[SMULA Recent Highlights Series] Different Views of Nuisance in the UK Supreme Court

Professor James Lee

Professor of English Law

The Dickson Poon School of Law

King’s College London

SYNOPSIS

This session will examine the recent UK Supreme Court decision on Fearn v Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery [2023] UKSC 4, a significant case on key principles of the tort of nuisance. The claims were brought by occupants of luxury flats in a development on the South Bank of the River Thames against the neighbouring art gallery, the Tate Modern. The gallery had built an extension with a viewing terrace, offering panoramic views of London, but visitors to the terrace could also see into the claimants' flats, and would occasionally take photos, videos, and post them to social media. The claimants sued in nuisance, arguing that the Tate's use of its land amounted to an unreasonable interference with their own use and enjoument of their land.
 
In the decision, the Supreme Court holds for the first time in English law that overlooking is in principle capable of being actionable in the tort of nuisance, if it amounts to 'visual intrusion'. In addition, by a majority the court revises the approach to the reasonable user principle: it is held that the principle of reciprocity, of reasonable give and take between neighbours, is not engaged if the defendant is using their land in a way which is not 'a common and ordinary use' of the land.
 
This seminar will involve a summary and critical analysis of the reasoning in the judgments, highlighting various areas of uncertainty, and assessment of the implications of the decision. It will be argued that the case will lead to significant litigation as between domestic neighbours, and prove problematic for future property development, planning processes and urban regeneration. There will be comparison with the position in Singapore, including in respect of the Community Disputes Resolution Act 2015.

This seminar is part of the SMU Law Academy “Recent Highlights” series. Designed with the busy practitioner in mind, this series provides participants with a convenient platform to obtain timely and practical bite-sized analysis of the latest developments in various areas of the law. The series will be taught by leading and experienced experts curated from academia and practice. Each topic in the series is distilled into a short-duration online webinar so that busy legal professionals can be effectively updated with the most material developments affecting their practice.
 

SPEAKER

James Lee is the 2022/23 Lee Kong Chian Visiting Professor in the Yong Pung How School of Law at Singapore Management University, where he has been teaching an elective on Advanced Tort Law and engaging in research collaborations. His permanent role is as Professor of English Law at The Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London, where was The School’s Vice-Dean (Education) from 2019-2022. He is an Associate Academic Fellow of the Inner Temple and an academic member of the Property Litigation Association, Chancery Bar Association and the Property Bar Association. He regularly lectures for the Judicial College of England and Wales on tort law.
 
His main research interests are private law, law reform, and decision-making in appellate courts. Currently, his main project is a series of papers examining how legal institutions shape legal change. James is on research leave in the 2022/23 academic year, during which time, as well as visiting SMU, he has been Visiting Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford and Beaufort Visiting Fellow at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
 
In recent years, his work has been cited by courts in England, Singapore, Hong Kong, Canada and Australia. With Jamie Glister, James is Co-Editor of the best-selling Trusts textbook, Hanbury and Martin: Modern Equity, the 22nd edition of which was published in 2021. He is also a Founding Co-Editor of Hart Studies in Judging and the Courts, with Profs Erin F. Delaney and Andrew Lynch. James is one of the current Editors of Legal Studies, the flagship journal of the Society of Legal Scholars

FEES

DATE

18 May 2023

TIME

4 to 6 PM

PUBLIC CPD POINTS

2 points

VENUE

Webinar

PRACTICE AREA

Personal injury

TRAINING LEVEL

Update

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