In Various Claimants v Catholic Child Welfare Society [2012] UKSC 56 – aka the Christian Brothers case – Lord Phillips PSC laid down a series of principles governing vicarious liability for tortious conduct in which it is reasonable “to impose vicarious liability on the employer when these criteria are satisfied:

(i)  The employer is more likely to have the means to compensate the victim than the employee and can be expected to have insured against that liability;

(ii)  The tort will have been committed as a result of activity being taken by the employee on behalf of the employer;

(iii)  The employee’s activity is likely to be part of the business activity of the employer;

(iv)  The employer, by employing the employee to carry on the activity will have created the risk of the tort committed by the employee;

(v)  The employee will, to a greater or lesser degree, have been under the control of the employer” [35]. Continue reading →