LAWG 101D2 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Learned Hand, Fuel Oil
23 Jan 2018
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Overseas tankship v miller steamship (wagon mound 2) [121] Facts: miller steamship had vessels in wharf in sydney harbour. The defendants are the owners of the vessel wagon. Mound, which was moored 600 feet from a wharf. The plaintiffs are owners of ships docked at the wharf. Due to the defendant"s negligence, furnace oil was discharged into the bay causing minor injury to the plaintiff"s ships. Manager allowed the work to continue because the oil is difficult to ignite in the open water. However, the oil was then ignited when molten metal dropped from the wharf and came into contact with cotton waste floating on the water"s surface. The oil was set on fire because there was welding on the plaintiff"s wharf. Judicial history: sc of new south wales: very unlikely that oil would be set on fire (reasonable person) so overseas. Reasoning: bolton v stone established that foreseeability wasn"t enough if damage was highly unlikely.
