Analysis of Current Accounting System Essay

1. Terms of reference 1.1.1 This report has been prepared to cover the requirements of the learning and assessment area Principles of Internal Control and Evaluating Accounting Systems at Level 4 of the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) Diploma in Accounting qualification. 1.1.2 This report forms an evaluation of the Accounting System of the Inkwell Limited. 1.1.3 The main purpose of the report is: To evaluate the accounting system and procedures that are currently in place at IWL To identify weaknesses within the system, suggest possible improvements and make recommendations for improvement. To analyse cost benefit for suggested improvements. 2. Executive summary 3. Methodology 3.1.1 This report has been prepared using information provided by AAT case study text and study materials from Home Learning College. 3.1.2 Research for the recommendations has been made using internet. A list of websites used can be found in Appendix 1. 3.1.3 In developing the report support and assistance from my Home Learning College tutor was provided. 4. Introduction 4.1. Inkwell Ltd (IWL) was formed seven years ago. IWL is the medium-sized company that supplies a complete range of re-manufactured inkjet and laser toner cartridges that are fully compatible with all major printers. Since its launch IWL has grown steadily and now has revenue of over  £16 million. The company employs around 180 full-time employees. 4.2. IWL has adopted the functional structure system with three departments i.e. finance, sales and purchases. The BODs comprised of Managing Director, Sales Director and Finance Director is responsible for all decision-making activities in the company. The management structure chart can be found in Appendix 2. 4.3. The main purpose of accounting function of the IWL is to collect and process information from other departments in order to prepare statutory and management accounts as well as to determine the price of cartridges the company can pay for in order to achieve required profit margin (management accounting). The Finance Departme nt is also responsible for making sure that inventory levels meet IWL’s policy, the company’s credit rating is kept strong, management accounts are prepared every month, orders from suppliers are monitored and supplier payments are arranged for. 4.2 To make an effective use of the accounting systems and procedures in place the finance department has been divided into two main areas of accounting i.e. financial accounting and management accounting (cost accounting). The area of financial accounting has been further sub-divided into the sections of general ledger and inventory, purchase ledger, sales  ledger, payroll and personnel database. The chart showing the structure of The Accounts Department is provided in Appendix 3. 4.2.1 Sections within the finance department interact and maintain a relationship with other departments. The information flows to general ledger from the sales ledger, purchase ledger and payroll, personnel section and shops. The general ledger provides information to the Company Accountant for the purpose of preparing monthly management accounts and approving supplier payments, to The Finance Director for the purpose of preparing financial statements and to the Sales Director for the purpose of costing IWL’s products. The Purchase Ledger section has a direct relationship with the General Ledger and the IWL’s suppliers. The Sales Ledger section maintains a close relationship with the sales department as well as with the General Ledger. The Payroll and Personnel Database section is working closely with shop managers from whom it collects the information to prepare payroll for employees. The department also co-operates with external users such as HMRC in order to comply with statutory requirements. The Costing Section is working closely with The Sales Director. 4.3 The objective of financial statements is to provide information about the financial position, performance and changes in financial position of an enterprise that is useful to a wide range of users such as suppliers, customers, government agencies or financial institutions in making economic decisions, for instance, whether to grant a loan or to give credit to the company. At the financial year end the Finance Director at IWL prepares the following financial statements: 4.3.1 Income Statement: this statement provides information about the financial performance of the company in terms of revenue from sales, costs and expenses incurred to generate the profit. It also provides information about gross and net profit generated for past financial periods. It is also referred to as the Profit and Loss Account. 4.3.2 Statement of Financial Position: this statement shows the financial position of the company at the end of each financial year. It provides the information about the company’s assets, liabilities and the equity claim of its shareholders. It is also referred to as the Balance Sheet. 4.3.3 The Statement of Cash Flow: this statement provides a link between the Income Statement and Statement of Financial Position as at the year end of the  previous and current financial years. Its main purpose is to reconcile liquid funds to profit by providing an analysis of cash inflows and outflows from operating, investing and financing activities. 4.4 A stakeholder is an entity that can be affected by the results of a company in which they are said to be stakeholders, i.e. that in which they have a stake. The critical external stakeholders for IWL have been identified as follows: 4.4.1 The financial institutions- IWL has a strong relationship with its bank. Through producing a series of convincing annual business plans, the company directors have been able to raise sufficient finance to grow IWL into a significant player in the cartridge supplies sector. Without this co-operation it would be much harder to expand the Company to its current position. They are IWL’s stakeholders because they lent money to The Business and they would be affected in case The Company becomes insolvent. 4.4.2 Customers- the IWL has a base of around 120 large trade customers. These customers account for 20% of IWL’s revenue. It is imperative to maintain good relationship with customers in order to remain competitive and have high customer satisfaction level. Customers are categorised as stakeholders because the company’s actions can affect their financial position. 4.4.3 Government- The government is interested in businesses as they set out the regulations and need the businesses to do well to keep the economy healthy. Economic policies introduced by The Government through taxation, and the ability of The Government to influence interest rates, impact on the business through prices and costs. The company needs to make sure that it is paying the right amount of tax and VAT and that it complies with all government’s policies and accounting standards. 4.5 IWL is the medium-sized, centralized, manufacturing company operating nationwide. For a small sole trader or partnership type organisation, like off-licence shop, there are likely to be few transactions to process. As a result the basic single entry record system, with detailed cash book, would most likely be used. A simple structure where the owner or partners make all the decisions related to the business would also be adopted. However, the single entry system lacks controls necessary to verify the accuracy of the postings and therefore would not be practical in circumstances where a high  volume of business transactions had to be processed. Medium and large sized companies will most likely use more sophisticated, double entry bookkeeping system. Higher amount of transactions would require more people to operate it and therefore the structure would be more sophisticated too, with either divisional or matrix structure adopted. The IWL uses double entry system. 5 Analysis of the Current Accounting System 5.1 The main external regulations the IWL has to comply with has been identified as: 5.1.1 The Company Law- compulsory legislation that governs the formation and registration of limited companies. It sets out the responsibilities of companies, their directors and secretaries and also determines the requirements relating to the preparation of Financial Statements of a company. It is legally binding on all limited companies in UK. In case of any changes in The Company LAW, staff training may be required to ensure compliance which will affect The IWL’s cash flow and availability of resources i.e. staff released for training. 5.1.2 The Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Regulations- this regulation apply when a business organisation employs individuals and sets out the requirements for deducting PAYE income tax and National Insurance Contributions (NIC’s) from payments made to employees. The regulation also stipulates rules for sending PAYE income tax and employees’ NIC’s to HMRC and identify the forms and returns that must be kept and submitted when administering the scheme. Any changes to the regulations i.e. change of the company tax rate or the National Insurance Contribution (NIC) has a direct effect on IWL because these are statutory requirements and The BODs need to make sure the staffs are appropriately trained and that they comply with the regulations. This may require substantial cash outlay as well as additional labour to provide cover for absent staff so these sorts of changes may significantly affect the Company’s finances. Accounting Standards-these are the regulations and codes of practice which have been developed to try to reduce the number of different interpretations and treatments used by accountants in preparing and presenting the Financial Statements for limited companies. This regulation have a direct impact on the company’s actions, as IWL is a limited company and have to prepare Financial Statements each year. The  Finance Director, being ACCA qualified, is applying accounting standards while preparing the financial statements. Changes made to the standards may require the Finance Director to undertake additional training which again will affect the company’s finances and the availability of staff. 5.1.4 The Data Protection Act 1998- the act lays down the principles by which the personal data should be managed by ‘data controllers’. Business organisations that keep personal data in respect of living and identifiable person are data controllers. The IWL has Payrol l and Database section in the Accounts Department therefore is obliged to comply with the regulation. Only authorised members of staff are to use IWL’s computers. In case of any changes in the Data Protection Act 1998, the Company may be required to, for example, purchase new safe for keeping the records in safe and secure way or to purchase new database software to meet the requirements of the regulation as well as train staff and review and implement changes in company’s policies. 5.2 Fraud is an intentional act by management or employees in order to obtain an unfair or illegal advantage. The most common causes of fraud in a business can be identified as a lack of operational internal control procedures within the business, lack of internal anti-fraud controls, especially risk management, as well as a lack of internal audit. In order to improve fraud and theft detection, the BODs needs to regularly review company’s fraud policies and procedures to ensure that they effectively reduce risk, improve processes and are in compliance with prevailing laws and regulations. This involves identifying the company’s specific fraud risks and then developing and implementing controls, procedures and operational changes to mitigate those risks. 5.3 The most common types of fraud can be identified as the theft of assets and corruption. The effects of the fraud activities can devastate the company in various ways, for instance, financial loss, external confidence , company morale or increased audit costs. Theft- this is probably the most common method of fraud, usually carried out because staff are presented with opportunities due to lack of physical controls and little or no segregation of duties with individual members of staff being given too much personal control over procedures. Impact of the theft can be fairly easy quantified. If, for  example, the manager overstates the hours worked by an employee, these can be easily calculated by multiplying the rate per hour by hours worked. In fact this is stealing the company’s time and subsequently money. There is a high risk of such an activity occurring within IWL shops as the company has no procedure in place for sales, warehouse or administrative staff to sing in or out when they arrive or leave work. This type of fraud often happens without knowledge of the management. 5.3.2 Corruption- this form of fraud usually involves a dishonest member of staff working in collusion with others to commit acts of fraud. The example of su ch an activity is changing contract terms and conditions after it have been awarded in favour of the supplier. There is a great possibility of this type of fraud occurring in the IWL’s due to lack of internal control procedures for purchasing inventory. This results in loses to the company because, the company is paying more for the product therefore reducing the Company’s revenue. 5.4 The accounting system can support internal control by means of setting the standards and using of control systems. 5.4.1 Standards allow the organisation to define its expectation of how things should be achieved. They allow the management to monitor the performance of the employees. These standards can be based on what the organisation expects from the staff, for example, implementing of company’s procedures. The organisation will generally outline to the staff what it expects in relation to performance levels, like cost of ensuring work is carried out effectively and that the deadlines are met, as well as in relation to the error allowance. Standards should be set in relation to the organisation’s objectives and goals. A tool commonly used for the purpose of measuring performance is that of standard costing. A main feature of standard costing is variance analysis, where differences between budgeted and actual figures are monitored. This allows the organisation to identify where changes may be required. 5.4.2 Use of control in systems is aimed at ensuring that the plans of organisation are being met. Deviations found by the control monitors should be investigated and if they negatively affect organisation then corrective action should be taken. An internal control system includes all the policies and procedures adopted by the organisation to achieve the objectives of: Effective conduct of the business, Implementation of internal policies and procedures, Safeguarding the assets of the organisation, Detecting and preventing incidences of fraud and error, The accuracy and completeness of the financial records, The timely preparation of reliable financial information. Regardless of the size of the organisation the accounting system must be reliable, cost effective and capable of being used effectively by the person(s) operating it. An accounting system of the IWL is a collection of computerized and manual accounting processes, procedures and controls created to collect, record, classify, summarize and interpret financial data for decision making by management. The record keeping systems of IWL meet organisation’s requirements for financial information. The Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threads (SWOT) analysis has been prepared to identify those areas of the current accounting system that do not operate satisfactory and can be found in appendix 4. The analysis showed that the work is going through the correct sequence of events and processes and that there is good segregation of duties within the department. However, there are areas where the systems could be improved. These have been identified as better staff training and introd uction of audit trail. Better trained staff would become specialised in the area they operate which would enable them to complete tasks more efficiently and effectively and therefore reduce costs. The audit trail would minimise potential for error and would act as a control tool for staff activity. Weaknesses Identified Within The Accounting System The weaknesses that rise potential for error and possible exposure to fraud within The Accounting System of the IWL have been identified as insufficient staff training and lack of audit trail procedures. 6.2 Insufficient staff training caused many problems during the last six months period. There was not enough cover in the sales ledger section when the clerk was off sick or on holiday leave which caused accumulation of work that affected other departments as the financial information was not presented in the timely manner. The fact that no one was able to provide cover was evident proof of staff training needs. Another area where problems  occurred due to lack of training is that of the payroll and database section. The clerk was provided with only one day in-house training of how to operate payroll software and this resulted in mistakes with the staff salaries calculations. This is the example of error that occurred because of the lack of training. Some of them have been underpaid what may result in lower staff morale and de-motivate them which will result in worse productivity or alternatively may give a reason to commit fraud. Work could be delegated to different persons what would also act as an anti-fraudulent control because the person providing cover could spot any unauthorised or suspicious activities and report it to the management. It is recommended that all staff should be sent for training in order to become multi skilled. 6.3 Another weakness identified is the lack of internal audit procedures within the accounts department of the IWL. The impact on the organisation may be significant to the company in terms of money and reputation, should the fraud activities took place. Internal audit has proved to be the most successful method of detecting fraud. It would be advantageous to any organisationif its internal audit function were able to advise management on identifying and assessing the risks associated with fraud co uld review and monitor the internal control procedures in place to minimise the risk of fraud and also actively engage in detection of fraud within the accounts function. Internal controls are also successful as means not only of deterring or preventing fraud, but also of exposing acts of fraud. Many of the causes of fraud can be guarded against and, together with analysis of reports and trends and the investigation of errors and anomalies, fraudulent activities are often expose. The typical measures introduced in practice to help deter and prevent fraud has been identified as: Educating staff and raising awareness of the possible types of fraud and the likely impact of fraud on the organisation and its stakeholders. Whilst there is a belief that that such education could not only alert staff to types of fraud but could also encourage staff to indulge in fraudulent activities, research shows that money spent on educating staff and promoting staff awareness does in fact deter fraud and in the long run benefits outweigh costs. 6.4.2 Monitoring performance and making sure that accounting procedures are being followed. One member of staff, for instance accounting technician when his review and recommendation process is  completed, could be delegated to perform this task with all the discrepancies and suspicious activities reported to the management and appropriate action taken to mitigate risks. 6.5 The company can support individuals who operate accounting sys tems using training, manuals and written information and help menus. 6.5.1 Training- well trained staffs operate their accountancy systems more effectively than the untrained staffs. A review of the training needs of the company and its accounting staff has been undertaken, these have been identified as follows: General ledger and inventory clerk- appropriate training in the work of the Sales Clerk would relieve pressure from the Sales clerk who has no accounting or credit control qualification and who has a heavy workload during busy periods. 6.5.1.2 Purchase ledger clerk- this member of staff is already familiar with the work of the sales ledger section and an update of skills in this area is worth considering. The Purchase Ledger clerk is part AAT qualified and expressed an interest in studying for intermediate level 3 exams. 6.5.1.3 Sales ledger clerk and credit controller- this staff member has experience of the purchase ledger having worked as a Purchase Ledger Clerk before joining IWL. Some further training in this area would give a greater degree of flexibility. The clerk has expressed an interest in professional accountancy training and this should be encouraged. 6.5.1.4 Payroll and Personnel Database clerk- this staff member is working on a recently installed system has a heavy workload and is in need of additional training. Further training by a company who sold IWL new system is recommended. The clerk has an accounting qualification but further training should be discussed. 6.5.1.5 Costing technician- this is the only member of staff that has the experience to operate costing system. This member of staff shows reluctance to gain accounting qualification. The issue needs to be reso lved to the benefit of the company. 6.5.2 Manuals are files containing documents which provide the user with detailed information relating to procedures and operating activities. An example of the manual is handbook created by the Finance Director of the IWL relating to the IT systems. 6.5.3 Help menus- are aimed at providing assistance to the system user by allowing them to query items relevant to their effective use of the system. It provides the information on how to use the software in the correct manner. Sage payroll has such a facility in place. 6.5.4 Written information- the example may be company policy handbook issued by the Finance Director. 6.6 Every member of accounting staff is required to comply with statutory and organisational requirements. The types of controls that can be put in place to ensure compliance may include: data security controls and administrative controls. 6.6.1 Data security controls are put in place to ensure that the organisation’s data files are not subject to unauthorised access, change, disclosure to unauthorised persons, loss, damage or destruction. The IWL has a data security controls in place, however these are not being adhered to properly. It is recommended that staff should be informed about requirements of changing the password regularly and that unauthorised person should not be given access to the company’s computers. 6.6.2 Administrative controls can be categorised as segregation of duties, written policies and procedures and supervision. Due to lack of staff training, it is not possible to segregate and share duties between workers as they are not multi-skilled. This rise a possibility of error occurring as well as fraudulent manipulation of the system. Written policies are in place however, accountability and responsibility for implementing should be clearly defined. Every member should be informed about the consequences in case the procedures are not followed. Supervision of individuals or groups involved in the processing, checking and use of information within the system is essential. It is recommended that the activities of staff should be controlled by either member of the BODs or the Company Accountant. 6.7 The potential areas of fraud arising from lack of control within the accounting system have been identified as inventory control section and the purchase ledger section. Inventory control system would benefit from acquiring the Purchase Order Processing module which would improve the accuracy and reliability of the inventory control and would minimise risk of fraud. The Purchase Ledger section need more supervision as the Purchase Manager seems to be the most unreliable and suspicious person.

