Tort Law Defences

by James Goudkamp

Overview

The law of torts recognises many defences to liability. While some of these defences have been explored in detail, scant attention has been given to the theoretical foundations of defences generally. In particular, no serious attempt has been made to explain how defences relate to each other or to the torts to which they pertain. The goal of this book is to reduce the size of this substantial gap in our understanding of tort law. The principal way in which it attempts to do so is by developing a taxonomy of defences. The book shows that much can be learned about a given defence from the way in which it is classified.

This book has been awarded Joint Second Prize for the 2014 Society of Legal Scholars Peter Birks Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781782251897
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	07/18/2014
Series:	Hart Studies in Private Law
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	270
File size:	618 KB

About the Author

James Goudkamp is a Fellow of Keble College, Oxford, and an Associate Professor in the Oxford Law Faculty. He holds or has held visiting positions at Harvard Law School, the National University of Singapore, the University of Western Australia and the University of Wollongong.
James Goudkamp is Professor of the Law of Obligations at the University of Oxford, and a Fellow of Keble College, Oxford. He is also a practising barrister at 7 King's Bench Walk Chambers, London, UK.

Table of Contents

1 Introduction
2 Torts and Defences
3 Denials
4 A Taxonomy of Tort Law Defences
5 Applying the Taxonomy
6 Implications
7 Rival Taxonomies
8 Denials of Responsibility
9 Future Directions

Editorial Reviews

... a highly original and insightful analysis into the law of defences to torts as a whole [that] is certainly worthwhile reading.
Australian Law Journal

...a welcome contribution. With its careful analysis and clear prose, the book warrants our serious attention.
New Zealand Law Journal

...this book is a gem. It is beautifully clear in its exposition, and thorough in its examination of the area which has long needed such a look. Academic tort lawyers will love it and practitioners will find it extremely useful in clarifying their approach to arguing defences. It is worth having in your library.
Australian Civil Liability

From the Publisher