This thesis is an analysis of the law of vicarious liability and its application within the legal framework of delict in South Africa. A brief overview of the historical development of this branch of law is given, with reference to the influences of Roman, Roman-Dutch and English law. That is followed by an exposition of the 'modem' interpretation of vicarious liability as applied in South African courts, highlighting apparent inconsistencies and the need for reform in what has become a persistently controversial area of law. Specific attention is paid to the so-called 'course and scope enquiry' and to the enduring difficulties associated with attributing liability to employers for the deliberate wrongful conduct of their employees. It is argued that the courts have yet to reach consensus on a general principle capable of being applied to the facts of so-called 'deviation cases', and that consequently the legal divergence on these matters gives rise to uncertainty and concern. It is submitted that the way in which the traditional test for vicarious liability is currently applied fails to give true effect to the policy considerations upon which this branch of law is founded. By way of comparison with the South African position, a detailed account of the law of vicarious liability in comparable foreign jurisdictions is given, with emphasis placed on recent developments in England and the British Commonwealth. The study then moves to an analysis of the various policy considerations behind vicarious liability, with particular attention being paid to the role of risk-related liability and the role of risk-assumption in the 'course and scope' enquiry. A comparative analysis follows, highlighting differences between the approaches of the foreign jurisdictions and that taken by the South African courts. The work concludes with a proposal that the South African courts should broaden the scope of vicarious liability and opt for a model similar to that which has recently been adopted in Canada.

Si la date de naissance des créances a été débattue, la légitimité de l’utilisation du concept de « naissance » pour appréhender une créance et les effets qui lui sont prêtés n’a jamais été discutée. Ce terme, tiré du champ lexical de la biologie, ne semble pourtant pas adapté à la description d’une créance ; cette inadéquation explique notamment la diversité des opinions qui ont pu être émises quant à la date de naissance d’une même créance. Par ailleurs, il est contestable d’avoir prêté à ce concept la vertu d’expliquer les effets attachés aux différents stades de réalisation qu’une créance est susceptible de connaître : leur fondement réside en premier lieu dans des considérations pratiques ou de politique juridique. Sur un plan méthodologique, le concept comme la vertu explicative qui lui a été prêtée témoignent de l’utilisation d’une méthode de raisonnement qui a été à juste titre critiquée au tournant du XXe siècle : le conceptualisme. La difficulté à appréhender la réalisation des créances dans le temps s’explique par plusieurs facteurs, parmi lesquels la diversité des événements susceptibles d’intervenir dans ce processus, la relativité de l’idée qu’une créance puisse être considérée comme « existante » à une date donnée, la pluralité des degrés de certitude susceptibles de la caractériser, ou encore le constat que chacun des effets que l’on peut lui prêter est régi par des considérations qui lui sont propres. Afin de concilier ces différents paramètres, on propose de recourir à une méthode de raisonnement souple reposant sur un jeu de présomptions, dont les résultats doivent être affinés ou corrigés en fonction de la particularité de la situation considérée. / The double-sided civil law notion of “obligation” divides into créance on the active side and debt on the passive side. It encompasses claims pursued against a wide variety of debtors, whether arising on the basis of contract, tort, or statute. Debates on the date when an obligation might arise (for example, date of contract as contrasted with time of performance or moment of breach) rest on the assumption that an obligation comes into existence at one point in time, which mechanically triggers the same legal consequences for all kinds of obligation. This thesis discusses the appropriateness of the concept which has been used in traditional French theory to characterize that moment (the naissance or “birth” of an obligation), the soundness of the method of reasoning which has led to treating this concept as the cause or explanation of the rules governing an obligation at a given date, and the validity of the idea that an obligation can be considered to come into existence at one specific moment. It then suggests another perspective, based on identifying presumptive dates for different categories of obligations, but subject always to verification of relevance for the particular issue(s) that may flow from the putative existence of the obligation.