Business Entities Essay

Introduction: Most business entities, specifically those small enterprises use the manual process of recording inventories. They record inventories manually on a paper, as well as the product bought, sold and stored. The very in inconvenient process of recording manually made the researcher come up with the idea to make an electronic record keeping system for the improvement of the workflow and productivity in the pharmacy while a series of embedded safety checks yields unparalleled accuracy and greater overall safety prescription purposes. Background of the Study: The researchers realize the current system of pharmacy record keeping system was out-dated and unable to cope with a recent sharp increase in disbursement of medications. This study will be established with the aim of bringing in an electronic record keeping system that would be efficient, easy to learn and sustainable. The researcher will tend to make a system for the easier way of providing information about the product bought, sold, and stored. In addition, the system will attempt to provide receipts using the new system to show the effectiveness of modernizing the company’s current system. This system tends to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the process done by the company. The convenience of this new system will help to promote the company as well as to help its employees do an easier task for the enhancement of the system process. Statement of the problem: Ethical and efficient works are very important in merchandising company like drug stores. Erroneous and mistaken of records will lead the company in a bigger problem. We listed some problems that the company will possibly encounter: 1. Who is responsible in handling and keeping the transaction’s record? 2. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the business? 3. How the company competes with the same kinds of business? 4. How to increase the profit of the business? 5. How many workers needed to generate the business? 6. What are some techniques and strategies that will work on in the business? 7. How to enhance the continuality of the business operation? Objective of the Study: * It will help the _____________ Drugstore in providing the information needed by the business to improve their performance and to maximize their profit in general. Efficient and accurate recording of transactions will lead to intermediary success. * Provide the system that will arrange the sales and inventory of the business. * To help the owner and manager in recording and monitoring their business transactions so that they can identify if their business can earn a profits or losses. * The system will also benefit the customers in providing them the right medicine in a good and appropriate price for their illness. * The system will also provide the record of Payroll for each employee. Significance of the Study: * By conducting a proper feasibility study, the target audience can be clearly identified along with their purchasing power. This process will determine the economic prowlers of a proposal by a business. * To investigate ways to improve the inventory process of retail pharmacy. * The feasibility study will look at how certain proposal can work in a long-term basis or withstand financial risks that may come. * By conducting feasibility study, we would be able to know the circumstances faces by the pharmacy. * We can formulate answer to our problem. * Inventory system help companies with huge inventories to easily and accurately monitor their stocks. With the use of database, information will be readily available to the user and can be easily updated without having to scroll through spreadsheets. Scope and Limitations: Pharmacy seems to be one of the most important businesses in our society. But nowadays the inventory processes of those pharmacies are crucial. This feasibility study is conducted for as to formulate a system in which those pharmacists can easily access to their products. Pharmacy inventory system facilitates to manage a day to day basis for taking care of pharmacy inventory accurately and efficiently. The system will keep tracks of the records, purchases, stock, and expiry. A simplified computerized inventory system will be very helpful to the company since this will expedite its inventory workflow as well as generate very timely reports needed by the management for its evaluation and review and overall decision making. Our study will focuses on how we are going to impart a system which could help the inventory process is at risk. They cannot easily know if their certain product is out of stock or not. We aim to rationalize information of a proposed business in order to provide a clear rationale of basic factors in marketing which includes the strength and weakness. We focus on helping answer in the essential question of â€Å"should we proceed with proposed project idea?†

