Clocks, Bells and Cockerels

Extract

In the public mind noise is associated more with the sound of twentieth century inventions than the ages old chime of church clocks and the clang of church bells or indeed the crowing of cockerels. The Law Reports give little guidance as to the principles governing the legal liability in the case of nuisance from clocks, bells and cockerels at common law and the circumstances in which an injunction can be obtained to stop them, in contrast to a steady flow of cases arising out of noise created by today's mechanised and industralised society. However, it would appear from recent experience as reported in national newspapers and from the writer's own experience that these issues are very much alive and of interest to practitioners, particularly those who are advising ecclesiastical authorities.