The Negligence Liability of Public Authorities

Whether, and in what circumstances, public authorities should be held liable for negligence in the performance of their public functions is a highly complex area of the law. Written by two leading barristers, the first edition of The Negligence Liability of Public Authorities provided a much needed guide to these complexities and offered a detailed account of the law for practitioners and academics.

This second edition builds on the reputation of the first, including full coverage of the many important cases which have been decided since 2006. Divided into two Parts, Part I focuses on the extent to which the public nature of a defendant affects civil liability and the principles that govern and limit that liability. Part II considers the law as it impacts upon specific areas of public authorities' activities. It examines cases in a range of key areas, including the police, social services, highways, education, and the emergency services and aims to set out in a comprehensive way the different legal issues that have arisen in each area. By examining cases in a variety of jurisdictions, including Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and the USA, the authors further broaden the scope of this authoritative text. The book also identifies the underlying principles and policy arguments which have shaped the law more generally, making it an extremely useful resource for a
wide variety of practitioners.