Chris Barnes KC and Stuart McCracken successful in the Court of Appeal
July 8, 2026
The Court of Appeal has handed down judgment in the appeal of ZZZ v Ministry of Defence. The appeal has been dismissed on all 6 grounds. The claim related to a tragic accident in which a young serviceman fell head-first over a banister in his barracks, landing 22 feet below on concrete. At first instance, the trial judge found for the claimant and dismissed the Defendant’s allegations of contributory negligence. That decision has now been upheld. Chris and Stuart were instructed by Ian Austen-Jones of Austen Jones Solicitors.
Although a decision largely on its facts, the judgment is of interest in:
- Its summary of the principles applying to an appeal against an evaluative decision of fact;
- Confirming that the defence of ex turpi causa cannot apply where the claimant’s conduct is just one of several operative causes of an accident;
- The [obiter] discussion of the duty owed under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 and the conduct required of a claimant to change his status to that of a trespasser.
