The Fear of Future Illness: An Analytical Comparison of English and French Law
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Emmanuelle Lemaire
Abstract
The occurrence of multiple health-related catastrophes in the last 30 years has left a long-lasting imprint in people’s minds, resulting in the public becoming more aware of the risks surrounding them. As a consequence, a rise in claims relating to the fear of contracting a future disease has mirrored the public’s concern for their health in different EU Member States. In this paper, the author compares the judicial treatment of claims for fear of future illness in English and French Law and concludes that neither of the approaches is satisfactory to protect the interests of the parties involved. French courts have shown a flexible approach, stretching the functions of tort law to its limits, while English courts have taken an extremely rigid position on these claims, reducing the ambit of tort law to almost nothing. To reach this conclusion, the author analyses the key cases in both legal systems. Based on this analysis, the author then tries to find a compromise approach, setting out a basic framework which could limit legal uncertainty while protecting the interests of both claimants and defendants.
© 2016 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Frontmatter
- Articles
- The Distribution of Social Costs of Ski Accidents through Tort Law: Limits of Fault-Based Liability in Practice – and Alternative Regimes
- The Fear of Future Illness: An Analytical Comparison of English and French Law
- The Operational Obligation under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Challenges for Coherence – Views from the English Supreme Court and Strasbourg
- ‘Opt-In’ Class Actions in Italy: Why are they Failing?
- Book Reviews
- Ken Oliphant and Richard W Wright (eds), Medical Malpractice and Compensation in Global Perspective (De Gruyter, Berlin 2013, Tort and Insurance Law, vol 32). 562 pp. ISBN 978-3-11-027023-5. € 169.95 (hardback).
- Martin Weitenberg, Der Begriff der Kausalität in der haftungsrechtlichen Rechtsprechung der Unionsgerichte. Zugleich ein Beitrag zur Kohärenz der EU-Haftungssysteme (Nomos, Baden-Baden 2014, Europäisches Privatrecht: Gemeinsame Prinzipien, vol 42). 859 pp. ISBN 978-3-84871-393-6. € 148 (paperback).
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Frontmatter
- Articles
- The Distribution of Social Costs of Ski Accidents through Tort Law: Limits of Fault-Based Liability in Practice – and Alternative Regimes
- The Fear of Future Illness: An Analytical Comparison of English and French Law
- The Operational Obligation under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Challenges for Coherence – Views from the English Supreme Court and Strasbourg
- ‘Opt-In’ Class Actions in Italy: Why are they Failing?
- Book Reviews
- Ken Oliphant and Richard W Wright (eds), Medical Malpractice and Compensation in Global Perspective (De Gruyter, Berlin 2013, Tort and Insurance Law, vol 32). 562 pp. ISBN 978-3-11-027023-5. € 169.95 (hardback).
- Martin Weitenberg, Der Begriff der Kausalität in der haftungsrechtlichen Rechtsprechung der Unionsgerichte. Zugleich ein Beitrag zur Kohärenz der EU-Haftungssysteme (Nomos, Baden-Baden 2014, Europäisches Privatrecht: Gemeinsame Prinzipien, vol 42). 859 pp. ISBN 978-3-84871-393-6. € 148 (paperback).
