Legal Aspects of the Business
The law of England does not impose any general duty of care to avoid negligent misstatements or to avoid causing pure economic loss even if economic damage to the plaintiff was foreseeable. However, such a duty of care will arise if there is a special relationship between the parties.’ (White v Jones [1995] 2 AC 207, 274 (Lord Browne-Wilkinson).

Analyse this statement with reference to the modern law on negligent misstatement and illustrate your answer by reference to decided cases.

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B) Emma and Fern have just started Salsa dance classes at their local village hall. Emma has insisted on wearing a brand new pair of very high heeled shoes with slippery soles, despite having been advised, that as a novice, she would be better in flat jazz shoes. During her first lesson Emma dances with the teacher, Antonio, a professional salsa instructor, who loses himself in the rhythm of the music and twirls Emma around so fast that she loses her balance. Antonio fails to catch her and Emma falls on her arm. Although the fall is not serious Emma suffers from osteoporosis (brittle bones) and she will now need several operations on her arm before she will be able to use it properly.

Fern, who has only just passed her driving test, agrees to take Emma to the hospital for treatment. The route involves a short stretch of motorway which Fern has never driven on before. Due to her inexperience, Fern misjudges her entry onto the motorway and causes a collision with another vehicle. The car is being driven by Hermione who is thrown against the windscreen as she is not wearing a seat belt. Hermione was on her way home from an auction and the ?500,000 painting she had just bought, was stolen from the car when it was left unattended after the accident.

Advise Emma, Fern, Antonio, and Hermione as to their rights and liabilities in tort arising from the above facts