Section A Law for Engineers

1) Contract
Full formula for a Contract:
Offer + Acceptance = Agreement; Agreement + (Intention + Consideration) = Contract
Acceptance Legal concept and 2 rules applied:
Is a definite yes. Rules: must be unconditional and communicated
Rules Applied to consideration:
i) Must not be in the past
ii) Must move from the promise
iii) Need not to be adequate
iv) Cant be an existing public duty
v) Cant be an existing contractual duty
vi) Cant be part payment of debts
Types of Contract for Engineers:
i) Design (intellectual property);
ii) Manufacture and sale of products
iii) Building Contracts
iv) Insurance Contracts
v) Employment Contracts
Remedies for Breach of Contract:
i) Damages (pay what the person lost)
ii) Actions for an agreed sum (pay price for a non-received product)
iii) Rescission (puts parties so far as possible in position they were in before the defect arose)
iv) Specific Performance (court order to perform what was promised in the contract)
v) Injunction (court order to do something or not to do something)
vi) Rectification (where the court corrects the contract)
Contract Invalidation:
i) Mistake of one or both parties (errors in write, big mistakes, fundamental mistake)
ii) Parties at cross purposes (something entirely different. Ex: sell one thing, buy another)
iii) Duress (force, threat physical, life, properties)
iv) Undue Influence & Inequality of Bargaining Power (one party exercise influence in the other, the
terms of the contract are unfair)
v) Misrepresentation (basically a lie, a false statement)
Word/ Term Definition Case/Example
Agreement between 2 or more persons which
Contract
is legally enforceable
Is a real and definite intention to make a Carlill vs Carbolic Smoke
Offer
contract Ball Co (1893)
Is an unqualified expression of assent to the
Acceptance Hyde vs Wrench (1840)
terms proposed by the offeror
Money paid on a promise made in return for
the goods or service.
Consideration
A benefit to one party or a detriment or loss to
the other.
 2) Professional Negligence
4 Criteria to establish a case for negligence: 2 Defences available to someone sued for
negligence:
i) Duty of Care
ii) Breach of Duty Care i) Consent (Volenti non fit injuria)
iii) Injury or Damage caused ii) Contributory Negligence
iv) Reasonably foreseeable
Duty of Engineers:
To use the reasonable care and skill of such persons of ordinary competence, measured by the professional
standard of the time
Sue for Negligence:
To sue someone for negligence, the person claiming must show that they were owed a duty of care by the
defendant and that there was a breach of that duty.
Standard for Bolam Test:
Must be in accordance with a responsible body of opinion in that particular area, even if other differ in
opinion. (how engineers act? What engineers must do?)
Bolam Test: look at common practices of others at the same profession.
Bolam Test for Engineers: It is sufficient for the engineer concerned, to exercise the ordinary skill of an
ordinary engineer exercising their particular art.
Why Engineers are called to give expert evidence in Court:
To give evidence against another engineer. To give professional opinion on factual basis. To make detailed
reports. E.g.: machinery, room, layouts, product design, chemical engineering. The Court needs: expert
witness, competence of the expert, independence of the expert and the functions of the expert. Court needs
experts to explain technical details.
Expert: give independent evidence to assist the court. Should be objective and impartial. Give honest,
independent professional opinion. Integrity and truth.
Word/ Term Definition Case/Example
Professional Is a breach of the duty of care between professionals
Negligence and their clients
Common law arrangement (judge made law) where the
Duty of Care client expects a level of professionalism and standards
commonly held by those in your profession
Test applied to skilled defendants in professional
negligence cases (e.g. professional engineers).
Bolam vs Friern
In the case of skilled defendants, where the defendant
Hospital
Bolam Test has represented themselves as having more than average
Management
skills and abilities, the standards they use must be in
Committee (1957)
accordance with a responsible body of opinion, even if
others differ in opinion. (judge made law)
The rule that you love your neighbor becomes in law,
you must not injure your neighbor. You must take
Donoghue vs
Neighbour Principle reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you
Stevenson (1932)
can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your
neighbor
Consent To a willing person no injury is done
Contributory Where a plaintiff has, through their own negligence,
negligence contributed to the harm they have suffered
3) Intellectual Property
What is a patent?
A statutory property right that gives the patent owner the exclusive right to use certain inventions. Very
strong form of protection.
Is a right granted for any device, substance, method, process which is new inventive and useful. Legally
enforceable and gives the owner the exclusive right to commercially exploit the invention for the life of the
patent.
5 things necessary to get a patent
i) It is an invention
ii) The invention is new
iii) It involves an inventive step
iv) It is capable of industrial application
v) It is not on the excluded list
Windsurfer test (Inventive step): Windsurfing vs Tabur Marine (1985)
i) What is the inventive step involved in the patent?
ii) At the date of the first application, what was known on the subject matter relevant to the step?
iii) How does the step differ from what was known?
iv) Without hindsight, would the taking of that step be obvious to the person skilled in the art?
Apple vs Samsung - Case
Battle regarding the similarities between iPhone, iPad and Galaxy range of phones and tablets. A judge at the
High Court in London had originally ruled in July 2012 that Samsungs Galaxy Tab computers was not too
similar to designs registered in connection with iPad (they were not as cool because they lacked Apples
extreme simplicity. The Court of Appeal dismissed Apples appeal.