Law of Tort

4. 0 INTRODUCTION Occupiers' liability generally refers to the duty owed by land owners to those who come onto their land. However, the duty imposed on land owners can  extend beyond simple land ownership and in some instances the landowners may transfer the duty to others, hence the term occupier rather than owner. The term occupier itself is misleading since physical occupation is not necessary for liability  to arise. Occupiers' liability is perhaps a distinct form of negligence in that there must be a duty of care and breach of duty, causing damage.The rules of remoteness apply to occupiers liability in the exact same way that they apply to negligence claims. Liability can arise on occupiers for omissions since their relationship  gives rise to  duty to take action to ensure the reasonable safety of visitors. The law relating to occupiers' liability originated in common law but is now contained in two major pieces of legislation: Occupiers Liability Act 1957   – which imposes an obligation on occupiers with regard to ‘lawful visitors' Occupiers Liability Act 1984 – which imposes liability on occupiers with regard to persons other than ‘his visitors'.Different levels of protection are expected under the two pieces of legislation with a higher level of protection afforded to lawful visitors. NB: Lawful visitors are owed the duty set out in the 1957 Act; non-lawful visitors are owed the duty set out in the 1984 Act. It is for the claimant to prove that he is a lawful visitor and therefore entitled to the more favorable duties in the earlier Act 4. 1 Occupiers( who is an occupier) At common law (and under the statute occupation is based on control and not necessarily on any title to or property interest in the land.Both the Occupiers Liability Acts of 1957 and 1984  impose an obligation on occupiers rather than land owners. The question of whether a particular person is an occupier is a question of fact and depends on the d egree of control exercised. The test applied is one of ‘occupational control' and there may be more than one occupier of the same premises: In Wheat v E Lacon & Co Ltd [1966] AC 522- House of Lords The claimant and her family stayed at a public house, The Golfer’s Arms in Great Yarmouth, for a holiday. Unfortunately her husband died when he fell down the stairs and hit his head.The stairs were steep and narrow. The handrail stopped two steps from the bottom of the stairs and there was no bulb in the light. The claimant brought an action under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 against the Brewery company, Lacon, which owned the freehold of The Golfer’s Arms and against the Managers of the Pub, Mr. & Mrs. Richardson, who occupied the pub as a licensee. Held: Both the Richardson’s and Lacon were occupiers for the purposes of the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 and therefore both owed the common duty of care. It is possible to have more than one occupier.The quest ion of whether a particular person is an occupier under the Act is whether they have occupational control. Lacon had only granted a license to the Richardson’s and had retained the right to repair which gave them a sufficient degree of control. There is no requirement of physical occupation. However, it was found that Lacon was not in breach of duty since the provision of light bulbs would have been part of the day to day management duties of the Richardson’s. Since the Richardson’s were not party to the appeal the claimant’s action failed.Lord Denning: â€Å"wherever a person has a sufficient degree of control over premises that he ought to realize that any failure on his part to use care may result in injury to a person coming lawfully there, then he is an † occupier † and the person coming lawfully there is his † visitor â€Å": and the † occupier † is under a duty to his † visitor † to use reasonable care. I n order to be an â€Å"occupier â€Å"it is not necessary for a person to have entire control over the premises. He need not have exclusive occupation. Suffice it that he has some degree of control. He may share the control with others. Two or more may be â€Å"occupiers â€Å".And whenever this happens, each is under a duty to use care towards persons coming lawfully on to the premises, dependent on his degree of control. If each fails in his duty, each is liable to a visitor who is injured in consequence of his failure, but each may have a claim to contribution from the other. † Physical occupation is not a requirement: Harris v Birkenhead Corp [1976] 1 WLR 279 The claimant Julie Harris was 4 years old when she wandered off from a children’s play park with her friend. They entered a derelict house which was due for demolition. The house had not been secured and the door was open.They went upstairs and Julie sustained serious injury when she fell from a window. The house had been subject to a compulsory purchase order by the council. The house had been owned by a private landlord and the tenant was offered alternative accommodation by the council. The tenant informed the council that she did not want to take up the offer of accommodation and made her own arrangements and left the property. The council served 14 days notice on the owner of their intention to take possession of the property, but never actually took physical possession at the expiry of the 14 days.Held: The Council had the legal right to take possession to secure the property, actual physical occupation was not required to incur liability as an occupier. The council were therefore liable. 4. 1. 1 Occupiers Liability Act 1957 The Occupiers Liability Act 1957 imposes a common duty of care on occupiers to lawful visitors. By virtue of s. 1 (3) (a), the Act applies not only to land and buildings but also extends  to fixed and movable structures, including any vessel, vehicle or ai rcraft. The protected damage under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 includes death, personal injury and damage to property. . 1. 1. 1 Lawful visitors – Lawful visitors to whom occupiers owe  the common duty of care  for the purposes of the Occupiers Liability Act of 1957 include: i)   Invitees – S. 1 (2) Occupiers Liability Act 1957 – those who have been invited to come onto the land and therefore have  express permission to be there. ii) Licensees – S. 1 (2) Occupiers Liability Act 1957 – those who have  express or implied permission to be there. According to S. 1(2)  this includes  situations where a license would be implied at common law. (See below) iii) Those who enter pursuant to a contract – s. (1) Occupiers Liability Act 1957 – For example paying guests at a hotel or paying visitors to a theatre performance or to see a film at a cinema. iv) Those entering in exercising a right conferred by law – s. 2(6) Oc cupiers Liability Act 1957 – For example  a person entering to read the gas or electricity meters, a police executing warrants of arrest or search) 4. 1. 1. 2 Implied license at common law In the absence of express permission to be on the land, a license may be implied at common law where there exists repeated trespass and no action taken by the occupier to prevent people coming on to the land.This requires an awareness of the trespass and the danger: Lowery v Walker [1911] AC 10  House of Lords The Claimant was injured by a horse when using a short cut across the defendant’s field. The land had been habitually used as a short cut by members of the public for many years and the defendant had taken no steps to prevent people coming on to the land. The defendant was aware that the horse was dangerous. Held: The defendant was liable. Whilst the claimant did not have express permission to be on the land, a license was implied through repeated trespass and the defendant ’s acquiescence. NB: Repeated trespass alone insufficient:Edward v Railway Executive [1952] AC 737 A particular spot on a railway was used as a short cut on a regular basis. The fence was repaired on several occasions and whenever it was reported to have been interfered with. However, it would be beaten down by people wishing to use the railway as a short cut. Witness testimony was to the effect that the fence was in good repair the morning of the incident. Held: No license was implied. The Defendant had taken reasonable steps to prevent people coming onto the railway. Lord Goddard: â€Å"Repeated trespass of itself confers no license† 4. 1. 1. 3 Allurement principleThe courts are more likely to imply a license if there is something on the land which is particularly attractive and acts as an allurement to draw people on to the land. Taylor v Glasgow Corporation [1922] 1 AC 448 House of Lords The defendants owned the Botanic Gardens of Glasgow, a park which was open to the public. On the park various botanic plants and shrubs grew. A boy of seven years ate some berries from one of the shrubs. The berries were poisonous and the boy died. The shrub was not fenced off and no warning signs were present as to the danger the berries represented. Held: Glasgow Corporation was liable.Children were entitled to go onto the land. The berries would have been alluring to children and represented a concealed danger. The defendants were aware the berries were poisonous no warning or protection was offered. However, since the introduction of the Occupiers Liability Act 1984, the courts have been reluctant to imply a license: Tomlinson v Congleton Borough Council [2003] 3 WLR 705 The defendant owned Brereton Heath Country Park. It had previously been a sand quarry and they transformed it in to a country park and opened it up for public use. The defendants had created a lake on the park which was surrounded by sandy banks.In the hot weather many visitors came to th e park. Swimming was not permitted in the lake and notices were posted at the entrance saying â€Å"Dangerous water. No swimming†. However despite this, many people did use the lake for swimming. Rangers were employed and on occasions sought to prevent swimming but some of the visitors would be rude to the rangers’ attempts to prevent them and many continued to swim. The claimant was injured when he dived into shallow water and broke his neck. At the Court of Appeal it was held that he was a trespasser despite the repeated trespass and inadequate steps to prevent him swimming.They also stated that the warning signs may have acted as an allurement to macho young men. The Court of Appeal was of the opinion that since the introduction of the Occupiers Liability Act 1984, the courts should not strain to imply a license. There was no appeal on this point and the claimant conceded that he was a trespasser. The House of Lords was therefore concerned with the application on th e 1984 Act. The Court of Appeal had held that the council were liable but reduced the damages by 2/3 under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945.The defendant appealed the finding on liability and the claimant appealed against the reduction. House of Lords held: The Council was not liable. No risk arose from the state of the premises as required under s. 1 (1) (a) Occupiers Liability Act 1984. The risk arose from the claimant’s own action. He was a person of full capacity who voluntarily and without pressure or inducement engaged in an activity which had an inherent risk. Even if there was a risk form the state of the premises, the risk was not one against which the council would reasonably be expected to offer the claimant some protection under s. (3) (C). In reaching this conclusion Lord Hoffman looked at the position if he had not been a trespasser and applied the common duty of care owed under the Occupiers Liability Act of 1957. He was of the opinion that the re was no duty to warn or take steps to prevent the claimant from diving as the dangers were perfectly obvious. This was based on the principle of free will and that to hold otherwise would deny the social benefit to the majority of the users of the park from using the park and lakes in a safe and responsible manner.To impose liability in this situation would mean closing of many such venues up and down the country for fear of litigation. He noted that 25-30 such fractures occurred each year nationwide, despite increased safety measures the numbers had remained constant. 4. 1. 1. 4 Non lawful visitors The 1957 Act does not extend protection to: ? trespassers ? Invitees who exceed their permission ? Persons on the land exercising a public right of way:   Ã‚  McGeown v Northern Ireland Housing Executive [1994] 3 All ER 53 House of Lords The claimant was injured when she tripped in a hole on land owned by the defendant.The land was a public right of way. It was held that the defendan t was not liable as  the claimant  was not a lawful visitor under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 because she was exercising a public right of way. †¢ Persons on the land exercising a private right of way:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Holden v White [1982] 2 All ER 328 Court of Appeal The claimant, a milkman, was injured on the defendant’s land by a manhole cover which broke when he stepped on it. At the time he was delivering milk to the house of a third party who had a right of way across the defendant’s land.It was held that he was not entitled to claim against the defendant since he was exercising a right of way and was not therefore a lawful visitor of the defendant. 4. 1. 1. 5 The common duty of care The common duty of care is set out in s. 2 (2) Occupiers Liability Act 1957: S. 2(2)   – ‘The common duty of  care is to take such care as in all the circumstances of the case is reasonable to see that the  visitor will be reasonably safe in using the pre mises for the purposes for which he  is invited or permitted  by the occupier to be there. ‘   Thus the standard of care varies according to the circumstances.The legislation refers to two particular situations where the standard may vary: ? S. 2(3)(a) – an occupier must be prepared for children to be less careful than adults ? S. 2(3)(b) – an occupier may expect that a person  in the exercise of his calling will appreciate and guard against any special risks ordinarily incident to it i)   S. 2(3) (a) Child visitors The courts will take into account the age of the child and level of understanding a child of that age may be expected to have. They may be more adventurous and may not understand the nature of certain risks.The occupier does not however have to guarantee that the house will be safe, but only has to take reasonable care. If the child’s parents are present, they must share some responsibility, and, even if they are not present, it may b e relevant to the occupier’s duty that they thought it prudent to allow their child to be where he was. Titchener v British Railways Board [1983] 1 WLR 1427 House of Lords The Claimant, a 15 year old girl, was out walking with her boyfriend who was 16. They took a short cut across a railway line and they were both hit by a train. He was killed and she was seriously injured.There was a gap in the fence at the place where they crossed and there was a pathway leading to this gap which suggested that there was repeated trespass. Also it was accepted that either the Defendant was aware of the gap or would have been aware upon reasonable inspection. The Defendant raised the defense of volenti under s. 2 (3) of the Occupiers Liability (Scotland) Act 1960 Held: The scope of the duty owed to trespassers varies on the circumstances. On the facts of this case the Defendants did not owe a duty to a 15 year old trespasser who was fully aware of the risks.Even if the Defendant did owe a du ty of care the defense of volenti under s. 2 (3) would succeed. Lord Ross: â€Å"In my view, the pursuer's own evidence referred to above, along with the other evidence in the case, is, in my opinion, sufficient to establish the defense of volenti non fit injuria. Such defense is open to the defenders under section 2 (3) of the Occupiers' Liability (Scotland) Act 1960, and no duty under section 2 (1) of the Act is imposed upon an occupier to a person entering on the premises in respect of risks which that person has willingly accepted as his.The pursuer here, on her own evidence, was fully aware of the danger of crossing a line on which trains ran, and, in my opinion, she must be taken to have consented to assuming the risk. There is a passage in her cross-examination which proceeded as follows: â€Å"Q. And you knew that it would be dangerous to cross the line because of the presence of these trains? A. Yes. Q. Well why did you do it if you knew it would be dangerous? A. Because it was shorter to get to the brickworks. Q. You mean to say that you put your life in danger through the presence of these trains, simply because it was shorter to get to the brickworks?A. Well, before my accident I never ever thought that it would happen to me, that I would never get hit by a train, it was just a chance that I took. † â€Å"A person who takes a chance necessarily consents to take what come†   Ã‚  Jolley v Sutton [2000] 1 WLR 1082 Two 14 year old boys found an abandoned boat on land owned by the council and decided to do it up. The boat was in a thoroughly rotten condition and represented a danger. The council had stuck a notice on the boat warning not to touch the boat and that if the owner did not claim the boat within 7 days it would be taken away. The council never took it away.The boys