9.2 Meaning and Kinds of Liability

A. Meaning of Liability Every breach of duty raises the question: who must answer for it, and how? The answer is the law of liability — the branch of jurisprudence that studies the consequences of wrongs. Salmond's definition is the classic starting point: liability is the bond of necessity that exists between the wrongdoer and the remedy of the wrong — the vinculum juris by which a person is bound to bear the legal consequences of an act or omission. Three preliminary clarifications: Liability is anterior to its consequences. A person incurs liability the moment the wrong is done (or the risk-creating condition arises); the fine, damages or injunction are the enforcement of the liability. Liability is the burden; sanction is its execution. Liability is not necessarily fault-based. A large share of modern liability — vicarious, strict, absolute — attaches without personal fault. Law distributes losses by policy, not only by blame. Liability answers "who bears the consequence" — which may be someone other than the actor: the master for the servant, the State for its officer, the owner of a dangerous thing. B. Civil and Penal Liability Point Civil liability Penal (criminal) liability Enforced by The injured party (plaintiff) The State (prosecution) Purpose Compensate the victim; restore the right Punish the offender; deter and denounce Outcome Damages, injunction, specific…