Section B Employment Law

1. Wrongful and Unfair Dismissal
What constitutes a wrongful dismissal?
If an Employer dismisses an Employee, and in doing so, the Employer acts in breach of his contractual
obligations or in breach of his statutory obligations to give the Employee notice. In order to bring such a
claim, the ex-employee must establish:
i) That he was dismissed in breach of contract or with less than the statutory minimum period of
notice
ii) That he has suffered loss as a result
One of the most common breaches of contract is where an employee has not been given the proper notice
period or is dismissed without notice. Failure by the Employer to follow a contractual disciplinary procedure
can also amount to wrongful dismissal.
This can be bought in an Employment Tribunal, County Court or High Court, depending on the value of the
claim.
Prima Facie Fair reasons for dismissal:
i) Capability/qualifications of the employee for performing his/her work
ii) Conduct of the employee
iii) The employee was redundant
iv) The employee could not continue to work in that position without Contravention Statutory
Provision or Restriction
Automatically unfair reasons for dismissal:
i) Trade union membership or non-membership
ii) Pregnancy/maternity
iii) Transfer of undertakings
iv) Sunday work
v) Sex/race/disability discrimination
vi) H&S
vii) Rehabilitation of offenders
viii) Assertion of statutory rights
ix) Dismissal of legally striking employees

Work time to claim unfair dismissal in Northern Ireland: 1 year of service

Wrongful dismissal: occurs when an employer dismisses an employee in a way which is in breach of the
employees contract of employment. Most commonly this arises where an employee claims to have been
dismissed without the requisite period of notice.
Work time to claim wrongful dismissal:
i) Employment Tribunal: 3 months
ii) Civil Courts: 6 years
3 remedies available to the tribunal to award in cases of unfair dismissal:
i) Reinstatement
ii) Re-engagement
iii) Compensation
4 elements, according to Employment Rights Order (NI-1996), that must be established prior to claim
for unfair dismissal:
i) That the claimant was employed by the respondent under a contract of employment
ii) That the claimant was dismissed as defined below
iii) That in most cases, the claimant was employed for the necessary qualifying period
iv) That the claimant has met the requirements under s32 of the Employment Act
 2. Disability Discrimination, Fair Employment & Equal Pay
Legislation to afford protection to disabled people: Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995
4 elements to bring a claim of Disability Discrimination:
i) The person in question must have physical or mental impairment
ii) Impairment must have adverse effects that are substantial
iii) The substantial effects must be long-term
iv) The long-term substantial effects must be adverse effects on normal day-to-day activities
3 remedies open to a tribunal to grant in cases of disability discrimination:
i) Declaration: an order declaring the rights of the complainant and the respondent
ii) Compensation: an order requiring the respondent to pay compensation to the complainant
iii) Recommendation: a recommendation that the employer take certain steps as appears reasonable
to the tribunal within a specified period to obviate or reduce the effect of discrimination on the
complainant.

3. Redundancy
Reasons that could lead to a redundancy situation:
i) New technology or a new system has made an employees job unnecessary
ii) The job which the employee is hired for no longer exists
iii) The need to cut costs means staff members must be reduced
iv) The business is closing down or moving
4 steps in a standard dismissal procedure for an employer make an employee redundant:
i) Writing to the employee
ii) Setting out the reasons for the redundancy
iii) Meeting the employee to discuss the redundancy
iv) Holding an appeal if the employee asks for one
Employer requirements in NI to make a collective redundancy:
To notify the Department of Employment and Learning (DEL) on an HR1 form of a proposal to make
redundant 20 or more employees
If 20 to 99 redundancies 30 days notice before dismissal
If 100+ employees 90 days notice before dismissal

4. Trade Unions
Collective Bargaining:
If a union is formally recognized by an employer, it can negotiate with the employer over terms and
conditions. For collective bargaining to work, unions and employers need to agree on how the arrangement
is to operate. The 1992 Order places a general duty on an employer to disclose at all stages of collective
bargaining.

5. Industrial Action
3 main types of Industrial Action:
i) Strike: where workers refuse to work for the employer
ii) Action short of a strike: where workers take actions such as working to rule, go slows, overtime
bans or call-out bans
iii) Lock-out: a work stoppage where the employer stops workers from working
Tests for determining if there is a statutory immunity when organizing (by a Trade Union) an
Industrial Action:
i) There is a trade dispute, and the action is called in contemplation of or furtherance of that dispute
ii) The Trade Union has first held a properly conducted secret ballot
iii) The Trade Union has provided the required notice of official Industrial action to employers likely
to be affected following the ballot
iv) The action is not secondary action
v) The action is not intended to promote union closed shop practices or to prevent employers using
non-union firms as suppliers
vi) The action is not in support of any employee dismissed while taking unofficial industrial action
vii) The action does not involve unlawful picketing
To avoid liability by repudiation the Union must without delay:
i) Give written notice of the repudiation to the committee or official in question
ii) Do its best to give individual written notice of the fact and date of the repudiation to: every
member of the union who it has reason to believe is taking part in industrial action as a result of
the act; and to the employer of every such member.
Word/ Term Definition
When your employer, with or without notice, ends
your employment.
Dismissal When a fixed-term contract isnt renewed or when an
employer forces someone to retire.
Can be done verbally or in writing.
Constructive Dismissal Where your employers actions force you to resign
When an employer is making 20 or more employees
Collective Redundancy
redundant in one company within 90 days period
Redundancy Is a form of dismissal from a job
Agreements on procedure and agreements between
Collective bargaining employers and unions changing the terms applying to
workers (e.g. pay increase).

