INTRODUCTION
There are many cases in which a person did the ‘wrong’ thing, but the court describes this as a mere ‘error of judgment’ falling short of negligence. These cases are numerous but controversial. The House of Lords said that an error may or may not be negligent and so describing conduct as an error of judgment ‘tells us nothing’ and is ‘unacceptab[le]’ as a response to a negligence claim. For the same reason, the Court of Appeal said that the phrase is ‘capable of giving rise to confusion’ and so it ‘may be wise to avoid’ using it. Nevertheless, judges at the highest level continue to use the phrase, including one of the judges who criticised its use. Simultaneously, sweeping claims are sometimes made about errors and negligence …
€ (Westlaw)
Rory Gregson, ‘Errors of judgment and the reasonable person’ (2025) 41(3) Professional Negligence 79-93.
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