Legal Liability, Duty of Care

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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Types of Legal Liability Health and
Safety Laws administered through Civil Courts -
Common Law eg damages Criminal Courts -
Criminal Law eg manslaughter Industrial Courts -
Statute Law, OHS Act
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Duty of Care Common Law - to take
reasonable care of the health and
safety Statute Law - to ensure the health,
safety and welfare
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Tests Test for whether reasonable
care has been taken is a measure of Causation
- establish with requisite degree of
certainty Foreseeability - determine risk was
foreseeable Preventability - preventable by
practicable precautions Finally a decision based
on the likelihood and seriousness of the risk,
whether a reasonable and prudent person would
have taken those precautions.
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Application Civil -
probable Criminal - beyond reasonable
doubt Statute - absolute duty moderated
by practicability
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Penalties Civil - damages plus
punitive costs Criminal - term of
imprisonment OHS Act - 1st Max 550,000
corporation max 55,000 individual and/or two
years imprisonment - 2nd Max fine plus 50
and/or two years imprisonment
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence Negligence Negligence is the failure
to exercise your duty of care.
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Legal Liability, Duty of Care and Due
Diligence The Exercise of Due Diligence Due
diligence means taking care. In the workplace,
it means taking every precaution reasonable in
the circumstances to protect the health, safety
and welfare of all persons that you are
responsible for at your worksite. The careful and
systematic management of risk are good indicators
of taking all due diligence.