Board's rules and regulations provided: "23.1 Commonwealth, European and World Championships when promoted in Great Britain and Northern Ireland must be organised and controlled in accordance with the Regulations of the BBB of C except where such Regulations may be at variance with those of any Commonwealth, European or World Boxing Authorities with whom the BBC of C may for the time being be affiliated, when the Regulations of such Authorities shall apply. Beldam L.J. 96. On the findings of the judge it was delay which caused the further injuries. CLUE. Whilst unattended he vomited and died as a result of inhaling his own vomit. Finally I return to Perrett v. Collins, the only case referred to by Ian Kennedy J. when considering the question of duty of care. 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. In consequence this special need was not addressed, to the detriment of the child. 343, Denning L.J. 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. e) The rule that any boxer selected to take part in a championship contest shall submit to the Board a satisfactory centralised tomography (CT) brain scan report not less than 28 days before the contest and a further scan report annually, so long as the boxer continues to take part in such contests. b) A limit on the number of rounds to twelve (Rule 3.7). the Hillsborough cases: e.g. .Cited Portsmouth Youth Activities Committee (A Charity) v Poppleton CA 12-Jun-2008 The claimant was injured climbing without ropes (bouldering) at defendants activity centre. 63. Please log in or sign up for a free trial to access this feature. 74. It is not clear why the ambulance took so long to reach the hospital. A Collection of Interesting, Important, and Controversial Perspectives Largely Excluded from the American Mainstream Media These cases were distinguished in Kent v Griffiths [2000] 2 WLR 1158. . 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. In Caparo v Dickman at p.617 Lord Bridge considered a series of decisions of the Privy Council and the House of Lords in relation to the duty of care in negligence and summarised their effect as follows:-. By opening its doors to others to take advantage of the service offered, it comes under a duty of care to those using the service to exercise care in its conduct. 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. 122. 7. In theory the medical officers at a contest would be appointed and paid by the Promoter from the body of approved doctors. 32. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control (2001 . At the third stage, questions of `proximity' and of what is `fair, just and reasonable' have to be considered. This contention had some similarities to submissions made in relation to the Popular Flying Association in. The wall had remained standing because the architect employed in supervising the building works had failed to advise that it was dangerous and should be demolished. The General Medical Council clearly states that a doctor must offer help when off-duty, if an emergency arises. Thus the criteria identified by Hobhouse L.J. The Board's Medical Committee had issued detailed advice to Medical Officers in relation to their duty at the ringside which was in force at the time of the Watson/Eubank fight. Before making any decision, you must read the full case report and take professional advice as appropriate. At the end of December 1991 the net assets of the Board were about 352,000. The Claimant would have been resuscitated within a few minutes of 23.00 and in St. Bartholomews by 23.45 at the latest. In particular, the Board controlled the medical assistance that would be provided. .Cited Geary v JD Wetherspoon Plc QBD 14-Jun-2011 The claimant, attempting to slide down the banisters at the defendants premises, fell 4 metres suffering severe injury. These can be divided into three categories: i) rules designed to ensure that a boxer is not permitted to fight unless he is fit. Each emphatically concluded that it was. He was also given an injection of Manitol, a diuretic that can have the effect of reducing swelling of the brain. 128. a) A requirement that a boxer must be medically examined before being granted a licence, together with a list of medical conditions that preclude the grant of a licence. He rejected it, holding that the standard to be expected of an ambulance dealing with every kind of medical emergency was not the same as the standard to be expected from those making provision for a particular and serious risk which was one of a limited number likely to arise. By then, so he submitted, the evidence established that the damage would have been done. The company, as the Popular Flying Association, appoint inspectors for the purpose of, among other things, inspecting aircraft during the course of their construction by members of the association and certifying whether the relevant work has been done to his "entire satisfaction" and the aircraft is in an airworthy condition. He had in fact sustained a brain haemorrhage and, after returning