had been working on the boat for 6-7 weeks when one of them suffered severe spinal injuries, resulting in paraplegia, when the boat fell on top of him. The boys ha d jacked the boat up to work on the underside and the jack went through the rotten wood. The claimant brought an action under the Occupiers Liability Act 1984. The trial judge found for the claimant. The Court of Appeal reversed the decision, holding that whilst it was foreseeable that younger children may play on the boat and suffer an injury by falling through the rotten wood, it was not foreseeable that older boys would try to do the boat up.The claimant appealed. House of Lords held: The claimant's appeal was allowed. The risk was that children would â€Å"meddle with the boat at the risk of some physical injury† The actual injury fell within that description. Lord Steyn: â€Å"The scope of the two modifiers – the precise manner in which the injury came about and its extent – is not definitively answered by either The Wagon Mound ( No. 1) or Hughes v. Lord Advocate. It requires determination in the context of an intense focus on the circumstances of each ca se. † Taylor v Glasgow Corporation [1922] 1 AC 448 House of LordsThe defendants owned the Botanic Gardens of Glasgow, a park which was open to the public. On the park various botanic plants and shrubs grew. A boy of seven years ate some berries from one of the shrubs. The berries were poisonous and the boy died. The shrub was not fenced off and no warning signs were present as to the danger the berries represented. Held: Glasgow Corporation was liable. Children were entitled to go onto the land. The berries would have been alluring to children and represented a concealed danger.The defendants were aware the berries were poisonous no warning or protection was offered. Phipps v Rochester Corporation [1955] 1 QB 450 A 5 year old boy was walking across some open ground with his 7 year old sister. He was not accompanied by an adult. He was injured when he fell into a trench. The Corporation were not held liable as an occupier is entitled to assume that prudent parents would not all ow their children to go unaccompanied to places where it is unsafe. Devlin J on duty owed to children â€Å"The law recognizes a sharp difference between children and adults.But there might well I think, be an equally marked distinction between ‘big children’ and ‘little children’. †¦The occupier is not entitled to assume that all children will, unless they are allured, behave like adults; but he is entitled to assume that normally little children will be accompanied by a responsible person. †¦The responsibility for the safety of little children must rest primarily upon the parents; it is their duty to see that such children are not allowed to wander about by themselves, or at least to satisfy themselves that the places to which they do allow their children to go unaccompanied are safe.It would not be socially desirable if parents were, as a matter of course, able to shift the burden of looking after their children from their own shoulders to tho se persons who happen to have accessible pieces of land. † ii) S. 2(3)(b) Common calling ( Trade Visitors) This provision applies where an occupier employs an expert to come on to the premises to undertake work. The expert can be taken to know and safeguard themselves against  any dangers that arise from the premises in relation to the calling of the expert. For example if an occupier engages an lectrician, the electrician  would be expected to know the dangers inherent in the work they are employed to do. Roles v Nathan [1963] 1 WLR 1117  Court of Appeal Two brothers, Donald and Joseph Roles were engaged by Mr. Nathan as chimney sweeps to clean the flues in a central heating system at Manchester Assembly Rooms. The flues had become dangerous due to carbon monoxide emissions. A heating engineer had warned them of the danger, however, the brothers told him they knew of the dangers and had been flue inspectors for many years.The engineer monitored the situation throughout the day and at one point ordered everybody out of the building due to the levels of carbon monoxide. The brothers ignored this advice and continued with their work. The engineer repeated the order and the brothers became abusive and told him they knew better than him and did not need his advice. The engineer forcibly removed them from the building. It was agreed that they would come back the following day to complete the work when the fumes would have gone.They were also told they should not do the work whilst the fires were lighted. However, the next day the brothers were found dead in the basement having returned the previous evening to complete the work when the fires were lit. Their widows brought an action under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957. Held: The defendant was not liable. The dangers were special risks ordinarily incident to their calling. The warnings issued were clear and the brothers would have been safe had they heeded the warnings. Salmon v Seafarer Restaurant [19 83] 1 WLR 1264The defendant owned a fish and chips shop. One night he left the chip fryer on and closed the shop for the night. This caused a fire and the fire services were called to put out the fire. The claimant was a fire man injured in an explosion whilst fighting the fire. He had been thrown to the ground whilst footing a ladder on a flat roof. The defendant sought to escape liability by invoking s. 2 (3) (b) of the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 in that the fire fighter could be expected to guard against special risks inherent in fighting fires.Held: The defendant was liable. Where it can be foreseen that the fire which is negligently started is of the type which could require firemen to attend to extinguish that fire, and where, because of the very nature of the fire, when they attend they will be at risk even if they exercise all the skill of their calling, there is no reason why a fireman should be at any disadvantage in claiming compensation. The duty owed to a fireman was not limited to the exceptional risks associated with fighting fire but extended to ordinary risks.Ogwo v Taylor [1987] 3 WLR 1145 House of Lords The Defendant attempted to burn off paint from the fascia boards beneath the eaves of his house with a blow lamp and in so doing set fire to the premises. The fire brigade were called and the Claimant, an acting leading fireman, and a colleague entered the house wearing breathing apparatus and the usual fireman's protective clothing and armed with a hose. The two firemen were able, with the aid of a step- ladder, to squeeze through a small hatch to get into the roof space. The heat within the roof space was intense.The Claimant suffered serious burn injuries to his upper body and face from scalding steam which must have penetrated his protective clothing. Held: A duty of care was owed to a professional fireman. There was no requirement that the risk be exceptional. The defense of volenti had no application. Lord Bridge: â€Å"The duty of p rofessional firemen is to use their best endeavors to extinguish fires and it is obvious that, even making full use of all their skills, training and specialist equipment, they will sometimes be exposed to unavoidable risks of injury, whether the fire is described as â€Å"ordinary† or â€Å"exceptional. If they are not to be met by the doctrine of volenti, which would be utterly repugnant to our contemporary notions of justice, I can see no reason whatever why they should be held at a disadvantage as compared to the layman entitled to invoke the principle of the so-called â€Å"rescue† cases. † iii)   Warnings and warning  signs It may be possible for an occupier to discharge their duty by giving a warning some danger on the premises(‘Loose carpet’; ‘slippery floor’) – See   Roles v Nathan [1963] 1 WLR 1117 above)   However, S. (4)(a) Occupiers Liability Act 1957 provides that a warning given to the visitor  will not b e treated as absolving the occupier of liability unless in all the circumstances it was enough to enable the visitor to be reasonably safe. The occupier i. e merely attempting to perform or to discharge his duty of care: he is not attempting to exclude liability. Is something slippery has been spilt on the floor of a shop, the occupier can (a) close the shop, (b) clean up the spillage or (c) give a warning so that the visitor can avoid the spot or step gingerly.The warning must  cover the danger that in fact arises: White v Blackmore [1972] 3 WLR 296 Mr. White was killed at a Jalopy car race due negligence in the way the safety ropes were set up. A car crashed into the ropes about 1/3 of a mile from the place where Mr. White was standing. Consequently he was catapulted 20 foot in the air and died from the injuries received. Mr. White was a driver in the race but at the time of the incident he was between races and standing close to his family. He had signed a competitors list whic h contained an exclusion clause.There was also a warning sign at the entrance to the grounds which stated that Jalopy racing is dangerous and the organizers accept no liability for any injury including death howsoever caused. The programme also contained a similar clause. His widow brought an action against the organizer of the event who defended on the grounds of  volenti  and that they had effectively excluded liability. Held: The defence of  volenti  was unsuccessful. Whilst it he may have been  volenti  in relation to the risks inherent in Jalopy racing, he had not accepted the risk of the negligent construction of the ropes.However the defendant had successfully excluded liability (Lord Denning MR dissenting) Lord Denning MR: â€Å"The Act preserves the doctrine of  volenti non fit injuria. It says in Section 2(5) that: â€Å"the common duty of care does not impose on an occupier any obligation to a visitor in respect of risks willingly accepted as his by the vi sitor†. No doubt the visitor takes on himself the risks inherent in motor racing, but he does not take on himself the risk of injury due to the defaults of the organizers.People go to race meetings to enjoy the sport. They like to see the competitors taking risks, but they do not like to take risks on themselves, even though it is a dangerous sport, they expect, and rightly expect, the organizers to erect proper barriers, to provide proper enclosures, and to do all that is reasonable to ensure their safety. If the organizers do everything that is reasonable, they are not liable if a racing car leaps the barriers and crashes into the crowd – see Hall v. Brooklands (1933) 1 K. B. 206.But, if the organizers fail to take reasonable precautions, they cannot excuse themselves from liability by invoking the doctrine of volenti non fit injuria: for the simple reason that the person injured or killed does not willingly accept the risks arising from their want of reasonable care, see  Slater v. Clay Cross Co. (1956) 2 Q. B. 20B; Wooldridge v. Summers (1963) 2 Q. B. at page 69; Nettleship v. Weston    (1971) 2 Q. B. at page 201. † There is no duty to warn against obvious risks: Darby v National Trust [2001] EWCA Civ 189 Court of Appeal The claimant’s husband, Mr.Darby, drowned in a pond owned by the National Trust (NT). The pond was one of five ponds in Hardwick Hall near Chesterfield. Two of the ponds were used for fishing and NT had taken steps to prevent the use of those ponds for swimming or paddling. However, with regards to the pond in which the fatality occurred, NT had done nothing to prevent visitors using the pond and it was common for visitors to use the pond for paddling and swimming during the warm summer months. On the day in question Mr. Darby had been paddling with his children around the edge of the pond.He then swam to the middle to play a game he had often played whereby he would go under water and then bob up to the surfa ce. However, he got into difficulty and drowned. The claimant argued that because  of NT’s inactivity in preventing swimmers using the pond, both she and her husband had assumed the pond was safe for swimming. Held: NT was not liable. The risk to swimmers in the pond was perfectly obvious. There was no duty to warn of an obvious risk Cotton v Derbyshire Dales District Council [1994] EWCA Civ 17 Court of AppealThe claimant, a 26 year old man, had gone out for the day with a group of friends and his fiance over the Easter bank holiday. They had visited 3 pubs where the claimant had drunk about 4 pints. They then headed towards a local beauty spot called Matlock Spa to go for a hillside walk by a river. The parties were in high spirits and became separated. The claimant and his fiance drifted from the pathway and he was seriously injured when he fell off a cliff. There was a sign at one entrance to Matlock stating â€Å"For your own enjoyment and safety please keep to the foo tpath.The cliffs can be very dangerous, and children must be kept under close supervision. † However, there was no such sign at the entrance used by the claimant. The claimant brought an action based on the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 for the failure to adequately warn him of the risk. Held: There was no obligation to warn of an obvious risk. The claimant would have been aware of the existence of the cliff so such a warning would not have affected events. Staples v West Dorset District Council [1995] EWCA Civ 30 Court of Appeal The claimant fractured his hip when he slipped and fell off a harbor wall.The harbor wall was known as The Cobb and was a well-known tourist attraction commonly used as a promenade. The edge of The Cobb was covered with algae and extremely slippery when wet. The claimant had crouched in the area affected by the algae to take a photo of his friends, when he slipped and fell off a 20 foot drop landing on rocks below. He brought an action based on the Occ upiers Liability Act 1957 arguing that no warning signs were present as to the dangers of slipping. Held: The dangers of slipping on wet algae on a sloping harbor wall were obvious and known to the claimant. Therefore there was no duty to warn. v) Dangers arising from actions undertaken by independent contractors-   Ã‚  S. 2(4)(b) Occupiers Liability Act 1957   An occupier is not liable for dangers created by independent contractors if  the occupier acted  reasonably in all the circumstances in entrusting the work to the independent contractor and took reasonable steps to satisfy himself that the  work carried out was  properly done and the contractor was competent. Ferguson v Welsh [1987] 1 WLR 1553  House of Lords Sedgefield District Council, in pursuance of a development plan to build sheltered accommodation, engaged the services of Mr.Spence to demolish a building. It was a term of the contract that the work was not to be sub-contracted out. In breach of this term, Mr. Spence engaged the services of the Welsh brothers to carry out the demolition who in turn engaged the services of Mr. Ferguson to assist. Mr. Ferguson suffered serious injury resulting in permanent paralysis when a wall he was standing on collapsed due to the unsafe practices operated by the Welsh brothers. He brought an action against the Council, Mr. Spence and the Welsh brothers. The trial judge held that the Welsh Brothers were liable but that Mr.Spence and the Council were not liable. Mr. Ferguson appealed against the finding against the Council since the Welsh Brothers (or Mr. Spence) had the funds or insurance to meet liability. Held: The appeal was dismissed. Mr. Ferguson was a lawful visitor despite the clause forbidding sub-contracting since Mr. Spence would have apparent or ostensible authority to invite him on to the land. However, the danger arose from the unsafe system of work adopted by the Welsh Brothers not the state of the premises. Whilst there was evidence t hat Mr.Spence had sub-contracted demolition work to those executing unsafe practices on  previous occasions, there was no evidence that the Council were aware of this. Gwilliam v West Hertfordshire Hospital NHS Trust [2002] EWCA Civ 1041  Court of Appeal The claimant, a 63 year old woman, was injured at a summer fair hosted by West Hertfordshire Hospital. She was injured whilst using a ‘splat wall’ whereby participants would bounce off a trampette against a wall and become attached to the wall by means of Velcro material. The injury occurred as a result of negligent set up of the equipment.The equipment was provided by  a business called ‘Club Entertainments’ who were an independent contractor engaged by the Hospital. Club Entertainment’s public liability insurance had expired four days before the incidence and thus they had no cover for the injury. They agreed to settle her claim for ? 5,000. Mrs. Gwilliam brought an action against the hospita l based on their failure to ensure that the entertainment arranged was covered by public liability insurance. She claimed the difference between the ? 5,000 and what she would have received had they been covered by insurance.Held: The Hospital owed a duty of care Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 this duty did extend to checking whether the independent contractor had insurance cover since this would be relevant to whether they were competent. However, there was no breach of duty since the Hospital had enquired and had been told by Club Entertainment that they had insurance cover. There was no duty to inspect the insurance documents to ensure that cover was adequate. 