NUISANCE IN LAW OF TORTS

  

NUISANCE  IN  LAW  OF  TORTS

 

NUISANCE:

 (FRENCH WORD ” NUIRE”,  LATIN WORD “NOCERE”, MEANS TO HURT, TO ANNOY etc).

Nuisance, in law of torts, can be defined as:

Ø Any act or omission which causes unlawful interference/annoyance  with a person's use or enjoyment of land, or some right over, or in connection with it.

Ø  It comprises of acts interfering with comfort, health, or safety.

Ø The interference may be of anyway, for example, noise, vibrations, heat, smoke, smell, fumes, water, gas, electricity, excavation or disease producing germs.

 

 

TYPES OF NUISANCE:

Nuisance is mainly of two types: i.e Public or common nuisance and Private nuisance.

 

A):PUBLIC OR COMMON NUISANCE:

A public nuisance is an unreasonable and unlawful interference with a right common to the general public. Simply speaking, a public nuisance is an act affecting the public at large or some considerable portion of it; and it must interfere with rights which members of the community might otherwise enjoy.

Ø Thus acts which seriously interfere with the health, safety, comfort or convenience of the public generally or which tend to degrade public morals have always been considered a public nuisance.

Ø Examples can be obstructing a public way by digging a trench. Carrying on trade which causes an offensive smell.

 

 

REMEDIES AGAINST PUBLIC NUISANCE:

Remedies for a public nuisance are two i.e civil and criminal:

1):Civil remedy:

Ø Ordinarily, a private individual cannot sue for a public nuisance. To enable a private individual to bring an action for damages in respect of a public nuisance, he must prove that the damage suffered by him is : 1) special.     2):Direct.   3): Substantial.

Ø In Pakistan under sections 91 and 93, Civil Procedure Code, the Advocate General and the Collectors, can sue in respect of a public nuisance.

 

 

2):Criminal Remedy:

Chapter XIV of the Pakistan Penal Code and Sections 133 to 143 of CrPC prescribe the appropriate remedies in this respects.

 

 

 

 

B):PRIVATE NUISANCE:

Private Nuisance is that kind of nuisance in which a person’s use or enjoyment of his property is ruined by another. It may also injuriously affect the owner of the property by physically injuring his property or by affecting the enjoyment of the property. Unlike public nuisance, in private nuisance, an individual’s usage or enjoyment of property is ruined as distinguished from the public or society at large.

Private nuisance may cause:

1.      Damage to property

2.      Physical discomfort

 

1):Damage to Property:

In case of damage to property, any sensible injury will be sufficient to support an action. Nuisances of this class may arise from manufacturing works, chains, etc.

2):Physical Discomfort:

In the case of physical discomfort, the act complained of must be in excess of the natural and ordinary course of enjoyment of the property materially interfering with the ordinary comforts of human existence.

e.g. Carrying any trade causing nuisance, obstruction of light, excessive noise etc

 

 

ELEMENTS WHICH CONSTITUTE A PRIVATE NUISANCE:

Ø The plaintiff is the owner of the land or has the right to possess it

Ø The defendant literally acted in a way that interferes with the plaintiff’s enjoyment and use of his or her property

Ø The defendant’s interference was substantial and uncooperative.

 

REMEDIES AGAINST  PRIVATE NUISANCE:

1):Damages:

The damages may be offered in terms of compensation to the aggrieved party, these could be nominal damages. The damages to be paid to the aggrieved party is decided by the court of law and the purpose of the damages is not just compensating the individual who has suffered but also making the defendant realise his mistakes and deter him from repeating the same wrong done by him.

2):ABATEMENT-

This means in removability of nuisance by the person affected, but the removability must be peaceful and life should not be endangered.

3):INJUNCTION:

This is based on the nature of nuisance and if the nuisance is such that it is impeding and should be stopped. Then injunction becomes necessary.

 

 

DEFENCES IN NUISANCE:

 

1):Prescriptive right to commit nuisance:

A right to do an act, which would otherwise be a nuisance, may be acquired by prescription.

 

2):Statutory Authority:

An act done under the authority of a statute is a complete defense. If nuisance is necessarily incident to what has been authorized by a statute, there is no liability for that under the law of torts.

 

3):Act of God:

In Nichols v Marsland (1876), A had a number of artificial lakes on his land. An unprecedented rainfall such as had never been witnessed in living memory caused the banks of the lakes to burst and the escaping water entered B’s house thus flooding it. In this case, A will not be held liable since the damage was caused by an Act of God.

 

 

INEFFECTUAL DEFENSES:

1):Nuisance Due To Acts Of Others:

Where the nuisance is not caused by one, but a number of other persons, it is not a defence for the defendant to prove that their contribution alone would not have amounted to a nuisance.

2):Public Good:

A nuisance may be the result of some operation that is of public benefit without a doubt, but it is an actionable nuisance nonetheless. An individual should not be deprived of his/her own rights for the consideration of public benefit without any legal compensation.

 

3):Plaintiff Coming To The Nuisance:

In Sturges Vs Bridgman , the argument put forward by the confectioner was that the doctor was aware of the noise caused by the confectioner’s work before extending his chamber. The court rejected this argument as this was not a recognised defence in nuisance.

 

PRIVATE NUISANCE TORT	PUBLIC NUISANCE TORT
It is an infringement of the right of a private person.	It is an infringement of a public right.
The injury is caused to the individual.	It causes injury to every person of the public.
The injured person may bring an action.	A person may bring an action only if he sustains a special injury.
Here plaintiff must prove interference with his enjoyment of land	It is actionable per se