VocabuLaw

Negligence Per Se

What is it and what does it mean?

Description of the legal term Negligence Per Se:

Negligence per se is a legal doctrine that applies when an individual’s conduct is considered negligent because it violates a statute or regulation. In the context of British law, this doctrine is less formally recognized than in some other jurisdictions, such as the United States. However, the concept still exists implicitly within certain areas of UK negligence law, particularly where statutory breaches may lead to civil liability.

The principle behind negligence per se is that, once a legislative body has determined, through statute, what the standard of conduct should be, any deviation from that statutory standard is presumed to be negligent without the need for further argument about the appropriateness of the conduct. Rather than proving that a defendant‘s behavior was unreasonable under the common law standard of care, a claimant can show that the defendant violated a specific statutory requirement, which was designed to protect against the type of harm the claimant suffered.

In the UK legal system which follows the common law tradition, negligence is typically established by a claimant proving that the defendant owed them a duty of care, breached that duty, and caused them harm as a result. Negligence per se differs by linking the breach directly to the statutory violation. If the statute in question does not explicitly provide for civil penalties, UK courts may still use the breach to help establish civil liability, but unlike in some jurisdictions, such a breach is not automatically equated with civil negligence.

For the doctrine to apply under British law, the claimant must generally demonstrate that:

  1. The statute or regulation violated was intended to prevent the type of harm the claimant experienced.
  2. The claimant was a member of the class of persons the statute intended to protect.
  3. The defendant’s breach of the statute caused the claimant’s damages.

Since the UK does not have a codified legal system, the role of statutes in tort claims is nuanced. While not recognized as ‘negligence per se’, statutory breaches can lead to a presumption of negligence, shifting the burden of proof to the defendant to show they were not negligent, rather than the claimant proving they were.

Legal context in which the term Negligence Per Se may be used:

For example, consider a British building contractor who disregards safety regulations aimed at protecting workers from high-altitude falls by failing to provide safety harnesses. If a worker falls and is injured as a result, the worker could claim that the contractor was negligent. The injured party would argue that they were harmed due to the contractor’s breach of the specific health and safety regulation designed to prevent such accidents, implying a form of negligence per se. The court would then consider whether the statute was indeed aimed at preventing this type of injury and whether the injured worker belonged to the class of individuals the statute was intended to protect.

Another example might involve a driver who speeds through a residential area where the maximum speed is restricted by law due to the presence of a school. Should the speeding result in an accident that injures a child, the driver’s breach of the road traffic act — a statute that exists to protect pedestrians in residential areas — could be used to establish negligence. The court would evaluate if the statute aimed to prevent injuries to pedestrians and, in particular, children in school zones. If so, the driver’s conduct could be deemed negligent due to the violation of the road traffic act.

The relevance of the concept within the British legal system is to streamline the process of establishing negligence in certain cases. However, it remains a complex intersection of statutory interpretation and tort law, reflecting the continual tension between parliamentary sovereignty and judicial discretion. It underscores the statutory underpinning of certain aspects of the duty of care within the broader negligence framework and emphasizes the importance of adhering to legislative standards to avoid presumed civil liability.

This website is for informational purposes only and may contain inaccuracies. It should not be used as a substitute for professional legal advice.