La présente étude trouve son point d’ancrage dans l’observation de l’honorable Nicholas Kasirer selon laquelle une incompatibilité d’humeur régnerait entre le droit de la responsabilité civile et la vie conjugale, rendant difficile la sanction des fautes commises entre conjoints sous l’égide du régime général de la responsabilité extracontractuelle. Pont jeté entre deux disciplines juridiques – le droit familial et le droit de la responsabilité extracontractuelle –, la réflexion ici proposée s’articule autour des inflexions subies par la norme en fonction du lien conjugal unissant les parties. Afin de cerner ces inflexions, l’auteur tourne d’abord son regard vers le passé, mettant en exergue les obstacles techniques et moraux ayant historiquement endigué l’effectivité du droit de la responsabilité extracontractuelle dans l’enceinte conjugale. Un tableau du traitement jurisprudentiel contemporain faisant état des diverses fautes relatives à la vie conjugale est ensuite dressé. Par cet exercice, certains comportements récemment assimilés à la commission d’une faute civile, comme l’aliénation parentale, sont mis en relief. À l’issue du portrait ici brossé, le lecteur sera à même de constater le glissement subi par les visées du droit de la responsabilité extracontractuelle dans ses interactions avec la cellule conjugale. D’abord utilisé comme outil de protection de l’institution matrimoniale, le régime général de la responsabilité extracontractuelle se présente de plus en plus comme un vecteur incontournable dans l’instauration d’un civisme conjugal élémentaire. / The present study revolves around an observation by the Honorable Nicholas Kasirer according to which an incompatibility of temperament exists between civil liability and conjugal life, making it difficult to sanction faults committed between spouses or de facto spouses by virtue of the extra- contractual liability regime. Drawing a connection between two legal disciplines - family law and civil liability - the proposed reflection revolves around the deviations incurred by the norm depending on the bond uniting the parties. In order to identify these deviations, the author first turns their gaze to the past, highlighting the technical and moral obstacles that have historically hindered the effectiveness of the law of extracontractual liability in the conjugal context. A picture of the contemporary jurisprudential treatment of the various faults relating to conjugal and married life is then drawn up. Through this exercise, certain behaviors recently assimilated to the commission of a civil fault, such as parental alienation, are highlighted. At the end of this portrait, the reader will be able to observe the shift incurred by the aims of the law of extracontractual liability as it interacts with the conjugal and marital cell. Initially used as a tool to protect the institution of marriage, the general regime of extra-contractual liability is increasingly seen as an essential vector in the establishment of a fundamental conjugal and marital civility.

OPSOMMING Gebeurlikhede kan omskryf word as onsekere omstandighede van positiewe of negatiewe aard wat, onafhanklik van die verweerder se optrede en indien dit sou realiseer, waarskynlik 'n persoon se gesondheid, inkomste, verdienvermoë, lewenskwaliteit, lewensverwagting of onderhoudsafhanklikheid in die toekoms kan beïnvloed of in die verlede kon beïnvloed het en wat gevolglik op billike en realistiese wyse in ag geneem moet word ter bepaling van die skadevergoedingsbedrag. Die skadevergoedingsbedrag kan vanweë gebeurlikhede verminder of vermeerder word waar die eiser wel met `n oorwig van waarskynlikheid die volle omvang van die skade bewys het, maar die hof nie kon oortuig dat geen ander oorsaak die skade waarskynlik ook sou kon veroorsaak nie (sg "gebeurlikheids-aanpassings"). In gevalle waar die eiser nie die volle omvang van die skade op `n oorwig van waarskynlikheid kon bewys nie, kan die hof nogtans `n verminderde bedrag toeken op grond van die gebeurlikheid dat die skade wel waarskynlik in die toekoms kan realiseer (sg "gebeurlikheidstoekennings"). Die eiser moet getuienis voorlê van gebeurlikhede wat die skadevergoedingsbedrag sal verhoog, en die verweerder van gebeurlikhede wat die skadevergoedingsbedrag sal verlaag. Die waarskynlikheid dat die gebeurlikheid sal realiseer, moet deur die hof aan die hand van objektiewe maatstawwe en op grond van feitelike bewerings en logiese afleidings uit deskundige en ander getuienis in die vorm van `n waarskynlikheidsgraad van tussen vyf persent en tagtig persent uitgedruk word. Hipotetiese kousaliteit word deur die hof aangewend om gebeurlikhede op `n billike wyse in ag te neem en verwys na die kousale ketting van hipotetiese feite wat waarskynlik sou gerealiseer het indien die skadestigtende gebeurtenis nie plaasgevind het nie. Gebeurlikhede kan in twee kategorieë geklassifiseer word: Algemene gebeurlikhede wat gewoonlik in enige stadium by alle persone kan voorkom (bv vroeë dood, siekte ens) en spesifieke gebeurlikhede wat gewoonlik op spesifieke tydstippe by spesifieke individue kan voorkom (bv hertroue, egskeiding ens). Terwyl die hof geregtelik kennis behoort te kan neem van die invloed van algemene gebeurlikhede, behoort die hof hoofsaaklik op grond van ondersteunende getuienis van die invloed van spesifieke gebeurlikhede oortuig te word. Algemene gebeurlikheidsaanpassings is gewoonlik relatief laag (gemiddeld tien persent), terwyl gebeurlikheidsaanpassings vir spesifieke gebeurlikhede fluktueer (gewoonlik tussen vyf persent en vyftig persent), afhangende van die getuienis en omstandighede van die eiser. Gebeurlikheidstoekennings is gewoonlik laer as vyftig persent. SUMMARY Contingencies can be described as uncertain circumstances of a positive or negative nature which, independent of the defendant's conduct and if it should realise, would probably influence a person's health, income, earning capacity, quality of life, life expectancy or dependency on support in future or could have done so in the past, and which must consequently be taken into account in a fair and realistic manner in the quantification of damages. Contingencies can be used to increase or reduce damages in circumstances where the plaintiff succeeded in proving the full loss on a preponderance of probability, but could not convince the court that there was no probability that any other cause could also have given rise to the loss (so-called "contingency adjustments"). In circumstances where the plaintiff could not prove the full loss on a preponderance of probability, the court can nevertheless award a reduced amount on the basis of the contingency that loss could probably realise in future (so-called "contingency allowances"). The plaintiff must adduce evidence of contingencies that can increase damages, and the defendant of contingencies that can reduce damages. The degree of probability that the contingency will realise, must be expressed by the court as a percentage of between five percent and eighty percent, in view of objective measures and on the basis of factual allegations and logical deductions derived from expert and other evidence. Hypothetical causation assists the court in taking account of contingencies in a fair manner and refers to the causal link of hypothetical events which would probably have realised if the damage-causing event did not occur. Contingencies can be classified into two categories: General contingencies that usually can be present in the lives of all people at any point in time (eg early death, sickness, etc) and specific contingencies that usually are present in the lives of specific individuals at specific times (eg remarriage, divorce, etc). While the court should be able to take legal notice of the influence of general contingencies, the court should be convinced of the influence of specific contingencies primarily on the basis of supporting evidence. General contingency adjustments are usually relatively low (on average ten per cent), while contingency adjustments for specific contingencies fluctuate (usually between five per cent and fifty per cent), depending on the evidence and circumstances of the plaintiff. Contingency allowances are usually lower than fifty per cent. / Jurisprudence / LL.D