4. 1. 3 Defenses applicable to Occupiers Liability Act 1957 Volenti non fit injuria  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ s. (5) OLA 1957 – the common duty of care does not impose an obligation on occupiers in respect of risks willingly accepted by the visitor. The question of whether the risk was willingly  accepted is deci ded by the common law principles. Contributory negligence – Damages may be reduced under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 where the visitor fails to take reasonable care for their own safety. Exclusion of Liability   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ s. 2(1) OLA 1957 allows an occupier to extend, restrict, exclude or modify his duty to visitors in so far as he is free to do so.White v Blackmore [1972] 3 WLR (discussed earlier) Where the occupier is a business the ability to exclude liability  is subject to the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 4. 1. 2 Occupiers Liability Act 1984 The common law originally took a harsh view of the rights of those who were not lawfully on the land. (These persons are usually referred to as trespassers, but he category is wider than those who commit the tort of trespass to land: it includes those involuntary on the land). The Occupiers Liability Act 1984 imposes a duty on occupiers in relation to persons ‘other than his visitors' (S. 1 (1 ) (a) OLA 1984).This  includes trespassers and those who exceed their permission. Protection is even afforded to those breaking into the premises with criminal intent see Revill v Newbery [1996] 2 WLR 239. Whilst it may at first appear harsh to impose a duty on occupiers for those that have come on to their land uninvited and without permission, liability was originally recognized at common law for child trespassers where the occupier was aware of the danger and aware that trespassers, including children would encounter the danger. British Railway Board v Herrington [1972] AC 877   overruling Addie v. Dumbreck [1929] AC 358.Addie v Dumbreck  [1929] AC 358  House of Lords the defendant owned View Park Colliery which was situated in a field adjacent to a road. There was a fence around the perimeter of the field although there were large gaps in the fence. The field was frequently used as a short cut to a railway station and children would use it as a playground. The defendant would often warn people off the land but the attempts were not effective and no real attempt was made to ensure that people did not come onto the land. A child came on to the land and was killed when he climbed onto a piece of haulage apparatus.Held: No duty of care was owed to trespassers to ensure that they were safe when coming onto the land. The only duty was not to inflict harm willfully. Viscount Dunedin: â€Å"In the present case, had the child been a licensee, I would have held the defenders liable; secus if the complainer had been an adult. But, if the person is a trespasser, then the only duty the proprietor has towards him is not maliciously to injure him; he may not shoot him; he may not set a spring gun, for that is just to arrange to shoot him without personally firing the shot.Other illustrations of what he may not do might be found, but they all come under the same head—injury either directly malicious or an acting so reckless as to be tantamount to malicious acting. † ‘Occupier' is given the same meaning as under the 1957 Act (S. 1 (2) OLA 1984). Since the Occupiers Liability Act 1984 applies to trespassers, a lower level of protection is offered. Hence the fact that  death and personal injury are the  only protected forms of damage and occupiers have no duty in relation to the property of trespassers. (S. 1 (8) OLA 1984). Also the duty only arises when certain risk factors are present. . 1. 2. 1 The circumstances giving rise to a duty of care S. 1 (3)  Occupiers Liability Act 1984 an occupier owes a duty to another (not being his visitor) if:   (a) He is aware of a the danger or has reasonable grounds to believe that it exists   (b) He knows or has reasonable grounds to believe the other is in the vicinity of the danger or may come into the vicinity of the danger   (c) The risk is one in which in all the  circumstances of the case, he may reasonably be expected to offer the other some protection If all three of these are present the occupier owes a duty of care to the non-lawful visitor.The criteria in s. 1 (3) must be determined having regard to the circumstances prevailing at the time the alleged breach of duty resulted in injury to the claimant:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Donoghue v Folkestone Properties [2003] EWCA Civ 231 Court of Appeal Mr. Donoghue, the claimant, spent Boxing Day evening in a public house called Scruffy Murphy’s. It was his intention, with some of his friends, to go for a midnight swim in the sea. Unfortunately in his haste to get into the water he dived from a slipway in Folkestone harbor owned by the defendant and struck his head on an underwater obstruction, breaking his neck.At his trial evidence was adduced to the affect that the slipway had often been used by others during the summer months to dive from. Security guards employed by the defendant had stopped people from diving although there were no warning signs put out. The obstruction that had injured the claiman t was a permanent feature of a grid-pile which was submerged under the water. In high tide this would not have posed a risk but when the tide went out it was a danger. The claimant’s action was based on the Occupiers Liability Act 1984. Mr. Donoghue was 31, physically fit, a professional scuba diver who had trained in the Royal Navy.It was part of his basic knowledge as a diver that he should check water levels and obstructions before diving. The trial judge found for the claimant but reduced the damages by 75% to reflect the extent to which he had failed to take care of his own safety under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945. The defendant appealed contending that in assessing whether a duty of care arises under s. 1(3) each of the criteria must be assessed by reference to the individual characteristics and attributes of the particular claimant and on the particular occasion when the incident in fact occurred i. . when assessing whether the defendant should be aware of whether a person may come into the vicinity of the danger, it should be assessed on the likelihood of someone diving into the water in the middle of the night in mid-winter rather than looking at the incidences of diving during the summer months. Held: Appeal allowed. The test of whether a duty of care exists under s. 1(3) Occupiers Liability Act 1984 must be determined having regard to the circumstances prevailing at the time of the alleged breach resulted in injury to the claimant. At the time Mr.Donoghue sustained his injury, Folkestone Properties had no reason to believe that he or anyone else would be swimming from the slipway. Consequently, the criteria set out in s. 1 (3) (b) was not satisfied and no duty of care arose. 4. 1. 2. 2 Standard of care S. 1 (4) OLA 1984 – the duty is to take such care as is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case to see that the other does not suffer injury on the premises by reason of the danger concerned. Revill v Newber y [1996] 2 WLR 239 Court of Appeal Mr. Newbery was a 76 year old man. He owned an allotment which had a shed in which he kept various valuable items.The shed was subject to frequent breaking and vandalism. Mr. Newbery had taken to sleeping in his shed armed with a 12 bore shot gun. Mr. Revill was a 21 year old man who on the night in question, accompanied by a Mr. Grainger, and went to the shed at 2. 00 am in order to break in. Mr. Newbery awoke, picked up the shot gun and fired it through a small hole in the door to the shed. The shot hit Mr. Revill in the arm. It passed right through the arm and entered his chest. Both parties were prosecuted for the criminal offences committed. Mr. Revill pleaded guilty and was sentenced. Mr. Newbery was acquitted of wounding. Mr.Revill brought a civil action against Mr. Newbery for the injuries he suffered. Mr. Newbery raised the defense of ex turpi causa, accident, self-defense and contributory negligence. Held: The Claimants action was success ful but his damages were reduced by 2/3 under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 to reflect his responsibility for his own injuries. On the application of ex turpi causa Neill LJ: â€Å"For the purposes of the present judgment I do not find it necessary to consider further the joint criminal enterprise cases or the application of the doctrine of ex turpi causa in other areas of the law of tort.It is sufficient for me to confine my attention to the liability of someone in the position of Mr. Newbery towards an intruding burglar. It seems to me to be clear that, by enacting section 1 of the 1984 Act, Parliament has decided that an occupier cannot treat a burglar as an outlaw and has defined the scope of the duty owed to him. As I have already indicated, a person other than an occupier owes a similar duty to an intruder such as Mr. Revill. In paragraph 32 of their 1976 Report the Law Commission rejected the suggestion that there should be no duty at all owed to a trespa sser who was engaged in a serious criminal enterprise. Ratcliff v McConnell and Harper Adams College [1997] EWCA Civ 2679  Ã‚   Court of Appeal The claimant was a student at Harper Adams College. One night he had been out drinking with friends on campus and they decided they would go for a swim in the college pool which was 100 yards from the student bar. They climbed over a locked gate into the open air swimming pool. The pool had a notice at the entrance which stated the pool would be locked and its use prohibited between the hours of 10pm -6. 30am.There was a notice at the shallow end in red on a White background stating ‘Shallow end’ and a notice at the deep end stating ‘Deep end, shallow dive’. However, the boys did not see the signs because there was no light. The three boys undressed. The claimant put his toe in the water to test the temperature and then the three of them lined up along the side of the pool and dived in. Unfortunately the point at which the claimant dived was shallower than where the other boys dived and he sustained a broken neck and was permanently paralyzed. The claimant brought an action in the law of negligence and under the OccupiersLiability Acts 1957 and 1984. The trial judge held that the claimant was a trespasser since he was not permitted to go into the pool and that the College owed a duty of care under the 1984 Act since the pool had often been used by students in the prohibited hours so the College should have been aware that the claimant was within a class of persons who may come into the danger. The breach was in not taking more preventative action to prevent use of the pool. The claimant’s damages were, however, reduced by 60% under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945.The defendants appealed contending the evidence relied on by the claimant in terms of repeated trespass all took place before 1990 before they started locking the gates. Held: The appeal was allowed. The cla imant was not entitled to compensation. The defendant had taken greater steps to reduce trespass by students since 1990. The only incidence of trespass to the pool in the four years prior to the claimant’s injury, related to students from a visiting college and therefore there was no reason for the college to suspect the students had come into the danger so no duty of care arose under s. (3) (b) Occupiers Liability Act 1984. Also the trial judge had incorrectly identified the danger. The pool itself was not dangerous it was the activity of diving into it which was unsafe. This was an obvious danger to which there was no duty to warn. By surrounding the pool with a 7 foot high fence, a locked gate and a prohibition on use of the pool in the stated hours the College had offered a reasonable level of protection. The duty may be discharged by giving a warning or discouraging others from taking the risk S. (5) Occupiers Liability Act 1984 – note there is no obligation in re lation to the warning to enable the visitor to be reasonably safe – contrast the provision under the 1957 Act. Tomlinson v. Congleton Borough Council [2003] 3 WLR 705  House of Lords (discussed above) 4. 1. 2. 3  Defenses Volenti non fit Injuria – s. 1 (6) OLA 1984 – no duty of care is owed in respect of risks willingly accepted by the visitor. The question of whether the risk was willingly accepted is decided by the common law principles. Contributory negligence – Damages may be reduced under the Law Reform Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 where the visitor fails to take reasonable care for their own safety. Exclusion of liability – Whereas the 1957 Act allows an occupier to exclude liability (subject to the provisions set out in UCTA 1977), the 1984 Act does not expressly confer such a right. This may be an oversight by the legislature and it may be possible to exclude liability since it is not expressly forbidden or it may be that the legis lature  was of the opinion  that it should not be possible to exclude liability for the basic level of protection afforded to trespassers. . 2 Liability for Manufacturers The narrow rule in Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 recognizes that manufacturers owed a duty of care to ultimate consumers of the manufactured products. Over the years this duty was extended and refined and took on in practice some of the characteristics of strict liability. Parliament has now imposed such a strict liability on manufacturers under the Consumer Protection Act 1997.Although this act does not expressly have effect in place of the rules of common law( in the way that the Occupiers’ Liability Act do, in practice it affords more satisfactory remedies , and the narrow rule in Donoghue v Stevenson need no longer be studied in detail. 4. 3 Liability for employers An employee injured at work has three possible actions against the employer. i) An action in negligence for breach of the employerâ €™s duty of care. This is the concern this chapter ii) An action for breach of statutory duties imposed by parliament on the employer. The principles of the tort of breach of statutory duty will be explained later.The content of the various regulations prescribing safety equipments, clothing, procedures and so forth fall outside the syllabus and are part of a specialist course in employment law. iii) The employer may be vicariously liable for the torts committed by another employee. The principle of and the justifications for vicarious liability will be explained in detail later. For the present if is enough to note that an employer (even if not personally at fault) is in law answerable for the torts committed by employees in the course of their employment. The inter- relation between these actions is of some interest.Before 1948 an action based on vicarious liability was not available because of the doctrine of ‘common employment’. If A, an employee of X Ltd, tortu ously injured B, another employee of X ltd, then X Ltd would be liable to C, but not to B, because A and B were in the ‘common employment’ of X ltd. This doctrine provided protection for the employer against possible expensive tort claims. To offset this however the courts (a) modified the common law negligence action in a way that favored the employee and (b) permitted civil action for damages to be brought for breaches of safety regulations.The doctrine of common employment was abolished by statutes in 1948(Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1948. So employees now have a vicarious liability claim and also the benefit of the modified common law action and actions for breach of statutory duty. The Nature of the Common Law Action The employer’s common law duty of care differs from the ordinary duty of care. It is said to be ‘non-delegable’. This is most clearly explained by Lord Hailsham of St Maryleborne in McDermid v Nash Dredging[1987] AC 906 as fo llows this special sense does not involve the proposition that the duty cannot be delegated in the sense that it is incapable of being the subject of delegation, but only that the employer cannot escape liability if the duty has been delegated and then not properly performed’. The facts of the case were that M was employed as a deckhand, by the defendants, but was sent by them to work on a ship operated by a different company (in fact the parent company of the defendants). He was seriously injured when the captain of the ship (not an employee of the defendants) carelessly operated the safety systems.The defendants were liable because their duty had been delegated to the employees of the parent company and not properly performed. Details of this area would be discussed when looking at vicarious liability. But in summary it is worth noting that employers owe a duty of care to their employees, but this duty is different in nature from the normal duty of care, being described as non-delegable. Court are now developing principles under which employees can also recover for the effects of work related stress. ==================================END========================================

