Court of Appeal considers when duty of care is owed to children

HXA v Surrey County Council; YXA v Wolverhampton City Council [2022] EWCA Civ 1196

It can be difficult to determine whether, in the particular circumstances of a case involving child abuse, a local authority and/or the social workers for whom it is vicariously liable, owe a duty of care to children to whom they provide child protection services. This is because in an evolving area of law such as this, where the principles have not yet been settled, there may not be sufficient clarity about the fundamental points of law. The case outlined here is important because, in it, the Court of Appeal also commented on the correct exercise of the power of the court to strike out a claim pursuant to CPR 3.4. Cases of this kind have become known as “failure to remove” cases, and over the years, although a worrying volume of litigation has been building up, this is an area of law where further clarity is still needed.