Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

County Welfare Department Liability For Handling Reports Of Child Abuse, Kim Boyer

San Diego Law Review

When a social worker receives a complaint of child abuse and determines that the situation is non-urgent, should the county welfare department be held liable for subsequent injury to the child? This Comment analyzes the four contexts in which a special relationship with a county welfare department may arise and concludes that a duty of care should not be imposed upon county welfare departments in these situations. The author concludes that if the social worker reasonably determines that the situation was non-urgent, the county welfare department should not be held liable. Alternatively, even if a duty of care is imposed, …