Private Nuisance: Defences

• What are the five defences for Private Nuisance?

  Ordinary use of land

  Statutory authority

  Act of God

  Prescription

  Moving to the nuisance
• 1 ) Ordinary use of land

  Noises complained = ordinary - no nuisance (Southwark London Borough Council)
• 2 ) Statutory authority

  Public authorities acting under statute - mustn't exceed authorised power (Allen)
• 3 ) Act of God

  Independent of human action (Nicholls) - must remedy it once aware in reasonable time (Goldman)
• 4 ) Prescription

  Rarely succeeds - committed nuisance for 20 years and C. has been aware of it (Coventry) - doesn't run until C. is aware of nuisance (Sturges)
• 5 ) Moving to nuisance

  Doesn't work as defence anymore - C. moved to nuisance