to his corner, he lapsed into unconsciousness on his stool. Whenever they accept a patient for treatment, they must use reasonable care and skill to cure him of his ailment.". Held: There is a close link between the tests in law for proximity . The position as to the selection of doctors for a contest that prevailed in 1991 was as follows. There are also reasons of public policy for not imposing a duty of care to individuals in relation to the performance of their functions. ", "But where an educational psychologist is specifically called in to advise in relation to the assessment and future provision for a specific child, and it is clear that the parents acting for the child and the teachers will follow that advice, prima facie a duty of care arises. This is an argument which might appeal to boxing enthusiasts, but would not be accepted by the British Medical Association. In that case a doctor phoned for an ambulance to take to hospital urgently a patient who had suffered an asthma attack. I think that the Judge was right. First published: 28 June 2008. the British Boxing Board of Control was found to . All involved in a boxing contest were obliged to accept and comply with the Board's requirements. Dealing with the arguments of policy advanced on behalf of PFA, Buxton L.J. The leading case in terms of the duty of care owed by governing bodies in UK law is Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1134, where the governing body was held to be liable for the horrific injuries suffered by Michael Watson in his boxing bout with Chris Eubank. In case of any confusion, feel free to reach out to us.Leave your message here. 52. Thus in Capital and Counties v. Hampshire this Court held that a fire brigade was under no common law duty to answer a call for help or, having done so, to exercise reasonable skill and care to extinguish the fire. Flashcards. Watson & British Boxing Board Of Control Ltd & Anor IN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE Case No: QBENF1999/1137/A2 COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION) ON APPEAL FROM THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION (THE HON MR JUSTICE IAN KENNEDY) Tuesday 19th December 2000 THE MASTER OF THE ROLLS LORD JUSTICE MAY LORD JUSTICE LAWS Respondent/Claimant Thus the. so-called requirements for a duty of care are not to be treated as wholly separate and distinct requirements but rather as convenient and helpful approaches to the pragmatic question whether a duty should be imposed in any given case. ii) to identify any categories of cases in which these principles have given rise to a duty of care, or conversely where they have not done so. It is not possible to measure even on the balance of probabilities where the damage would have stopped if the protocol had been followed. If, which I doubt, this conclusion represents any step beyond what is already settled law, I am fully persuaded it is a proper one to take.". The propeller was mismatched to the gearbox. Mr Watson suffered some, at least, of these secondary effects, which were the cause of his permanent brain damage. In the subsequent action for personal injuries, this Court held that the ambulance service had been in breach of a duty of care in failing to arrive promptly. The request for an ambulance was accepted. Of course.these three matters overlap with each other and are really facets of the same thing. Subsequently they were incorporated in the Rules by an addition to Regulation 8. It is always better to err on the side of caution and even if a boxer has recovered sufficiently to leave the ring unaided, if and when he returns to the dressing room he exhibits any sign of persistent concussion or admits to any persistent headaches, visual disturbance or vomiting he should be immediately transferred to the local hospital where the expert advice of Neurologists and Neurosurgeons can be obtained. Thus Mr Watson voluntarily submitted to any risk associated with inadequacy of medical safeguards. In an article on injuries in professional boxing written in 1981, Dr Whiteson stated: "My task as Senior Medical Officer is to control the medical aspects of boxing and in this to liaise closely with Area Medical Officers and with the team of medical experts which includes neurologists and orthopaedic, plastic and ophthalmic surgeons". 106. . "The fact that it was a person who foreseeably would suffer further injuries by a delay in providing an ambulance, when there was no reason why it should not be provided, is important in establishing the necessary proximity and thus duty of care in this case. This reasoning was followed by the House of Lords in Phelps v Hillingdon Borough Council [2000] 3 WLR 776. A duty of care at this stage had been conceded by the Ministry of Defence, but in Capital and Counties v. Hampshire this Court commented at p.1038 that this was not surprising as the deceased was under the command of the officer concerned. It concludes that, if account is taken of all these areas, insurance has been of vital importance to the law of tort. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1734 - Law Journals Case: Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2001] QB 1734 Case Report: Andrew Risk v Rose Bruford College [2013] EWHC 3869 (QB) 12 King's Bench Walk (Chambers of Paul Russell QC) | Personal Injury Law Journal | March 2014 #123 35. The rise in pressure inside the skull caused by the haematoma results in distortion of the brain. 21. 39. Thereafter the effect of delay was less important, although brain damage occurred cumulatively until death. For these reasons I would dismiss this appeal. One group of cases involved statutory duties imposed on local authorities for the purpose of protecting children from child abuse. 82. So far as the promoter was concerned, these delimited his obligations. If it had in place the appropriate protocols for provision of medical care, the claimants injuries would not have been so severe. 80. The social workers and the psychiatrists were retained by the local authority to advise the local authority, not the plaintiffs. Of these, the vast majority were semi-professional. Watson v British Boxing Board of Control[2001] QB 1134was a case of the Court of Appeal of England and Walesthat established an exception to the defence of consent to trespass to the personand an extension of the duty of care expected in cases of negligence. 91. That is true as a fact. A preliminary issue was tried as to whether Mr Usherwood and the PFA owed the Plaintiff a duty of care. 5. It would only have added three minutes or so if he had waited until he was summoned. 33. It trades under the name of the "Popular Flying Association" and it appears that either its main role or one of its main roles is to run that association. Medical knowledge does not enable one to say what, on the balance of probabilities, would have been the outcome if the protocol had been in place and followed. (Rule 5.9(c)). The Judge's reference to Mr Hamlyn was to a Neurosurgeon who operated on Mr Watson at St Bartholomew's Hospital and who gave evidence on his behalf at the trial. Dr Ross, the Board's Chief Medical Officer for the Southern Area, was asked why the Medical Committee did not make the recommendations made after Mr Watson's injuries at an earlier stage. 107. 76. In the second case he reached the following conclusions of principle at p.766: "In my judgment a school which accepts a pupil assumes responsibility not only for his physical well being but also for his educational needs. 3. As already mentioned the referee is in sole charge of the contest, but if a boxer is counted out and fails to rise it is the doctor's duty to get into the ring as quickly as possible and institute emergency treatment should this be required. 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. Dr Ross, who was a member of the Medical Committee for a number of years before the Watson fight, was asked whether he remembered discussions about treatment in the ring of head injuries before that fight. There is no doubt that once the relationship of doctor and patient or hospital authority and admitted patient exists, the doctor or the hospital owe a duty to take reasonable care to effect a cure, not merely to prevent further harm. I consider that these were proper findings on the evidence and that Mr Watson's case on breach of duty was made out. The Board contends:-. 72. Watson was injured during a fight in 1991 The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBC) faces a financial crisis after losing its court battle with Michael Watson. In these circumstances there is no close proximity between the services and the general public. for the existence of a duty of care were present. 92. 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. 7. The Board was involved in an activity which gave it, not merely a measure of control, but complete control over and a responsibility for a situation which would be liable to result in injury to Mr Watson if reasonable care was not exercised by the Board. The settlement of Watson's case against the. As already stated, no tournament is allowed to commence or continue without one doctor sitting ringside. I propose to develop the relevant facts more fully in the context of each of these issues. (Rules 8.5 and 8.6). Resuscitation equipment should be at ringside along with person(s) capable of using it". The latter have the role of protecting the public in general against risks, which they play no part in creating. The defendant appealed against a finding of 25% responsibility in having failed to warn climbers that the existence of thick foam would not remove all . In the leading judgment Hobhouse L.J. [1988] 1 AC 1074 at 1090; and Hotson v East Berkshire Area Health Authority [1987] 1 AC 750 at 783. 