Tort liability in a pandemic environment: Exploratory thoughts

• Main Author: LOW, Kee Yang
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2020
• Subjects: Covid-19; pandemics; tort liability; Medical Jurisprudence; Public Health; Torts
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sol_research/4035; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/sol_research/article/5993/viewcontent/Tort_Liability_Law_Covid_19.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

In a matter of months, the emergence and spread of the coronavirus has massively disrupted and radically changed life, causing untold suffering and staggering losses. It will be some time before the pandemic ends and the world returns to normal or, more likely, move to a new normal. Since the beginning of 2020, health authorities and governments worldwide have devoted huge amounts of resources studying the science surrounding the coronavirus – its origin, spread, mutation, symptoms, treatment, containment and the like – and taking regulatory action to manage the crisis. The outbreak of the virus and the attendant governmental measures have resulted in severe disruptions within and across borders. Individuals in society, concerned for personal safety and disincentivized by the prospect of legal sanction, have complied with restrictions and measures such as masking, social distancing and restrictions on movement and on travel. Myriad contractual dealings have been severely affected and lawsuits for breach of contract are mounting. Financial default and insolvency have risen sharply as businesses and entities continue to struggle as they adopt measures and strategies to avoid or reduce liability. There are implications in many realms of the law. This paper focuses on the tort implications. It explores the overarching objectives, obstacles and tensions as tort principles are applied to the chaotic and changing circumstances to scrutinize the conduct of individuals, businesses and public bodies and to ascertain the appropriate balance of liabilities and rights in a time of unprecedented upheaval.