Hunter v Canary Wharf Ltd
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''Hunter v Canary Wharf Ltd'' UKHL_14
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is an English tort law case on the subject of Nuisance in English law">private nuisance. Several hundred claimants alleged that Canary Wharf Ltd, in constructing
One Canada Square One Canada Square is a skyscraper in Canary Wharf, London. It was completed in 1991 and is the third tallest building in the United Kingdom at above ground levelAviation charts issued by the Civil Aviation Authority containing 50 storeys. On ...
, had caused nuisance to them by impairing their television signal.
997 Year 997 (Roman numerals, CMXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 1 February: Empress Teishi gives birth to Princess Shushi - she is the first ...
AC 655, p. 663 The
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
held unanimously that such interference could not amount to an actionable nuisance; the nuisance was equivalent to loss of a view, or of a prospect, which had never previously been actionable.


Facts

Canary Wharf Ltd undertook to construct a large tower (now known as the
One Canada Square One Canada Square is a skyscraper in Canary Wharf, London. It was completed in 1991 and is the third tallest building in the United Kingdom at above ground levelAviation charts issued by the Civil Aviation Authority containing 50 storeys. On ...
), for commercial and residential purposes. The tower was completed in November 1990, reaching 250 metres in height, and 50 metres squared in area. However, the tower, being situated less than 10 kilometres from the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's primary television transmitter, in
Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
, interfered with the reception of several hundred home owners. It was submitted that before the construction of the tower (in the summer of 1989), television reception had been good. The issue was remedied in April 1991, whereby a broadcast relay was installed in
Balfron Tower Balfron Tower is a 26-storey residential building in Poplar, Tower Hamlets, East London. Built in a Brutalist style, it forms part of the Brownfield Estate, an area of social housing between Chrisp Street Market and the A12 northern approach ...
, to transmit television signal into the area affected. Nevertheless, the claimants alleged that the large metallic structure had interrupted their television reception, and claimed private nuisance – for loss of enjoyment – and remuneration for their wasted television license fee, for the time their signal had been impaired.


Judgment

The judgment of the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
concentrated on two aspects of private nuisance. The first issue was who could be seen to have a legitimate right in land, a requirement to sue in nuisance. The Lords rejected the interim case of ''Khorasandjian v Bush'', where it had been found that no proprietary interest in a property was required to bring an action. In doing so, they upheld the findings of ''
Malone v Laskey Malone is an Irish surname. From the Irish "''Mael Eóin''", the name means a servant or a disciple of John the Baptist, Saint John. People * Gilla Críst Ua Máel Eóin (died 1127), historian and Abbot of Clonmacnoise, Ó Maoil Eoin * Adrian ...
'', establishing again that only householders with a right to a property could commence actions in nuisance. The second issue was that, after establishing who could bring an action for nuisance, what rights were protected by the tort.
Lord Lloyd Anthony John Leslie Lloyd, Baron Lloyd of Berwick, (called Tony; born 9 May 1929) is a retired British judge, and a former member of the House of Lords. Early life and education Lloyd was born on 9 May 1929, the son of Edward John Boydell Llo ...
in his judgment referred to three areas of private nuisance: It was pointed out that, as stated in ''Walter v Selfe'', any nuisance must be relatively substantial, and not merely a 'fanciful complaint'. It had been established previously that a drop in the value of land would not necessarily allow an action in nuisance. The issue at hand however was whether it would be fair in the circumstances to impose restrictions upon land owners with regard to their right to build properties.
Lord Goff Robert Lionel Archibald Goff, Baron Goff of Chieveley, (12 November 1926 – 14 August 2016) was an English barrister and judge who was Senior Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, the equivalent of today's President of the Supreme Court. Best known for ...
referred to several authorities in support of the
common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipres ...
standing that merely blocking a property owner's view, airflow, or light, is not actionable. From this, he stated that: "more is required than the mere presence of a neighbouring building to give rise to an actionable private nuisance." On the idea that it would be more desirable to allow nuisance claims from someone without an interest in land, Lord Goff said the following. Whilst it was agreed upon that there had been no actionable nuisance in the instant case, the Lords differed in their interpretations of whether an interference to television reception could constitute a nuisance.Cane, p. 515
Lord Cooke Robin Brunskill Cooke, Baron Cooke of Thorndon (9 May 1926 – 30 August 2006) was a New Zealand judge and later a British Law Lord and member of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. He is widely considered one of New Zealand's most ...
found that an interference by a building could amount to a nuisance, if it was unreasonable, or a misuse of the defendant's land;
Lord Hoffmann Leonard Hubert "Lennie" Hoffmann, Baron Hoffmann (born 8 May 1934) is a retired senior South African–British judge. He served as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1995 to 2009. Well known for his lively decisions and willingness to break ...
and Lord Hope however stated that as the right to television reception is not obtained, interference with it could not amount to a nuisance:


Significance

Before ''Hunter'' it had been judicially stated in ''Bridlington Relay v Yorkshire Electricity Board'' that it was not thought interference to television reception could give rise to an actionable nuisance, by Buckley J: However, these remarks had been made ''
obiter dicta ''Obiter dictum'' (usually used in the plural, ''obiter dicta'') is a Latin phrase meaning "other things said",''Black's Law Dictionary'', p. 967 (5th ed. 1979). that is, a remark in a legal opinion that is "said in passing" by any judge or arbitr ...
'', and thus held no judicial authority. The legal basis on which a complaint of television reception was considered to take place was that of loss of a view, or prospect.
997 Year 997 (Roman numerals, CMXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 1 February: Empress Teishi gives birth to Princess Shushi - she is the first ...
AC 655, p. 708


See also

* Nuisance in English law *
Privacy in English law Privacy in English law is a rapidly developing area of English law that considers situations where individuals have a legal right to informational privacy - the protection of personal or private information from misuse or unauthorized disclosure ...
*
English tort law English tort law concerns the compensation for harm to people's rights to health and safety, a clean environment, property, their economic interests, or their reputations. A "tort" is a wrong in civil, rather than criminal law, that usually requ ...


Notes

{{reflist, 2


References

*P Cane, 'What a nuisance' (1997) 113
Law Quarterly Review The ''Law Quarterly Review'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering common law throughout the world. It was established in 1885 and is published by Sweet & Maxwell. It is one of the leading law journals in the United Kingdom. History The ...
515


External links


Full judgment of ''Hunter v Canary Wharf Ltd''
English tort case law English nuisance cases House of Lords cases 1997 in case law 1997 in British law