Donoghue v. Stevenson
- Case
- Donoghue v. Stevenson
- Court
- House of Lords (United Kingdom)
- Year
- 1932
- Area
- Law of torts / Negligence
- Summary
A decomposed snail in a ginger-beer bottle led the House of Lords to hold that a manufacturer owes a duty of care to the ultimate consumer — the cornerstone of the law of negligence.
- Holding
Established the modern tort of negligence and the "neighbour principle": one owes a duty of care to persons so closely and directly affected by one's act that they ought reasonably to be in contemplation.
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