Workshop activities: Week 2 Each week the problem question for written answer submission is highlighted 1. This question is to start you thinking about solutions to disputes. Carlos and the broken laptop: Carlos purchased a laptop from a computer store and it keeps crashing so he loses his work. He's very unhappy. 2. Do you think Carlos has any rights under Australian law? Can you articulate those rights? That is describe them? Can you think where these rights come from in Australia (are they from a case or perhaps legislation?) Can you do some research to find the law and help Carlos understand his rights? Revise what you learnt about the doctrine of precedent (sees slides on common law). In the famous House of Lords case of Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562, the Court determined that the duty of care can exist outside of a contract. In that case a friend had purchased a bottle of ginger beer for Mrs Donaghue and she found parts of a decomposed snail at the bottom of her bottle and became ill. She sued for damages for negligence. A major issue for Mrs Donoghue (the plaintiff) is that she had no contract with the company or with anyone for that matter. Her friend had purchased the ginger beer. The court still found in her favour and held that there was a principle of law that each person has a duty of care to all others whom they could reasonably foresee as being affected by their actions. Let's look at a scenario: Andre purchases an unsliced sourdough loaf to make sandwiches for a picnic. He returns home to make sandwiches. His son comes out and slices the loaf for breakfast and discovers a spider within the loaf. On inspection they determine one of its eight legs is missing and Andre thinks his son ate it. He wants to know his rights against the bakery. Does Donoghue v Stevenson apply in Tasmania? What is the reason it would? Does the bakery have a duty of care to Andre and/or his son?