Negligence

Negligence

Many people have heard of the term Negligence but not many people understand what it actually means. The legal definition of Negligence is a breach of a legal obligation to take care in a situation which results in damage to the claimant.

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The main element of Negligence is a duty of care and it was this element which originally founded the modern tort of Negligence as we know it today. It was the case of Donoghue vs Stevenson [1932] AC 562 which involved the lady finding a snail in her Ginger beer after ordering it from a cafe in Scotland. The claimant, Donoghue, complained of stomach pains and was diagnosed with gastroenteritis apparently as a result of drinking the drink containing the snail. The grounds in which Mrs Donoghue could have tried to establish Negligence were if the product was dangerous or if it was fraudulently misrepresented, both of which obviously failed in this case.

This case is arguably the most important case in English legal history and is the foundations of the tort of Negligence. Another extremely important principle which was established as a result of this case was Lord Atkin’s ‘Neighbourhood principle’. He said that “You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour”. The answer to the question of who is my neighbour is a person who is “so closely and directly affected by my act that I ought reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when I am directing my mind to the acts or omissions that are called in question.”

Medical Negligence

Another form of Negligence is Medical Negligence. This is basically Negligence from an act or an omission of a health care provider in which the care provided deviates from the accepted standards of practice in the medical community. The result of this Negligence can range from injury to the patient or even death. In order to protect themselves against Medical Negligence liability medical practitioners are required to hold Medical Negligence Insurance to offset the costs and risks which may arise from lawsuits.

A few facts which relate to Medical Negligence claims include the fact that the Institute of Medicine found that between 44,000 and 98,000 people die in America every year due to errors which could be prevented. Also, the average cost to the public in America as a result of Medical Negligence claims ranges from $17 billion to $29 billion. Medical Negligence payouts by doctors and their insurers were a mere $4.5 billion in 2001 which is a mere 1% of the country’s overall healthcare costs which amounted $1.4 trillion.

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