The Law of Nuisance and the Human Rights Act

Extract

In Dennis v. Ministry of Defence [2003] EWHC 793, Buckley J. dealt with three points of principle relating to the law of nuisance. First, are some activities so vital to the interests of the State that their public benefit can act as a defence to a claim in nuisance no matter how intolerable they might be to neighbours, providing reasonable efforts are made to keep local annoyance to a minimum? Second, if a nuisance is established, can the public interest outweigh individual rights to the extent that a court can decline to make a declaration under section 21 of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947 even if the nuisance is something that no one should be called upon to endure in any location? Third, what is the significance, if any, of the Human Rights Act 1998 in relation to nuisance?