C v D, Court of Appeal - Queen's Bench Division, February 23, 2006, [2006] EWHC 166 (QB)

Reporting Judge: [2006] EWHC 166 (QB)

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C v D, Court of Appeal - Queen's Bench Division, February 23, 2006, [2006] EWHC 166 (QB)

Case No: HQ 04X03327

Neutral Citation Number: [2006] EWHC 166 (QB)

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE

QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION

Royal Courts of Justice

Strand, London, WC2A 2LL

Date: 23/02/2006

Before :

MR. JUSTICE FIELD

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Between :

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SBA (2) Defendant

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Mr. Justin Levinson (instructed by Clifton Ingram) for the Claimant

Mr. Paul Stagg (instructed by Match Solicitors) for the First Defendant

Mr. Andrew Warnock (instructed by Beachcroft Wansboroughs) for the Second Defendant

Hearing dates: 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th January 2006

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Judgment

Mr. Justice Field :

Introduction

1. The second defendants (``D2'') are the trustees of a trust of an abbey that is responsible for two day schools for boys, a junior school and a senior school, both of which are operated in accordance with the teaching and ethos of the Roman Catholic Church. The Abbot of the abbey is Chairman of the Trustees of both schools.

2. In the period 1989 to 1993 the claimant (``C'') was a pupil at the junior day school. The headmaster of that school throughout this period was the first defendant (``D1''), who is a Catholic priest. The claimant was nine years old when he started at the school.

3. In this action the C claims damages in tort from D1 alleging that he sexually abused him whilst he attended the junior school. He seeks general damages for mental distress and anguish and special damages for being disadvantaged in the labour market and being denied financial support by his parents once he had left school. He contends that the alleged abuse had a devastating effect on him, turning him into a troublesome and aggressive young man with no respect for his parents or anyone else in authority, with the result that he was rejected by his parents and was only able to settle into a degree course at university when he was aged 24, whereas had he not been abused he would have been a graduate entrant into the labour market four years' earlier and would have received the generous support his parents have given his sister but which they have denied him. The claim against D 2 is that as the employer of the first defendant, they are vicariously liable for the tortious abuse he committed on the claimant.

4. In summary, C makes three broad allegations of abuse against D1. First, he says that there were occasions when D1 touched his genitals whilst drying him with a towel after swimming lessons held at the local swimming baths (``the swimming baths incidents''). Second, he states that on one occasion D1 videoed him and other members of his class whilst they were taking a shower after a PE lesson (``the video incident''). Third, C says that on two occasions D1 took advantage of him when he was alone with D1 in the school infirmary having felt faint in assembly. On the first of these occasions (``the first infirmary incident'') D1 unfastened his tie and top shirt button pulled down his trousers and underpants and stared at this genitals. On the second occasion (``the second infirmary incident'') D1 fondled C's penis.

5. D1 adamantly denies both that he touched C's genitals whilst drying him after swimming and that he took C's trousers and underpants down in the infirmary and stared at and fondled C's genitals. D1 admits, however, that he videoed C and his classmates in the shower but says he was acting entirely innocently; the sports block containing the showers had recently been opened and he wanted to include footage of boys using the showers in a video school diary that would be shown to prospective parents and at parents' day.

The witnesses and documents relied on

6. C gave evidence on his own behalf and called a psychiatrist, Dr. Robin Benians, who gave expert evidence as to C's psychiatric history and present condition. C's school reports, h...

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