Recent decades have seen the Australian law of torts undergo a significant transformation. The statutory regimes enacted in the wake of the Ipp Report have given rise to a considerable volume of case law. At the same time, the changing economic and social landscape has thrown up fresh challenges for the law to deal with. This volume – which is a companion to the well-received Australian Contract Law in the 21st Century – brings sustained attention to a number of subjects in this sphere which merit examination.
The volume contains essays from leading commentators on the law of torts, and will be essential reading for academics, students, judges, and all practitioners involved in litigation or providing advice with respect to tort liability.
Acknowledgments
Contributors
Table of Cases
Table of Statutes
Introduction – John Eldridge, Timothy Pilkington & David Rolph
1. Colonial Innovation in the Australian Law of Torts – Mark Leeming
2. Intention in Tort: where it comes from and where it’s going – Matthew Dyson
3. New Torts – James Goudkamp
4. Government Liability and the Will of Parliament – Ellen Rock
5. Factual Causation: the sensible decline of common sense and the mystery of the ‘exceptional case’ – Gemma Turton
6. Scope of Liability and Remoteness of Damage: a final limit on responsibility for negligence in Australia – Barbara McDonald
7. ‘A Risk by Any Other Name’: rejecting volenti in Australian tort law – Jodi Gardner
8. Vicarious Liability: antiaris toxicaria in Australia – Warren Swain
9. Torts and Employment: reflections on changing ideas of responsibility and the adaptability of torts law – Carolyn Sappideen
10. Negligence, Morality and Apologies: assessing responsibility in the real world – Prue Vines
11. Repairing the Compensatory Principle in Negligence: ‘loss of amenity’ and the justifiable scope of damages liability – Stephen Puttick and David Winterton
12. Injurious Falsehood: a tort resurgent – David Rolph
Index
The Federation Press held a book launch for ‘Australian Tort Law in the 21st Century’ in April 2024.
Read the the launch speech of Justice Julia Lonergan
This book reflects the dynamic, diverse and thought-provoking nature of legal discourse which exists in Australian tort law. It also demonstrates the unique and by and large uniform nature of Australian tort law.
David Kim, Law Institute Journal (VIC), September 2024
