‘THE SAME DAMAGE’ GIVEN ITS NATURAL AND ORDINARY MEANING

Royal Brompton Hospital NHS Trust v Hammond (Taylor Woodrow Construction (Holdings) Ltd, Part 20 defendant) [2002] UKHL 14; [2002] 1 WLR 1397

In Royal Brompton Hospital NHS Trust v Hammond (Taylor Woodrow Construction (Holdings) Ltd, Part 20 defendant) [2002] UKHL 14; [2002] 1 WLR 1397 the House of Lords affirmed that common liability is at the root of the principle of contribution and that the words ‘the same damage’ in s1(1) of the Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978 must be given their natural and ordinary meaning, without the addition of any gloss. This being the case, it is necessary to examine with some care the nature of the claim that has been made against both defendants in order to ascertain whether or not they are subject to a common liability to the claimant. On the facts of the present case the House of Lords concluded that the contractor and the architect were not liable to the employer in respect of the same damage with the result that the architect was not entitled to claim a contribution from the contractor. The Part 20 proceedings were therefore struck out.