STOPS AND FRISKS Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

STOPS AND FRISKS - Term Paper Example The Fourth Amendment permits the law enforcement officers to protect themselves and the public against the suspected criminals in the event that they suspect probable criminal activity. The police officers can carry out the stops even when an apparent cause for arrest does not exist. It is regarded as unreasonable for a legal authority or person to deny a law enforcement officer the power and the right to take necessary actions to ascertain whether or not a suspected individual is armed. These steps taken by the police officers are important because they help the officers to neutralize the harm threat (Ferdico, Fradella, and Totten 295). Stops and frisks infringe on the privacy of individuals. In addition, these practices are administered under the guidance of the Constitution that hinders unreasonable searches and arrests. As a result, the practices of stops and frisks are weighed against a less strict standard than those applicable to arrests and searches. This is because stops have limited scope than arrests. Similarly, frisks are limited in scope compared to full searches (Ferdico, Fradella, and Totten 297). The challenge that the officers encounter during their practice is determining the reasonableness of the circumstance under which an individual should be stopped and frisked in the event that there is a lack of possible cause to arrest. The police officers, therefore, need to balance the competing interests entailed in the stops and frisks circumstances to determine the sensibleness of the situation. The common competing interests involved in such situations include the right of every citizen to privacy and the right to be free from unreasonable searches and arrests. The above-mentioned interests should be weighed against the interest of the government to effectively detect and prevent crimes besides protecting the law enforcers and other individuals from armed and dangerous people (Ferdico,