Text in Afrikaans / Summary in English / Until recently damages were only awarded in South African law for the loss of an object which was utilised for the generation of income. In Kellerman v South African Transport Services' damages were awarded for the first time for the loss of use of an object, which was used for non-business purposes. In this dissertation the writer aims to indicate that the personal loss that a plaintiff suffers by the loss of the object is so closely related to the physical possession through which it is served, that the Jaw should protect such personal interest. In such circumstances damages should be awarded in principle, irrespective of whether the plaintiff used the object for business purposes or whether he indeed hired a substitute or not. There is room in the South African law for development in the area of delictual damages for the Joss of the possibility to use a material object. / Private Law / LL.M.

This dissertation examines the impact of the 1992 Georgia Tort Claims Act on educators in court decisions involving liability cases against Georgia school districts and/ or their respective employees. By examining pertinent court cases in which Georgia educators were, for the first time, subjected to potential litigation, the researcher outlines circumstances in which educators can and should be held liable for their actions. Additionally, the researcher analyzes the Tort Claims Acts of Texas, Oklahoma, and Mississippi as well. This analysis allows the researcher to contrast the types of litigious actions that educators in each of these states are held liable. Findings include the types of actions in which educators in each of the respective states are subject to liability. Case study analysis of randomly selected court cases involving tort liability, provides the infrastructure for in-depth research allowing the following questions to be addressed: (1) How have Georgia courts interpreted the Georgia Tort Claims Act in litigation against school personnel and school districts? (2) How do tort liability rulings, involving school personnel or districts, in other states within the United States compare with similar cases filed in Georgia since 1992? The Georgia Tort Claim Act of 1992 propelled an array of circumstances in which educational entities would be held liable for their actions. This research clearly explains the types of actions in which educators in the state of Georgia are subject to suit and to what degree they are subsequently held liable. Case study research also uncovered specific areas in which Georgia educators can be held liable. Specific research involving actions deemed either ministerial or discretionary are detailed specifically through case analysis. Additionally, the degree to which liability insurance provides protection for educational entities or their respective employees is also addressed in this research in order that state-by-state comparisons can be understood.

