As a result, modern courts sometimes characterize acts of God as “unavoidable accidents” because, although the terms often are synonymous, unavoidable accidents need not be free from human agency. The defendant pleaded the rain as an act of God. Because there is no overriding doctrine of FM in English law, the focus needs to be on the specific wording of the clause; does the wording encompass the effects of COVID-19? These counter claims, or defences are used to evict those innocent citizens from tortious liability who have been unfairly implicated with claims imposed on them. Owing to rainfall of extraordinary intensity, the stream overflowed at the pond and great volume of water poured down a streetand flooded down the property of a railway company. Scientifically, we can predict the areas which may be subjected to such forces. IV (2) "Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible for loss or damage arising or resulting from: ... (d) Act of God", Marine Insurance Act 1906 – RULES FOR CONSTRUCTION OF POLICY, such as the closure of the Shatt-al-Arab waterway –, Gordon D. Kaufman Vol.
In Inacia P Carvalho Vs Desk To Desk Courier and Cargo Limited, the Supreme Court ruled that ‘act of God’ and force majeure do not include all instances to cover up the deficiency in services and negligence. In the law of torts, an act of God may be asserted as a type of intervening cause, the lack of which would have avoided the cause or diminished the result of liability (e.g., but for the earthquake, the old, poorly constructed building would be standing). Nichols, the plaintiff brought an action for damages on the plea that the defendant was liable under the rule in Rylands v. Fletcher [2] . In an incident where a human factor was present, even though the harm could not be prevented, the fact that the human factor exercised reasonable care and precautions to prevent the harm has to be proved if the defence of “act of God” has to prevail. For example, damage from a tornado or a lightning strike would be considered an act of God. Flaws in The Common Law’s Approach to The Act Of God Defence, 1. In addition, the burden of proof was shifted from the plaintiff to the defendant to establish the existence of the act of God defence. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines. )dP for some real-valued (utility) function u on the set of consequences and a (probability) measure P on the set of states of the world. From simple essay plans, through to full dissertations, you can guarantee we have a service perfectly matched to your needs. The term ‘act of God’ occurs and is described in holy texts dating back to the 13th century, specifically referring to acts that God has undertaken. In terms of foreseeability, the question is not whether a similar event has occurred before, but whether the risk that this particular mishap may occur is foreseeable. For this, if the harm or loss was caused by a foreseeable accident that could have been prevented, the party who suffered the injury has the right to compensation. The court stated: “It would be unreasonable that those things which are inevitable by the Act of God, which no industry can avoid, nor policy prevent should be construed to the prejudice of any person in whom there was no laches”. ACT OF GOD AND INEVITABLE ACCIDENT DISTINGUISHED. However, as these events become more common, the standard of what constitutes a reasonably foreseeable natural force will doubtless itself expand. In particular: Such events are possibly threatening the legal status of acts of God and may establish liabilities where none existed until now. said “All causes of inevitable accident, casus fortuitous meaning an uncontrollable accident, may be divided into two classes: Those which are occurred by elementary forces of nature not connected with the agency of man or other cause [Act of God], Those which arises either wholly or in part by agency of man. [10], Christian theologians differ on their views and interpretations of scripture. Meanwhile, parties seeking to enforce contracts or impose liability may seize on the economic fallout of the outbreak and argue that the actual hindering force was not the coronavirus, but its economic effects. 1946 Southern Ry. Historically, we know which areas have been subjected to specific forces of nature. However, with more than two dozen people having lost their lives, several IVRCL officials have already been arrested under IPC Sections 302 (murder) 307 (attempt to murder), and 120B (criminal conspiracy). However, the damage caused by an unforeseen and uncontrollable natural event is not compensable as it could not have been prevented or avoided by foresight or prudence of man.
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