Section C - Health & Safety

3 evolution stages of H&S:
i) No formal interest: no industry consistency; minimal efforts; no formal compensation;
production is paramount; individual purely instrumental; time before the start
ii) Reactive and Responsive: Factory Acts (40s-50s); prescriptive; industry reacts; big step
change; minimum necessary compliance
iii) Preventative: influenced by quality; H&SAWA; Risk Assessment; Goal Setting; next big step
change.
5 steps for a Risk Assessment:
i) Identify the hazard
ii) Decide who could be harmed and how
iii) Evaluate existing risks and implement controls
iv) Document findings
v) Review risk assessment
3 main reasons for managing H&S:
i) Moral Reason (prevent accidents)
ii) Legal Reason (it is the law. Civil and Criminal law. Breaches of H&S legislation are resulting in
larger fines)
iii) Economic/Financial Reason (save money. Avoid lost production, damages, repair, administrative
costs, liability costs)
5 top causes of fatalities in workplace:
i) Falls from height
ii) Vehicles
iii) Struck by objects
iv) Trapped by collapse
v) Machinery
Why accidents should be reported and investigated?
i) Legal reason (it is the law)
ii) Statistics (to account how frequently it happens)
iii) To have evidences
iv) To understand how it happened and register it, and to stop it happening again (tends)

Why accidents can happen (causes)

i) Behavior in H&S (human errors): the internal actions of individuals breaking the rules. E.g.:
tired, lazy, angry, forget, lack of concentration, taking short cuts, doing job too fast.
ii) Management failure: the employer breaking the H&S laws. Organizations do not comply with
the law. E.g.: lack of competence, lack of supervision.
5 powers given to H&S Executive Inspectors
i) Enter any place without notice
ii) Take photos and samples
iii) Informal warning/improvement notice
iv) Prohibition notice
 v) Initiate prosecutions
RIDDOR categories (Reporting of Injuries Diseases and Dangerous Occurrencies Regulations-NI)
1997:
i) Fatalities
ii) Major injuries
iii) Incapacity to work for more than three days (Great Britain 7 days)
iv) Specified diseases
v) Dangerous occurrences
Types of Major Injury:
i) Fractures (apart from fingers thumbs & toes
ii) Loss of sight
iii) Amputation
iv) Hospitalization for over 24 hours
v) Dislocation of shoulder, hip, knee or spine
Types of Dangerous Occurrence:
i) Failure of load bearing parts of lifting equipment
ii) Electrical short circuit causing fire or explosion
iii) Explosion of any closed vessel or associated pipework
iv) Collapse of scaffold over 5.0m high
v) Collapse of structure when over 5 tons material falls
vi) Explosion causing suspension of work for over 24 hours
Duty of Employers H&S at Work Order (NI) 1978:
To provide:
i) safe plant regularly maintained
ii) safe systems of work;
iii) safe work;
iv) safe access to the worplace and safe egress from the workplace;
v) safe use, handling storage and transport of articles and substances
Provision of:
i) welfare facilities
ii) information
iii) adequate supervision
iv) instruction and training
Duty of Employees H&S at Work Order (NI) 1978:
i) to take reasonable care for the H&S of self and others at work who may be affected by their acts
or omissions
ii) to co-operate and comply with the employers H&S rules and general H&S law
iii) not to intentionally or recklessly interfere with anything provided in the interests of H&S
4 elements of a successful H&S Management System (Plan-Do-Check-Act) HSG 65:
i) Plan: determine your policy/plan for implementation
ii) Do: profile risks/organize for H&S/implement your plan
iii) Check: measure performance (monitor before events, investigate after events)
iv) Act: review performance and act on lessons learnt
3 tests required for a successful gross negligence Manslaughter Act charge:
 i) Duty of care owed
ii) Breach of duty causing death
iii) Breach is grossly negligent
3 tests required for a successful Corporate Manslaughter Act charge:
i) Organizational failure
ii) Senior management failure
iii) Conduct falls far below what could have been reasonably expected
Who/what gets punished if found guilty under a gross negligence manslaughter charge:
The individual goes to prison
Who/what gets punished if found guilty under a Corporate Manslaughter Act charge:
The company unlimited fine, publicity orders
Who has created H&S at Work Act 1974:
Lord Robens

Word/ Term Definition

Hazard Potential to do harm
Risk Probability of hazard occurring