L’histoire de la responsabilité des parents du fait de leur enfant entre le XVIe et le XIXe siècle est l’histoire de l’acceptation progressive de cette institution originale durant l’Ancien Régime, sa reconnaissance officielle par le Code civil en 1804, puis sa remise en cause dans les trente dernières années du XIXe siècle. La difficulté à admettre la responsabilité des parents du fait de leur enfant réside essentiellement dans la tradition pénale qui est à l’origine du droit de la responsabilité civile. La responsabilité pénale des enfants ainsi que celle de leurs parents pour un fait commis par eux sont vigoureusement combattues au moment où commence le sujet de cette étude alors pourtant que certaines coutumes admettent déjà la responsabilité civile des parents. Au cours de l’Epoque Moderne, la formulation d’un principe général de responsabilité pour faute, l’acceptation plus large du lien de causalité entre la faute de l’auteur et son dommage et la morale de l’éducation qui souligne le lien entre l’éducation des enfants et leur comportement social, sont autant de facteurs qui poussent à admettre le principe de responsabilité des parents pour faute personnelle. Le principe est confirmé par le Code civil qui en dispose dans son article 1384 alinéa 4. Soutien et sanction d’une puissance paternelle forte, application particulière du principe quasi-délictuel selon lequel chacun est responsable du dommage causé par son imprudence ou sa négligence, la responsabilité civile des parents pour faute personnelle connaît alors son apogée. La remise en cause d’une puissance paternelle forte d’une part et de la responsabilité pour faute d’autre part a conduit à une remise en cause de la responsabilité des parents à la fin du XIXe siècle. / The history of parents’s responsibility between the XVIth and the XIXth century is the history of the progressive acceptance of this institution during the three centuries before the French Revolution, its official recognition by the civil Code in 1804 and its denial at the end of XIXth century. The difficult admission of the responsability of the parents for their children is due to the penal law which is the origin of the civil liability. At the time when our study begins the penal law refuses to charge the children below a certain age and to charge the parents for something done by their children. Despite of that some local custums admit the civil liability of the parents for their children. During the three centuries before the French Revolution this responsability is progressivly accepted due to the better formulation of a general principle charging everybody to pay the consequences of their failures, to the wider allowance of the link between the fault commited and the loss resulting form this fault and at last to the moral of education enhancing the link between the parent’s education and the children behaviour. The responsability of the parents for their children is definitly recognized by the civil Code in 1804. At this stage this principle is the warantie and punishment of the strong paternal power. It is also its specific application of the law charging everybody to pay the consequences of his fault, even the fault in what he has simply neglected or failed to do. The first part of the XIXth Century is the summit of this institution. Both the rejection of a strong paternal power and of the objective fault has caused the rejection of our institution at the end of the XIXth Century.

Le monde équin offre une palette de situations variées mettant en scène aussi bien un profane, ignorant tout du cheval lors d'une promenade à l'extérieur, qu'un driver durant une séance d'entraînement ou un enfant mordu par le poney d'un voisin. Le cheval est réutilisé au travail, comme le transport de personnes, mais aussi pour la réinsertion sociale ou en thérapie pour les personnes handicapées. Les réactions imprévisibles des équidés font que ces activités sont qualifiées d'accidentogènes. Le contact avec des équidés comporte des risques élevés de chutes, inhérents à ces pratiques. Un constat s'impose: l'indemnisation des victimes est au coeur des préoccupations de notre société. La victime touchée dans sa chair ne peut choisir librement le fondement de son action; le principe du non-cumul exige l'application des règles de la responsabilité contractuelle lorsqu'il existe un contrat. La frontière entre ces deux branches constitue parfois un frein à une meilleure indemnisation pour les victimes. Au vu de la judiciarisation constante, il est souhaitable de proposer certaines solutions pour améliorer les conditions et les effets respectifs de chacune des deux branches de la responsabilité civile; on peut renforcer l'intensité de l'obligation de sécurité, le respect de la volonté contractuelle des parties dans un contrat équin tout en cherchant à responsabiliser les acteurs du monde du cheval afin de mettre en valeur leur fonction préventive, sans exclure la théorie de l'acceptation des risques afin que la liberté de « jouer » survive en droit du sport! / The equestrian world offers a large range of activities which may sees the involvement of different persons: a profane ignoring the intrinsic nature of the animal during an outside ride from the equestrian centre under instructor control, a driver during training or a kid bitten by neighbor's pony. Horses are used for work not only for community tasks such as transportation but also for social reinsertion to help people in need or also as a therapy for persons with motor disabilities. Having contact with horses involves a high degree of risk due to the possibility of failing. Therefore, litigation in field of civil liability is constantly growing. Compensation is in the heart of society's concerns. The optimization of the compensation incurred during the sports or leisure's activities must be underlined. Victims cannot freely choose their legal recourse. Indeed, the "none option principal" implies the application of the liability rules when a contract is existing and the application of the tortious liability when no contract is existing. The separation between both liabilities is often an obstacle for improved compensation for victims. Regarding the constant increase of litigation in this field, solutions should be offered to improve the conditions and the effects of the two branches of civil liability mainly by reinforcing the security obligations in several activities and the considerations of the parties intentions involved in an equestrian agreement while searching the liabilities of the parties in order to highlight preventative measures and not to exclude the risk theory to keep the freedom of play in sports regulations area.