Supply Chain of Coca Cola Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Supply Chain of Coca Cola - Essay Example Coca Cola has always kept their main emphasis on supply chain and logistics activities. Coca Cola have developed ‘focus factories concept’. According to this concept, they have developed European manufacturing point along with the global manufacturing facilities. They have developed low cost manufacturing locations and strategic â€Å"hubs† across the world. The company has started putting emphasis on long distance modes of transport for developing efficient mode of transport and distributions of products. Coca Cola have also developed specialist nature of logistics and supply chain operations. They have opted for software driven solutions in supply chain management. Coca Cola has its own supply chain management in place for more than 100 years. They have implemented the PowerAde method of supply chain management which has improved their overall supply chain system (Coca Cola, n.d.). Coca cola, in European region have also benefitted from elimination of internal tariffs. They have started growing chain stores in European nations. They have also focused on low cost and rapid delivery as their success factor. Coca Cola in UK has established itself as a leading soft drink producing brand. It had a slow beginning in European region but through the improvement of logistics and supply chain management, the company has established themselves. They are now involved in various sponsorship activities in UK e.g. football.

Higher education in gulf countries Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Higher education in gulf countries - Essay Example Through higher learning schedule, each country manages to meet its wants of eligible and trained labor forces which labor market wants and which its state development requires. Higher education universally experiences many of the adjustments, transformations and problems imposed by technical and information developments of the modern evolution. More so the future development and constancy of any financial system is determined by the capability of its education scheme to position people with the essential knowledge and effectively incorporate them into the labor force and contribute to the state’s economy. To perfect, education has often been viewed as a fundamental component of human well fare and national output. Gulf states is a suitable short name for the Arab states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the united emirates in and Saudi Arabia. Gulf nations are associates of the collaboration council for the Arab countries of the gulf. These states are usually called gulf cooperative countries. The Gulf States are known to have a common regional culture. Although their status quo and rate of development differ, these states share similar features that exemplify their economic and education sectors for instance overreliance on oil, a dominant public sector with an important economic surplus, a young and quickly growing national labor force and overdependence on expatriate labor. These sate also face similar problems to put up with for example they face difficulties in expanding their economies, addressing low production and labor force setbacks, increasing the non-oil private sector, and improving the ability of managerial and public sector organizations. Several years ago, most third world countries especially the Arab Gulf States have come to discover a good education scheme as a basis of the economic progress. The necessity for the education

Petroleum Resources and the Economy of Angola Essay

Petroleum Resources and the Economy of Angola - Essay Example In this literature review this issue is studied taking a look at the conflictive positions regarding the "resource curse" that have been taken by different researchers along the years. We have to keep in mind that any kind of resource can't be a curse in itself as it is logical to assume. Everything depends on the use we give to a specific resource. In this line of thought it is obvious that ultimately the effects of petroleum resources on a nation have to be positive. Indeed they should be a blessing rather than a curse as we will see in this literature review. "Even until the mid-(1950s), coal was still the world's foremost fuel, but oil quickly took over. Following the 1973 energy crisis and the 1979 energy crisis, there was significant media coverage of oil supply levels. This brought to light the concern that oil is a limited resource that will eventually run out, at least as an economically viable energy source." (Wikipedia, 2006i). Petroleum is a finite resource, and besides this fact there are some negative environmental side effects that are valid reasons to discourage its use as the Ecology Center argue among other important facts about petroleum. Let's see: "No corner of the world is left untouched by the effects of petroleum ex... Many negative effects are well documented, such as global warming, habitat destruction, and political conflicts over oil supplies. But the petroleum economy extends its often hidden reach into many other aspects of life on our planet. Petroleum, used for transportation, industry, and mechanized agriculture, is the backbone of globalization. Institutions of global trade, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), work hand in hand with oil companies, while militaries provide the armed backup to protect these interests." (Ecology Center, 2003). The position of Ocean Engineering and Energy Systems (OCEES) favors Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) as an alternative fuel produced by the power of the sea. OCEES points out the negative effects of wars as detrimental environmental consequence of the political conflicts around oil control (OCEES International, n. d.). One relevant aspect to be considered about the finiteness of petroleum resources is the "oil peak" established by the Hubbert Peak Theory regarding the terminal depletion of all petroleum resources. The Wikipedia states the following about the oil peak and its practical consequences. "Given past oil production data and barring extraneous factors such as lack of demand, the model predicts the date of maximum oil production output for an oil field, multiple oil fields, or an entire region. This maximum output point is referred to as the peak. The period after the peak is referred to as depletion. The graph of the rate of oil production for an individual oil field over time follows a bell-shaped curve: first, a slow steady increase of production; then, a sharp increase; then, a plateau (the "peak"); and, finally, a steep decline." (Wikipedia, 2006f). Even though the Hubbert Peak Theory has faced

Performance Management Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Performance Management Paper - Essay Example Coaching can be very effective in eliminating workplace conflicts, cementing relationships and having teams focus on their core work hence achieve the set objectives. To effectively coach my team, I will focus a lot on developing interpersonal skills and improving interactions instead of developing individuals. This is because the way individuals act and communicate with each other are crucial factors that drive effective performance in the team. One guiding principle in my team training therefore has to be team work, learning to work with colleagues and understanding to relate with others. To begin off, I must understand team dynamics; it is obvious that all of us have our own ways of working and communicating hence one can really be frustrated if not understood by colleagues. The objective is to have team members come together, discuss their personal profiles and assist them devise means to work together. Once managers understand this then they definitely do the same even with the junior most employees. Another guiding point in team training is establishing behaviour expectations; understanding the perspectives of others can greatly improve performance and relationships. But there must be some ground rules guiding the team members as they work to accomplish set goals. Having a very clear behaviour code and communication expectation is thus very important. Another key point of training is evaluating rewards and recognitions systems. It is very common for values held by different individuals to compete and hinder effective performance in teams. As the manager, it will be my role to determine any sources of competition in values and devise ways to fix the same. Supporting individual performance is another essential point in team coaching as some members may require to be supported in learning new skills so as to meet team expectations. Readiness for

Technology acceptance model (TAM) Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Technology acceptance model (TAM) - Article Example The paper tells that the idea of the technology acceptance model emerged in mid 70’s, when many researchers started paying attention to factors and issues that give explanation or forecast the acceptance of a variety of technologies. Basically, the TAM is referred as one of the descriptive theories having most influenced the models and ideas of human behavior. In addition, the technology acceptance model was exclusively built with the key objective of recognizing the factors and aspects involved in technology acceptance generally; secondly, to look at a wide variety of technology usage behaviors; and lastly, to offer an economical hypothetical descriptive model. Additionally, its roots reach to social psychology and based on the reasoned action model of Fishbein and Ajzen. According to the reasoned action model (RAM), the intention to generate a behavior depends on two fundamental factors: approach toward behavior and individual characteristics. In this scenario, individual ch aracteristics refer to the causes dues to which certain behaviors are produced or not and establish the connection between the final and a predictable outcome, while the approach toward behavior is referred as the optimistic or pessimistic value on which the behavior of individual associates is produced. The TAM is a modified or updated version of the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) to the area of IS. The technology acceptance model represents that the apparent worth and perceived ease of use determining an individual's aim to make use of a system with a goal to serve as an intermediary of actual system usage. In this scenario, the perceived worth is as well seen as being straight influenced through perceived easiness of usage. On the other hand, researchers have shortened the technology acceptance model by eliminating the attitude constructs originated in TRA from the present arrangements. In this scenario, the efforts to expand the technology acceptance model can normally take 1 o f 3 forms: by initiating issues from connected models, by initiating extra or substitute belief aspects, and by investigating the background and moderators of apparent value and apparent simplicity of practice. In view of the fact that both the TAM and TRA are composed of powerful behavioral

