You have recently been employed as an officer within the Legal Department of a medium-sized
construction company, East India Construction Ltd (EIC Ltd). The company undertakes a large
number of building projects in England and Wales. It recruits site personnel in a variety of ways.
Some are employed directly by EIC Ltd. Others are recruited on ‘zero-hours’ contracts (this means
that there is no guarantee of work, and staff are only paid for work they actually do).
Two incidents have occurred within the organisation during the past week. In the first a driver,
retained under a ‘zero-hours’ contract by EIC Ltd, was delivering building materials to a construction
site using a truck-mounted crane. The driver parked the truck on the pavement at the side of the
road but he failed to prevent pedestrians from temporarily using the pavement and did not check for
their presence whilst operating the crane. As a result, a palette of building materials swung into a
pedestrian’s path causing her to suffer severe head injuries.
The second incident involved a Site Manager, an employee of EIC Ltd, who punched a local resident
in the face breaking his nose during a heated argument. The local resident had come to complain
about the noise and bad language being used by some of the construction workers on-site.
The Board of Directors have called you to a board meeting. You are expected to give a 5-minute
presentation covering the following matters:
1. Whether EIC Ltd will be vicariously liable (a) to the pedestrian for her injuries resulting from
the negligence of the truck-mounted crane driver/operator (b) to the local resident for his
injuries following the battery inflicted by the Site Manager.
2. What steps EIC Ltd might take to reduce its exposure in relation to vicarious liability claims in
the future.
Guidance: you are entitled to assume that the Site Manager in 1(b) is an employee without
explaining the meaning of an employment relationship. However, some explanation as to what is
meant by a ‘relationship akin to employment’ will be required in relation to your discussions
concerning the truck-mounted crane driver/operator in 1(a). Whilst candidates are expected to
explain the law for the benefit of the Board, it is not necessary to identify specific case names.
Instead, a general indication of the legal source will be appropriate e.g. ‘case law of the Supreme
Court establishes that…’ etc
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
You will be marked out of 100, broken down as follows:
1. Professional behaviour and appearance 10 marks
2. Knowledge and understanding 60 marks
3. Ability to present clearly and precisely 30 marks
You may bring a small note card to the meeting (no bigger than A5) containing key bullet points.
However you MUST NOT read from a script. Reading will incur a penalty to your overall mark.
As a Compliance Officer, you should be appropriately dressed for the meeting, and act with
confidence and credibility, ensuring you maintain frequent eye contact with the Chairperson. You
should present the information requested at an appropriate volume and with clarity.
This is a professional meeting. Students are expected to arrive at least 10 minutes early prior to the
scheduled start time. Students who are late will lose marks for professionalism. Students who fail to
attend the meeting will fail the assessment.
All meetings will take place within scheduled teaching hours for the module or during scheduled
assessment periods as dictated by the Faculty Office
