Principles of Tort Liability

A basic understanding of the legal principles governing tort liability in an organization's jurisdiction is essential when developing plans and programs to mitigate the risk of tort liability, manage claims and lawsuits, and conduct other risk management functions. A fundamental principle of tort law is the duty to act with due care that flows from one party to another. If the legal duty of due care owed to another person or entity is breached, and damages are proximately caused by that breach, the responsible party may be held liable for the consequential harm in a court of law. Torts may be divided into three broad categories: negligence, intentional acts, and strict liability (see Figure. Theories of Tort Liability).

All three classes of torts may occur in the healthcare setting, although by far the most common tort law claims brought against healthcare organizations and healthcare practitioners are causes of action for negligence. As such, this guidance article focuses on this classification. See the discussion Intentional Torts for more information about that classification.

An injured party who seeks compensation for damages by filing a lawsuit is referred to as the plaintiff; the party who is alleged to have breached a legal duty owed to the plaintiff is the defendant. A plaintiff may sue one or more defendants for the same wrongdoing; codefendants held liable are referred to as joint tortfeasors. In a class action, the plaintiffs are similarly situated individuals represented collectively by a plaintiff in a lawsuit against one or more defendants and alleging the same cause of action and damages.

Class action medical negligence cases are relatively unusual but they are more common with products liability actions. A party seeking class certification typically must show that there are common questions of law or fact and that the class action is superior to individual remedies. Even in a case in which the same legal cause of action is asserted by multiple individuals—for instance, a lawsuit filed by a class of similarly situated patients against one surgeon, seeking damages for alleged substandard performance of spinal surgery—the specific facts, circumstances, cause of harm, and damages vary from patient to patient. Courts typically decline to certify such...