The Legality Of Euthanasia In Today’s Society Essay Example for Free

The Legality Of Euthanasia In Today’s Society Essay Introduction This work focuses on the legality of euthanasia in today’s society. In the sequel various case laws have been discussed. In several countries terminally ill patients are clamouring for euthanasia in order to put a stop to their torment. There is however a great difficulty involved in obtaining death. The doctors and the courts are not taking cognizance of patients’ requests for euthanasia, but are deciding on their own as to which patient should be killed and when such a patient should be killed. This death is generally by means of withdrawing life support systems. There have been several demands for legalizing voluntary euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. Such demands have occurred all over the world. However, the European Court of Justice decided in the year 2002, that no EU Citizen had the right to die. Similarly, the US Supreme Court opined that no US Citizen had the right to die. This has resulted in individual countries having to deal with this problem on their own and a certain measure of acceptance is evident in the Netherlands, Japan, Oregon and Columbia. In general, two arguments are put forward in support of euthanasia and physician assisted suicide, namely, the mitigation of the intolerable pain and discomfort caused by terminal illness; and to enhance individual freedom. These two factors are taken into consideration by the government in order to legalize euthanasia, for example, in the Netherlands, where suffering has to be accompanied by a recurring request for mercy killing. Euthanasia is the process of bringing about an easy death. It refers to acts, which terminate or shorten life painlessly in order to end suffering where there is no prospect of a cure. There are only two choices available to patients with fatal illness, either a slow death involving unrelieved suffering or euthanasia. Terminally ill patients suffer from depression or a false sense of unimportance, which tends to affect their judgment. Their decision-making may also be influenced by confusion or dementia, which could be lessened with suitable treatment. It is very important to remember that, patients who on admission say let me die usually after effective relief from symptoms are most grateful that their request was not acceded to. Terminally ill patients are also adjustable to a high level of disability as they value what little quality of life they have left. The legal position in respect of selective non-treatment was dealt with by the House of Lords in Airedale NHS Trust v Bland[1], in which the applicant, a health authority sought an order to withdraw life-sustaining treatment and provide medical treatment that would enable a peaceful and dignified death with the minimum of pain. The family of the patient supported this application. The respondent, 21-year-old Anthony Bland, had been in a persistently vegetative state for more than three years and though not brain dead, he had no cognitive function. The unanimous judgment of all the doctors who examined him was that there was no hope of a cure. Under these circumstances, it was thought suitable to stop further treatment. The judge granted this order, which was confirmed by both the Court of Appeals and the House of Lords. The latter held that a doctor, who has to care for a patient who is unable to indicate his willingness to be treated, need not extend the patients life regardless of the quality thereof. In F v West Berkshire Health Authority[2] the Court held that medical treatment and artificial feeding, could be discontinued if the patients best interests were served. To determine what course of action would further the best interests of the patient, the court used the test laid down in Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee[3], which required the acquiescence of a large, informed and responsible group of medical practitioners. As the termination of life-supporting treatment in this case was in accordance with the criteria set out in a discussion paper by the British Medical Association[4], these â€Å"criteria [were] a) Rehabilitative efforts for at least 6 months after the injury; b) the diagnosis of irreversible PVS should only be considered confirmed after 12 months; c) the diagnosis should be confirmed by two other independent doctors; d) the wishes of the family should be respected[5].† The court found that there had been compliance with the Bolam requirement. In this case Lord Mustill highlighted the need for legislation relating to euthanasia stating that, â€Å"The whole matter cries out for exploration in depth by Parliament and then for the establishment by legislation not only of a new set of ethically and intellectually consistent rules, distinct from the general criminal law, but also of a sound procedural framework within which the rules can be applied to individual cases[6].† In R (Pretty) v. Director of Public Prosecutions[7], Lord Steyn restated that change of the law on assisted suicide should be carried out by the legislature rather than by judges.  Ã‚   Case law demonstrates the paradox that results from the current law.   As Dame Butler-Sloss P. emphasised in B v An NHS Hospital Trust[8], a competent patient may refuse any form of medical treatment, even life-prolonging medical treatment, for whatever reason.   B was able to insist that the ventilator, which kept her alive, was to be disconnected. Nevertheless, Diane Pretty who was able to make a competent and autonomous choice about the timing and manner of her death, was unable to apply this decision due to a ban on assisted suicide and consequently died in a way that she had tried to avoid. Moreover, Bland, was unable to make any choice, therefore his existence was held to justify the withdrawal of artificial feeding resulting in his death. In Re J (a minor)[9] J, an infant had serious brain damage and large areas of his brain were filled with fluid instead of tissue. This resulted in convulsions and stoppage of breathing. He had been placed on a ventilator twice and it was certain that he would develop spastic quadriplegia. Speech would be denied to him for ever and his life span was considered to be very short. In respect of his being linked to a ventilator in the future, two medical practitioners certified that it would not be in Js interest to be ventilated again. Accordingly, the court issued an order in agreement with these medical experts. An argument was raised against this court order, but the Court of Appeal rejected it and observed that the court could not issue a life-ending order unless it was absolutely certain that the quality of the childs subsequent life would be intolerable to the child and demonstrably so awful that in effect the child must be condemned to die. Both AVE or active voluntary euthanasia and PAS or physician assisted suicide do take place. The Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill[10], which permits doctors to resort to AVE under strictly limited circumstances, was recently introduced in the House of Lords. The extant Case law confirms that the best interest model of decision-making is concerned not only with the physical well-being of the patient, but also the psychological, moral, ethical and social interests. By implication, the non – transparent nature of the best interests test implies that it is vulnerable to exploitation. First, there is a danger that the values of the decision-maker may prevail over those of the patient leading to paternalistic decisions.   Second, references to the wider interests of the patient could bring about a masked development of third party interests. Moreover, this approach opposes the spirit of the Mental Capacity Act 2005[11], which emphasizes the promotion of self-determination for adults who lack capacity. It permits anticipatory treatment decisions to be made before the patient becomes incapacitated and it allows proxy decision-makers to decide on behalf of incapacitated patients. Causing a patients death by means of a lethal injection differs from causing the death of a patient by refusing to provide treatment. The same line of pro-euthanasia argument is also constructed through a confusion of means and ends. This argument states that when death is the inevitable outcome, the means used to achieve such death, whether by withdrawing life support systems or by administering a lethal injection, are morally irrelevant and should therefore be legally irrelevant[12]. This argument is unacceptable and the means that bring abut a person’s death should necessarily matter not only morally but also legally. It is essential to understand that the issue is not one of dying but rather of how a person dies. The moral intuition of any person states that there are essential differences between letting nature take its course, which also includes the withdrawal of life-support systems and treatment, and the outright killing of a dying person. Advocates of euthanasia contend that that the manner in which a person dies should be a private matter, whereas those who are opposed to legalizing euthanasia state that such arguments are fallacious. These opponents of euthanasia strongly subscribe to the view that every persons death necessarily involves others, including healthcare professionals and that it also includes values of society and symbols. Furthermore, wherever euthanasia takes place, the manner in which death occurs will not be restricted to the patient’s self-determination and personal beliefs because of the fact that euthanasia is an act that requires two people to make it possible and a complicit society to make it acceptable[13]. The very concept of legalization of physician assisted death has been subjected to a great deal of debate with regard to its benefits and disadvantages. These debates had been totally based on theory and hypothesis. In this context in the year 1977, the Supreme Court of the USA addressed this subject and stated that â€Å"perhaps we should wait [on the question of legalization] until we know more.† [14] In the written evidence submitted by Professor Margaret, she stated that at present there was five years of empirical knowledge in respect of the effects that the legalization of euthanasia had produced in the state of Oregon. Furthermore, there was available an even more detailed amount of empirical data from the Netherlands covering a sixteen year period in respect of euthanasia. She contended that these data sets clearly support the claim that the legal process can be controlled effectively, with the result that abuse of euthanasia does not occur and if at all it does take place, such instances are very infrequent. In the state of Oregon no incident of substantive abuse of euthanasia had been reported and the incidents reported in the Netherlands are practically none. The Legislation in respect of euthanasia is closely related to essential and crucial enhancements in palliative and hospice care[15]. The act of committing suicide has been considered to be possible only for a person endowed with a considerable amount of courage, but the relevant scientific literature considers such an act to be the act of a mentally imbalanced person. Moreover, it considers suicide to be an act of self destruction by a person who lacks lucid thinking and who is a lunatic. Similarly patients who request physician assisted death are usually those who have been suffering from either severe depression or psychological imbalances[16]. The Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill was introduced in order to legalize, in respect of people who are terminally ill, who are mentally capable and whose suffering is unbearable, medically assisted death or, in instances where the patients are physically incapable of carrying out the concluding deed that would end their life, voluntary euthanasia in order to end their life. A scrutiny was made of the principle on which the Bill was to be based as well as the practical outcome of the bill if it were to become law. Subsequently the experiences of countries that had formulated legislation to permit euthanasia were examined in depth and then an analysis was performed in respect of public opinion in the United Kingdom with regard to euthanasia. The principle of personal autonomy constitutes the basis for this Bill. The supporters of this bill strongly contend that people who are terminally ill should be given the right, conditioned by appropriate safeguards, to obtain medical assistance in order to die in the same manner that patients, whether terminally ill or otherwise, are permitted by right to decline life-prolonging treatment. However, opponents of this bill are of the opinion that these two situations cannot be compared and that ensuring safeguards would not be feasible and that intentional killing, regardless of the reason, should not be permitted. These opponents strongly resist any change to the law in this context[17]. Further, their Lordships held that at the practical level there were opposing views regarding the possible effects of the Bill in providing help to some people or in causing harm to others. In this matter the General Medical Council communicated to their Lordships that â€Å"a change in the law to allow physician-assisted dying would have profound implications for the role and responsibilities of doctors and their relationships with patients†[18]. This bill grants immunity to medical staff members, who comply with its terms, from prosecution for breach of professional oath or affirmation. Moreover this bill makes it possible for the terminally-ill patients to obtain such pain-relief as they require in order to alleviate the symptoms of their illness[19].   Unfortunately, this bill was defeated in the House of Lords[20]. Several examples can be cited of persons who have pleaded for euthanasia to be permitted in respect of their near and dear ones. One such instance is that of Bill Starr, whose wife Maureen – Anne was suffering from Kirkby Alzheimer’s disease.   Bill wanted his wife to be put out of her misery by resorting to euthanasia. This was due to the fact that his wife Maureen-Anne had drastically worsened in her health, which was a cause of anguish for both of them. Bill wanted his wife to die with dignity. He also stated that â€Å"If this was an animal you would be able to put it out of its misery and the same should apply to humans. Her brain is shrinking and it is just downhill all the way from now. There needs to be a change in the law to allow euthanasia to go ahead for all those who need it[21]. Madeleine Zeffa Biver’s son asked the court to prosecute those who had helped her to commit suicide in Spain. Madeleine had written to the El Pais newspaper in which she expressed her desire to die with dignity. She stated that â€Å"Please give me a glass of water, wine or whiskey†¦I want to die with my head held high†¦This is not a crime. It is not a murder.† Despite assisting suicide being a crime in Spain, The Right to a Dignified Death group asked some of its members to be present while she died and contended that â€Å"there was nothing criminal about offering moral support to someone who wished to kill themselves[22].† Eighty percent of the people in the United Kingdom are of the opinion that the law should respect the wishes of terminally ill patients in pain and permit a doctor to end their life. In the UK it has been observed that under certain circumstances, euthanasia is acceptable to the public. This has been the finding of the British Social Attitudes Survey. Research conducted for the survey indicates that backing for voluntary euthanasia depends strongly on whether someone is terminally ill, on levels of suffering and on how death occurs. There is much greater support for a doctor being permitted to end someones life rather than a relative doing so, or for suicide assisted by a doctor. However, public support for euthanasia is lacking or is negligible in cases where an individual does not face death as a result of their condition. This survey was conducted after the previous year’s attempt to change the law failed. The conclusion reached by the Survey was that The disjuncture between the current law on assisted dying and majority public opinion thus seems unlikely to simply disappear. Pressure to mount further attempts to change the law in some ways at least looks set to continue[23]. When a physician induces easy death to terminally ill patients by administering lethal drugs, then such a process is known as Euthanasia. Physician assisted suicide takes place when a doctor intentionally helps a person to commit suicide by providing such a patient with drugs for self-administration, at that person’s voluntary and competent request. This act puts an end to or shortens the life span of patients who suffer from incurable diseases. Patients with terminal illness can either undergo a slow and ghastly death with unbearably sufferings or they can die with dignity and without pain by resorting to euthanasia. It becomes a permissible option when comfort care ceases to be effective for the terminally or incurably ill[24]. The term comfort care refers to palliative and supportive treatment used in hospice programs and elsewhere. This comfort care has to be made the standard medical treatment for patients who have rejected therapeutic or life-sustaining treatment or who are suffering from a terminal illness. Comfort care relieves symptoms, improves the quality and meaning of the patient’s remaining life and eases the process of dying. Physician assisted death becomes a legitimate option only as a treatment of last resort and after customary procedures for comfort care have been found substandard by competent patients in the context of their own situation and values[25]. In the cases of Vacco v Quill and Washington v Glucksberg, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the constitution had not granted any right to physician-assisted suicide; its decision clearly approved the use of intensive palliative care and seemed to permit experimentation at the state level so that this â€Å"earnest and profound debate† could continue[26]. The injury suffered by actor Christopher Reeve[27] and his response to his condition has been the subject of numerous news stories. The public sees a man who previously enjoyed a physically active lifestyle, but who now relies on a respirator to breathe, and on other people to provide for his every physical need. Rick Hansen[28] and Teny Fox[29] are examples of people who have not only contributed to the society in significant ways, but who have also captured the imagination of the public in their courageous journeys to help others suffering from spinal cord injuries and cancer respectively. The actions of Dr. Jack Kevorkian[30], a doctor dedicated to aiding the terminally ill in their chase for death, repeatedly places this issue about the value of life before the public and the courts in the United States. Flach[31] defines mental health in terms of resilience. He proposes that when we experience disturbance in our lives, it is through resilience that we are able to move through our experiences in good mental health. He argues that it is how well we are able to integrate each new experience and circumstance into our lives that leads to successful adaptation throughout our lives. In her book, Resilient Adults: Overcoming a Cruel Past, Gina O’ Connell Higgins[32] examines the lives of forty individuals who have suffered cruelty and abuse in their childhood, but who have led purposeful, successful adult lives. O’ Connell Higgins identifies attachment to a parental surrogate as an important factor in the development of self-esteem in the subjects she studies. Research on resilience had shown that resilience is significant in the lives of many individuals suffering extreme trauma from abuse and other circumstances it will also contribute to the well being of an individual facing physical pain or disability. Certain other behaviors and attitudes also contribute to positive adjustment to chronic pain. Kelly and Clifford[33] studied the impact of narrative group therapy on subjects with the chronic pain of Fibromyalgia. They found that this therapy allowed the subjects â€Å"the opportunity to re-examine and restory [sic] their lives, to not get stuck in repeating the story of helplessness, and to harness their own resources† (p. 276). It is an established fact that people are able to assess the possible threat in the event of any crisis and they can balance their ability to cope with the crisis or event based on their analysis of the amount of threat involved[34]. At this juncture, a relationship between coping up with helplessness and increase in the degree of disability in chronic pain patients was found by Lenhart and Ashby[35]. Byrant[36] has propounded a four-factor model of perceived control that avoids negative events, tackles negative events, strives to achiever positive outcomes and values positive events. His theory is that not only the terrible illness or disability but also the patients’ perception of their ability to cope that has great importance. Other forms of interventions have been found helpful for people coping with diseases including cancer. Researchers reported that Interpersonal Therapy techniques focusing on interpersonal relationships, role transitions, and grief reactions were beneficial for such patients[37]. Julia Faucett[38] studied the effects of chronic pain on social supports, family relationships and incidences of depression. Her study showed that the negative response of family and friends to the patient’s pain significantly contributed to depression. Although euthanasia proponents argue that pain validates the right for Physician-assisted suicide, research suggests that the link between the desire for suicide and pain is much more complicated than a one to one correlation. This link between depression and suicidal ideation is commonly found in cancer patients[39]. It not chronic pain, in isolation, that leads to a desire for Physician Assisted Suicide. This process is determined by social, familial and personal issues and several studies have revealed that â€Å"the measurement tools intended to determine the symptoms for cancer patients, and their entire family, should be so developed as to help caregivers to attend to the needs of cancer patients and their families during the course of the illness[40].† Fife[41] found that the meaning individuals give to having cancer affected how they dealt with the disease in their lives. She found that the more social support patients perceived they have had from family, fiends, and medical professionals the more positive meanings the patients had regarding the impact of the illness on their lives. In Aronsons study of quality of life in persons with multiple sclerosis and their caregivers, she concludes that Determining those elements that have an impact upon an individuals quality of life may help inform decision-making in the planning of interventions, treatments, and services aimed at enhancing quality of life[42]. Conclusion Physician assisted death is a one time process and it should be made available to the patients suffering from terminal illnesses to reduce their suffering and permit them to exercise their rights to self-determination. Chances of indiscriminate usage of this device are high. To encounter this problem a proper and meticulously designed mechanism has to be implemented to avoid abuse of this provision. It is therefore essential to legalize physician-assisted death, but with sufficient protections to shield susceptible patients[43]. Societal opinion regarding the morality of suicide has been ambiguous since historical times. In the early Roman and Greek civilizations, suicide was of frequent occurrence. With the development of Christianity, suicide was deemed to be a sin. However, in other cultures, suicide was accorded the status of honourable death. Hara-kiri was a private ceremonial form of suicide resorted to by the Japanese in order to safeguard their honour. In the Netherlands, physician assisted suicide is permitted by law. In the Netherlands legislation was passed in 1993, which exempted physicians from prosecution if they had assisted in suicide, provided they had adhered to the procedures prescribed by the law[44]. Bibliography    Alter, C.L., Fleishman, S.B., Kornblith, A.B., Holland, J.C., Biano, D., Levenson, R., Vinciguerra, V., Rai, K.R. (1996). Supportive telephone intervention for patients receiving chemotherapy. Psychosomatics, 37, 425-431. Aronson, Kristan J. (1997). Quality of life among persons with multiple sclerosis and their caregivers. Neurology, 48, 74-80.    Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Act 2005. Parliamentary copyright House of Lords 2005. HL Bill 3654/1. Airedale NHS Trust v Bland. (1993) 1 ALL ER 821 (CA). Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee (1957) 2 ALL ER 118; (1957) 1 ELR 582. Burt RA. 1997, The Supreme Court speaks-not assisted suicide but a constitutional right to palliative care. N Engl J Med.; 337: 1234-6. B v An NHS Hospital Trust (2002) 2 All ER 449. Byrant, Fred B. (1989). A four-factor model of perceived control: avoiding, coping, obtaining, and savoring. Journal of Personality, 57, 773-797. Callahan D. When self-determination runs amok. Hastings Center Report 1992; 22(2): 52-55. Davey, G.C.L. (1993). A comparison of three cognitive appraisal strategies: the role of threat devaluation in problem-focused coping. Personality and Individual Differences. 14, 535-546. Faucett, Julia A. (1994). Depression in painful chronic disorders: the role of pain and conflict about pain. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 520-526. Fife, Betsy L. (1995). The measurement of meaning in illness. Social Science Medicine, 40, 1021-1028. Flach, Frederic. (1988) Resilience: Discovering a New Strength at Times of Stress. New York, New York, New York: Fawcett Columbine. F v West Berkshire Health Authority. (1989) 2 ALL ER 545; (1990) 2 AC 1. Hansen, Rick Taylor, Jim. (1987). Rick Hansen: Man in Motion. Vancouver: Douglas McIntyre. House of Lords: Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill [HL] Volume I: Report Ordered to be printed 3 March 2005 and published 4 April 2005 Published by the Authority of the House of Lords Husbands euthanasia plea. January 4, 2007. Ashfield Observer.  © 2007 Johnston Publishing Limited. Document ASHFOB0020070105e31400004. Retrieved from http://global.factiva.com/ha/default.aspx Kelly, Patricia and Clifford, Patrick. (1997). Coping with chronic pain: assessing narrative approaches. Social Work, 42, 266-277. Kiser, Jerry D. January 1996. Counselors and the Legalization of Physician – Assisted Suicide. Counseling and Values. v 40. n2 ISSN: 01607960. p. 127-31. Lenhart, R.S., and Ashby, J.S. (1996). Cognitive coping strategies and coping modes in relation to chronic pain disability. Journal of Applied Rehabilitation counseling. 27, 15-18. Massie, M.J., Gagnon, P., Holland, J. (1994). Depression and suicide in patients with cancer. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 9, 325-340. Mental Capacity Act 2005, ISBN 0  10  540905  7. O’ Connell Higgins, Gina. (1994). Resilient Adults: Overcoming a Cruel Past. San Francisco Ca: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Pfeifer, J.E., Brigham, J.C. Robinson, T. (1996). Euthanasia on trial: examining public attitudes toward nonphysician-assisted death. Journal of Social Issues, 52, 119-129. Quill TE, 1993. Death and dignity. New York: W.W. Norton. R (Pretty) v. Director of Public Prosecutions (2002) UKHRR 97, (2002) 35 EHRR 1, (2002) 2 FLR 45. Re J (a minor) (1990) 3 ALL ER 930. Reeve, Christopher. (1998). Still Me. New York: Random House Publishing. Regulating Physician-Assisted Death, 1994, retrieved 25 January 2007 from https://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/331/2/119. Scrivener, Leslie. (1981). Terry Fox: His Story. Toronto: McClelland Stewart.    The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Bill 2005. The National Council for Palliative Care. Retrieved from http://www.ncpc.org.uk/ethics/assisted_dying.html Tremlett, Giles. Euthanasia row: The colourful life and controversial death of Jacques Brels muse: Judge investigates sons claim Madeleine was helped to kill herself. January 19, 2007. Madrid. The Guardian  © Copyright 2007. Vachon, Mary, Kristjanson, Linda, Higginson, Irene (1995). Psychosocial issues in palliative care: the patient, the family, and the process and outcome of care. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 10, 142-150. Ward, Lucy and Carvel, John. Euthanasia: Four out of five want to give doctors right to end life of terminally ill patients in pain. January 4, 2007. The Guardian  © Copyright 2007. Written Evidence, Memorandum by Professor Margaret Battin of Utah University, USA, House of Lords, Select Committee on the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill, Volume III: Evidence – Individual Submissions. [1] Airedale NHS Trust v Bland. (1993) 1 ALL ER 821 (CA). [2] F v West Berkshire Health Authority. (1989) 2 ALL ER 545; (1990) 2 AC 1. [3]Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee (1957) 2 ALL ER 118; (1957) 1 ELR 582. [4] British Medical Association Treatment of Patients in persistent Vegitative State. [5] Ibid. [6]Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee (1957) 2 ALL ER 118; (1957) 1 ELR 582. [7]R (Pretty) v. Director of Public Prosecutions (2002) UKHRR 97, (2002) 35 EHRR 1, (2002) 2 FLR 45. [8] B v An NHS Hospital Trust (2002) 2 All ER 449. [9] Re J (a minor) (1990) 3 ALL ER 930. [10] Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Act 2005. Parliamentary copyright House of Lords 2005. HL Bill 36   Ã‚   54/1. [11] Mental Capacity Act 2005, ISBN 0  10  540905  7. [12] Callahan D. When self-determination runs amok. Hastings Center Report 1992; 22(2): 52-55. [13] Ibid. [14] Written Evidence, Memorandum by Professor Margaret Battin of Utah University, USA, House of Lords, Select Committee on the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill, Volume III: Evidence – Individual Submissions. [15] Ibid. [16] Written Evidence, Memorandum by Professor Margaret Battin of Utah University, USA, House of Lords, Select Committee on the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill, Volume III: Evidence – Individual Submissions. [17] House of Lords: Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill [HL] Volume I: Report Ordered to be printed 3 March 2005 and published 4 April 2005 Published by the Authority of the House of Lords London [18] House of Lords: Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill [HL] Volume I: Report Ordered to be printed 3 March 2005 and published 4 April 2005 Published by the Authority of the House of Lords London [19] Ibid. [20] The Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Bill 2005. The National Council for Palliative Care. Retrieved from http://www.ncpc.org.uk/ethics/assisted_dying.html [21] Husbands euthanasia plea. January 4, 2007. Ashfield Observer.  © 2007 Johnston Publishing Limited. Document ASHFOB0020070105e31400004. Retrieved from http://global.factiva.com/ha/default.aspx [22] Tremlett, Giles. Euthanasia row: The colourful life and controversial death of Jacques Brels muse: Judge investigates sons claim Madeleine was helped to kill herself. January 19, 2007.   Madrid. The Guardian P. 23.  © Copyright 2007. The Guardian. [23] Ward, Lucy and Carvel, John. Euthanasia: Four out of five want to give doctors right to end life of terminally ill patients in pain. January 4, 2007. The Guardian 9.  © Copyright 2007. [24] Quill TE, 1993. Death and dignity. New York: W.W. Norton. [25] Ibid. [26] Burt RA. 1997, The Supreme Court speaks-not assisted suicide but a constitutional right to palliative care. N Engl J Med.; 337: 1234-6. [27] Reeve, Christopher. (1998). Still Me. New York: Random House Publishing. [28] Hansen, Rick Taylor, Jim. (1987). Rick Hansen: Man in Motion. Vancouver: Douglas McIntyre. [29] Scrivener, Leslie. (1981). Terry Fox: His Story. Toronto: McClelland Stewart. [30] Pfeifer, J.E., Brigham, J.C. Robinson, T. (1996).   Euthanasia on trial: examining public attitudes toward nonphysician-assisted death. Journal of Social Issues, 52, 119-129. [31] Flach, Frederic. (1988) Resilience: Discovering a New Strength at Times of Stress. New York, New York, New York: Fawcett Columbine. [32] O’ Connell Higgins, Gina. (1994). Resilient Adults: Overcoming a Cruel Past. San Francisco Ca: Jossey-Bass Publishers. [33] Kelly, Patricia and Clifford, Patrick. (1997). Coping with chronic pain: assessing narrative approaches. Social Work, 42, 266-277. [34] Davey, G.C.L. (1993). A comparison of three cognitive appraisal strategies: the role of threat devaluation in problem-focused coping. Personality and Individual Differences. 14, 535-546. [35] Lenhart, R.S., and Ashby, J.S. (1996). Cognitive coping strategies and coping modes in relation to chronic pain disability. Journal of Applied Rehabilitation counseling. 27, 15-18. [36] Byrant, Fred B. (1989). A four-factor model of perceived control: avoiding, coping, obtaining, and savoring. Journal of Personality, 57, 773-797. [37] Alter, C.L., Fleishman, S.B., Kornblith, A.B., Holland, J.C., Biano, D., Levenson, R., Vinciguerra, V., Rai, K.R. (1996). Supportive telephone intervention for patients receiving chemotherapy. Psychosomatics, 37, 425-431. [38] Faucett, Julia A. (1994). Depression in painful chronic disorders: the role of pain and conflict about pain. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 520-526. [39] Massie, M.J., Gagnon, P., Holland, J. (1994). Depression and suicide in patients with cancer. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 9, 325-340. [40] Vachon, Mary, Kristjanson, Linda, Higginson, Irene (1995). Psychosocial issues in palliative care: the patient, the family, and the process and outcome of care. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 10, 142-150. [41] Fife, Betsy L. (1995). The measurement of meaning in illness. Social Science Medicine, 40, 1021-1028. [42] Aronson, Kristan J. (1997). Quality of life among persons with multiple sclerosis and their caregivers. Neurology, 48, 74-80. [43] Regulating Physician-Assisted Death, 1994, retrieved 25 January 2007 from https://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/331/2/119. [44] Kiser, Jerry D. January 1996. Counselors and the Legalization of Physician – Assisted Suicide. Counseling and Values. ISSN: 01607960. v 40. n2 p. 127-31.