Law Commons^™

Statutes And Civil Liability In The Commonwealth And The United States: A Comparative Critique, Neil J. Foster

Neil J Foster

Both the major “common law” systems of private law allow breach of a criminal statute to inform or create civil liability. This paper discusses the differences and similarities between the Commonwealth jurisdictions and the United States of America in this somewhat under-theorised area. The aim is not to resolve all the problems presented by the jurisprudence and commentary on these various forms of action, but to provide a starting point for comparison between the approaches that the two systems have adopted on this issue of implied statutory civil liability. It is hoped that a proper understanding of the development of …