Australasian Steam Navigation Co v Morse: PC 1872

Sir Montague Smith: ‘when by the force of circumstances a man has the duty cast upon him of taking some action for another, and under that obligation, adopts the course which, to the judgment of a wise and prudent man, is apparently the best for the interest of the persons for whom he acts in a given emergency, it may properly be said of the course so taken, that it was, in a mercantile sense, necessary to take it.’

Judges:

Sir Montague Smith

Citations:

(1872) LR 4 PC 222

Cited by:

CitedF v West Berkshire Health Authority HL 17-Jul-1990
The parties considered the propriety of a sterilisation of a woman who was, through mental incapacity, unable to give her consent.
Held: The appeal succeeded, and the operation would be lawful if the doctor considered it to be in the best . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Agency

Updated: 14 May 2022; Ref: scu.250062