© JUDr. Barbora Krajcová Mezinárodní internetové právo a příslušnost soudu v internetových sporech ABSTRACT The aim of this dissertation thesis is to provide an analysis of International Internet Law from an electronic commerce and, in particular, procedural law perspective. The author focuses on questions relating to jurisdiction which are, according to the author's opinion, specific and controversial to electronic commerce cases. Other questions of procedural law, such as, for example, recognition and enforcement of judgments, are not analyzed in this thesis, since the author does not see any specific issues with these questions in connection with electronic commerce. The Chapter No. 1 in the theoretical portion of this dissertation thesis refers to internet as medium operating electronic commerce. The Chapter No. 2 reflects key and basic terms, contains, inter alia, definition of electronic commerce. However, this thesis analyses questions of jurisdiction the Chapter No. 3 analyses also substantive law relating to electronic commerce and the basic terms used throughout this thesis. Due understanding of substantive law (from an EU law perspective; the e-commerce directive and from an international law perspective; the UNCITRAL Convention on Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts) its...

A dissertação trata da responsabilidade especial prevista no art. 40 da Lei 6.024/74 para os administradores de instituições financeiras frente aos credores sociais na hipótese da quebra da instituição. É discutida a natureza dessa responsabilidade, se objetiva ou subjetiva, buscando seu exato conteúdo. O tratamento adotado é interdisciplinar, envolvendo diversas áreas do direito e da economia. O direito constitucional fornece a tábua de valores para o sistema, impondo limites, e a teoria geral do direito contribui com a análise do conteúdo e a finalidade das normas de responsabilidade, com o regramento prudencial do Banco Central servindo para o detalhamento das condutas. São então utilizadas as ferramentas de análise econômica do direito, particularmente a teoria dos jogos para a modelagem de um regime de responsabilidade subjetiva, e outro de responsabilidade objetiva, como jogos estratégicos, na forma normal e na extensiva, identificando os pontos de equilíbrio e de eficiência, O resultado aponta para uma ineficiência do modelo de responsabilidade objetiva para o administrador. O modelo de responsabilidade subjetiva revela-se mais eficiente, apontando como desejáveis as ferramentas de delação premiada e inversão do ônus de prova, para mitigar problemas de assimetria de informação entre depositante e instituição financeira. A dissertação conclui que a responsabilização objetiva do administrador seria inconstitucional e ineficiente, e que o regime jurídico atual é de responsabilidade subjetiva, mas que pode ser aprimorado, especialmente tornando mais claras as regras aplicáveis. / The dissertation analyzes financial institutions\' managers\' special liability to creditors in the event of bankruptcy, as established by Brazilian Law 6.204/74 article 40. Its discussed the nature of such a liability, whether a negligence standard or strict liability rule, seeking to clarify its full extent. The approach is interdisciplinary, using many fields of both law and economics. Constitutional Law provides the goals and values for the system, and General Theory of Law contributes to analyzing the content and purpose of liability rules, with the Central Bank\'s prudential supervision rules detailing actions. The tools of economic analysis of law are then used, particularly game theory to model a system based on a negligence standard, and another based in a strict liability standard, as strategic games in both normal form and extensive form, identifying the points of equilibrium and efficiency. The result points to an inefficient model of strict liability for the administrator. The model based on a negligence standard is shown to be more efficient, pointing as desirable tools that grant immunity to whistleblowers and reverse the burden of proof, to mitigate problems of asymmetric information between depositors and financial institutions. The dissertation concludes that the strict liability of the manager would be unconstitutional and inefficient, and that the current legal regime is that of negligence standard liability, but it can be improved, particularly by clarifying the rules.