503 at p.517, per Lord Justice Cotton). I find this distinction between instructions as to duties and instructions as to how to perform duties elusive and over subtle. The Law Commission in its 1994 Consultation Paper No.134 "Criminal Law: Consent and Offences Against the Person" recognised that boxing was an anomaly in English law. The association exists to facilitate amateurs to enjoy facilities for flying light aircraft. These facts bring the Board into close proximity with each individual boxer who contracts with a promoter to fight under the Board's rules. In its statutory context the ambulance service is more properly described as part of the National Health Service than as a rescue service. In contrast the injuries which are sustained by professional boxers are the foreseeable, indeed inevitable, consequence of an activity which the Board sponsors, encourages and controls. He submitted that the Board would presumably owe the same duty to boxers who came from abroad to box and persons who were not yet boxers, and perhaps not even born, when the rules were made. This did not, however, affect the position so far as responsibility for the safety of the boxers was concerned. Indeed it is difficult to resist a conclusion that what have been treated as three separate requirements are, at least in most cases, in fact merely facets of the same thing, for in some cases the degree of foreseeability is such that it is from that alone that the requisite proximity can be deduced, whilst in others the absence of that essential relationship can most rationally be attributed simply to the court's view that it would not be fair and reasonable to hold the defendant responsible. They support the proposition that the act of undertaking to cater for the medical needs of a victim of illness or injury will generally carry with it the duty to exercise reasonable care in addressing those needs. Herbert Smith, London. Where there is a potential for physical injury, I do not believe that I have to go beyond the traditional concept of neighbourhood to find a duty where there is, as here, a clearly foreseeable danger. 48. had not been responsible for the claimant's asthma but it had caused the respiratory arrest and to this extent the L.A.S was the author of additional damage.". Next Mr Walker argued that the Board did not create the danger of injury or the need for medical assistance. rejected the submission that any negligence on the part of Mr Usherwood was only an indirect cause of the crash. 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. The education of the pupil is the very purpose for which the child goes to the school. 132. Administrative, Personal Injury, Negligence, Updated: 02 November 2021; Ref: scu.135634. In a Witness Statement in the present proceedings, Mr Watson stated that this accorded with his understanding as a boxer that the Board undertook responsibility for all the medical aspects of boxing, including the medical supervision of boxing contests, in the United Kingdom. 95. [3] Watson spent 40 days in a coma and 6 years in a wheelchair, with doctors initially predicting that he would never walk again. deprecated the introduction of tests such as `proximity' and `fair just and reasonable' in a situation where it was reasonably foreseeable that a failure to exercise reasonable care would cause personal injury: "They also illustrate the dangers of substituting for clear criteria, criteria which are incapable of precise definition and involve what can only be described as an element of subjective assessment by the Court: such ultimately subjective assessments tend inevitably to lead to uncertainty and anomaly which can be avoided by a more principled approach". Mr Watson's case can be summarised as follows: i) The Board assumed responsibility for the control of an activity the essence of which was that personal injuries should be sustained by those participating. 3.10 The promoter shall procure that at all promotions a stretcher is available for use near the ring. I see no reason why the rules should not have contained the provision suggested by the Judge. 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. If PFA was not liable in negligence, the Plaintiff might be left without a remedy against anyone. The L.A.S. "The role of Medical Officer at a Professional Boxing Tournament is a very important one and requires an adequate working knowledge of sports medicine, the diagnosis and treatment of acute medical conditions and a working knowledge of the training and dietary requirements of a Professional Boxer and Athlete. Moreover, since the professionals could foresee that negligent advice would damage the plaintiffs, they are liable to the plaintiffs for tendering such advice to the local authority Like the majority in the Court of Appeal, I cannot accept these arguments. The board lost its. First he submitted that the Board exercises a public function which it has assumed for the public good. In 1991, a world title fight between Michael Watson and Chris Eubank took place in London under the BBBC Rules. The Judge was impressed with the fact that, even then, resuscitation would have been commenced at least twenty and probably thirty minutes before in fact it was.
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