Law 3 Pro

Download as pdf or txt
Download as pdf or txt
You are on page 1of 1

Chapter Three: International Considerations

Chapter Four: Tort Liability


Tort liability refers to a private or civil wrong or injury, one that involves negligence and that may arise
independently of contract. No privity of contract is required for tort liability to exist.

Concurrent liability in tort and contract – it is possible that tort liability and liability for breach of contract
can both occur.

Fundamental Purpose
The fundamental purpose of tort law is to compensate victims of torts, not the punishment of negligent
wrongdoers. To compensate a party that has suffered damages as a result of a neglectful act or omission.

Professional liability insurance should provide protection if an engineer’s negligence results in damages
arising in tort.

Principles of Tort Law


The plaintiff in a tort action must substantiate that:
a. the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care,
b. the defendant breached that duty by his conduct; and
c. the defendant’s conduct caused the injury to the plaintiff.

The Engineer’s Standard of Care


Engineers have a duty to use the reasonable care and skill of engineers of ordinary competence.

Development of Tort Law


Hedley Byrne case extended the scope of damages to include financial loss that resulted from bad advice
negligently given.

Tort law says that if one party relies on the special skill and judgment of the other party, and both parties
are aware of the reliance, then the party giving advice is liable to the party receiving the advice. This has
implications for engineers.

Strict Liability
Worker’s compensation recognizes that fault is not necessary if compensation is to be provided.

In products liability cases in the US, a manufacturer may be strictly liable for any damage that results from
the use of the product even though the manufacturer was not negligent in producing it. Canadian products-
liability law has not yet adopted this “strict liability” concept, but the law appears to be developing in that
direction.

Vicarious Liability
Employer is liable for the negligent performance (errors) of an employee (although this doesn’t absolve the
employee of blame in the courts). A company can be sued for faulty engineering done by their engineers.

Employees are also potentially liable in tort (at the same time).

A corporation should ensure that its professional liability insurance covers both the corporation and the
engineers.

Concurrent Tortfeasors
At times, torts concur to produce the same damage. It is possible for more than one party to be liable in
such a tort action.

You might also like