Basic Questions of Tort Law
Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts
Supported by the Austrian Science Fund, this book is the result of a project, which seeks to produce answers to the basic questions of tort law. ‘Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts’ offers a broad introduction to tort law and its basic features and elaborates on its fundamental ideas. For more Information please visit the publishers' website.
Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Germanic Perspective
Published in 2012, this book is the first part of a project supported by the Austrian Science Fund, which seeks to produce answers to the basic questions of tort law in Europe from a comparative perspective. ‘Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Germanic Perspective’ is intended to provide a basis for comprehensive responses by representatives of other European legal families and jurisdictions outside Europe on the fundamental ideas elaborated in this book. In line with the FWF’s open access policy, a free electronic copy of the study is archived on the publisher’s website.
The book in hand tries to give a more extensive introduction to the delictual and contractual law of liability and damages. It addresses basic problems and questions and where appropriate elaborates upon them; it queries the usual arguments, prompts the reconsideration of apparently established ideas and enhances awareness of interrelationships. Above all the position of the law of tort within the overall system for the protection of legal goods is examined. The resulting conclusions serve to facilitate the subsequent elaboration of the tasks of the law of tort, in which context the increasingly emphasised economic function is discussed as well as the compensatory, deterrent and penal functions.
However, the book is not limited to these very general considerations but also seeks to apply the insights gained in order to examine both general and more specific questions. These in turn aim to provide the reader with information which will enable him or her to understand better the ideas in foreign legal systems. Nonetheless, no attempt is made to provide a complete overview; instead the focus is on particularly controversial issues and new approaches. Not only is the relationship between breaches of obligations and torts examined, the basic requirements for a claim under tort law – damage and causation – are discussed. An extensive section is devoted to the elements of establishing liability; besides wrongfulness and fault, other defects within the sphere of the party liable for damages are looked at: for example, the capacity to bear the economic burden, insurability, the notion of a risk community and the interplay of the various elements. The question of liability on the side of the victim, ie contributory responsibility, is looked at anew – starting from basic principles. After the limitation of liability, the compensation of damage and the reduction of the duty to compensate, a final section is devoted to the prescription of compensation claims.
Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts aus rechtsvergleichender Sicht
Veröffentlicht im Jahr 2014 enthält dieser zweite Teil des Projekts Basic Questions of Tort Law die Stellungnahmen der Vertreter von sieben Rechtsordnungen zu den im ersten Teil Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts erörterten Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts in den deutschsprachigen Ländern.
Damit liegen zugleich auch sieben Einführungen in das jeweils nationale Schadenersatzrecht in deutscher Sprache vor.
Bei der Auswahl der Rechtsordnungen wurde darauf geachtet, dass die europäischen Rechtskreise in ihrer Vielfalt vertreten sind. Das Schadenersatzrecht der USA wurde als einflussreicher Ideenspender ebenso aufgenommen wie jenes Japans, das für Europa besonders deshalb interessant ist, weil europäisches Gedankengut mit eigenständigen Entwicklungen eng verwoben ist.
Ein rechtsvergleichendes Kapitel mit Schlussfolgerungen sowie ein umfangreiches Sachverzeichnis beschließen den Band. Der Band ist [hier] als open-access erhältlich.
Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Comparative Perspective
Published in 2015, the book is a translation of the Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts aus rechtsvergleichender Sicht (2014) that followed the Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Germanic Perspective (2012), a translation and expansion of the original Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts (2010).
It is a collaborative work with contributors from seven countries (O Moréteau, France; B Askeland, Norway; K Ludwichowska-Redo, Poland; A Menyhárd, Hungary; K Oliphant, England and the Commonwealth; MD Green/W J Cardi, USA; K Yamamoto, Japan) who were invited to give critical responses to the ideas presented in the Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Germanic Perspective. The comparative law conclusions (by H Koziol) then attempt to pick up on the ideas expressed in the legal systems examined and to make them amenable for debate on the further development of the legal systems and their harmonisation. Obviously, it was not possible to respond to all of the valuable thoughts contained in the country reports. Above all, the focus was on ideas that have seldom been discussed and also on providing impulses in relation to legal policies. It was fascinating that often the national responses to law of damages issues at first gave the impression of being less than appropriate but then in relation to basic ideas within the respective legal systems and in interplay with other legal institutions, for example social security law, they turned out to have good arguments in their favour. Moreover, there were sometimes additional features in yet other legal systems that supplied ideas for how to further develop a not-yet persuasive solution and which ultimately led to surprising, new basic concepts, which could deliver valuable ideas for the development and harmonisation of the European law of damages. Thus, it was possible, for example, to develop in the area of personal injuries a proposal for a new kind of interplay between the law of damages, liability insurance and social security, which could offer many benefits.
ECTIL would like to draw the public's attention to the availability of Helmut Koziol's, Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Comparative Perspective for free download. For further details, [click here].
Comparative Stimulations for Developing Tort Law
Published in 2015, this book concludes the Basic Questions of Tort Law project. It joins forces with the earlier Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Germanic Perspective, the Grundfragen des Schadenersatzrechts and the Basic Questions of Tort Law from a Comparative Perspective to open up toreaders not only the diversity of the legal systems in the European Union and beyond but also what they have in common.
In this volume the editor presents ideas, won from the comparative law analysis, for the further development of tort law with reference to the six topics named in the subtitles. The writers representing the seven legal systems in the study give a response to each of these six topics.
Moreover, the volume contains not only Comparative Stimulations and the Statements by Country Reporters, but also Concluding Remarks on each problem area, written by Helmut Koziol on the basis of the opinions and arguments given.
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