Aggravated, Exemplary and Restitutionary ... - Law Commission

and sued, he will, at worst, be made to give up his net profits. His former
company sues him, the ex-employee, for breach of confidence.
(9) A source of drinking water is contaminated by substantial quantities of a
pollutant which is harmful to humans. Many customers complain to the
water authority which has responsibility for the contaminated source. The
authority knowingly misleads them as to the true state of affairs, informing
them that the water is safe to drink. No tests have in fact been carried out.
Many customers continue to drink the water as a result. Even once the
authority has carried out its own investigation, accurate information is still
withheld by it as to what happened and as to the state of the water. No
proper information is given to the local public health authorities, hospitals,
doctors, pharmacists or customers as to what precautions should be taken
to minimise the ill effects. No steps are taken by the authority to provide
an alternative, safe water source. Many customers suffer ill-effects as a
result of drinking the contaminated water. A group of them claims
damages for negligence and public nuisance.
(10) A solicitor dishonestly assists a company director in laundering company
funds in a way which would make it impossible in practice to establish that
any criminal offence had been committed. The company sues the solicitor
for dishonestly assisting in a breach of fiduciary duty.
5. THE STRUCTURE OF THIS REPORT
1.25 This Report is arranged as follows. Part II deals with aggravated damages. Part
III deals with restitution for wrongs. Part IV looks at the present law relating to
exemplary damages and Part V at reform of exemplary damages.
6. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
1.26 We would like to thank the participants at the Society of Public Teachers of Law
Seminar on ‘Exceptional Measures of Damages’ held at All Souls College, Oxford,
on 1 July 1995, and chaired by the then Chairman of the Law Commission, Mr
Justice (now Lord Justice) Brooke. That seminar was extremely helpful and
informative. We would also like to thank Lord Justice Brooke, the Lord
Chancellor’s Department, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Home
Office, Professor Jack Beatson, and Professor Peter Birks, who each commented on
drafts of this paper; Sir Brian Neill, Desmond Browne QC, Jeremy Gompertz QC,
and Charles Gray QC, whom we consulted on the role of juries in deciding claims
to exemplary damages; Mr Justice Jacob, Mr Justice Laddie, Geoffrey Hobbs QC,
and Aidan Robertson, whom we consulted on intellectual property issues.
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