Rylands v Fletcher: the elements of the rule

Overview

Elements a claimant must prove under Rylands v Fletcher, thing likely to do mischief and non-natural use of land.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What were the facts of Rylands v Fletcher (1868)?

   Model answer

   A mill owner had a reservoir built on his land by independent contractors. Water escaped through disused mine shafts and flooded the neighbouring colliery.

2. 2

   State the rule in Rylands v Fletcher (1868).

   Model answer

   A person who brings onto land and keeps there anything likely to do mischief must keep it in at their peril. The occupier is answerable for the natural consequences of an escape.

3. 3

   Who formulated the rule, and who added the requirement of non-natural use?

   Model answer

   Blackburn J formulated the rule in the Court of Exchequer Chamber. Lord Cairns added the requirement of a non-natural use of land when the case reached the House of Lords.

4. 4

   List the elements a claimant must prove under Rylands v Fletcher.

   Model answer

   The defendant must bring the thing onto the land and accumulate it there. The thing must be likely to do mischief if it escapes, and the use must be non-natural. The thing must escape and cause foreseeable damage.

5. 5

   What does accumulation mean in the rule?

   Model answer

   Accumulation means the defendant deliberately brought the thing onto the land and kept it there. Something growing or gathering naturally on the land is not accumulated.

6. 6

   What did Giles v Walker (1890) decide?

   Model answer

   Thistle seed blew from the defendant's land onto neighbouring fields. The court held the rule inapplicable, because the thistles grew naturally and were never accumulated.

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