5 - The liability regimes of Europe – their façades and interiors

Summary

Where would it all lead if everyone could be sued … An ill-advised statement, a rumor passed on, a false report, bad advice, a poor decision, a recommendation for an unfit serving maid by her former employer, information given at the request of a traveler about the way, the time, and so forth – in short, anything and everything would make one liable to compensate for the damage that ensued if there were gross negligence despite one's good faith …

Rudolf von Ihering

Our system of civil responsibility founded on the clausula generalis – it could hardly be more generalis – of article 1382, has a knack of being everywhere at once [le don de ubiquityè], which, to our somewhat prejudiced eyes, creates an incomparable advantage.

Jean Carbonnier

In the area of tort liability, the strongest oppositions appear to be at the level of general definitions. The extreme positions are represented by general scholarly formulas and, a short distance behind, by overall legislative rules in France and Germany, whereas, moving toward ‘midfield’, we find more specific statutory formulations, the detailed scholarly solutions, and, finally, the operational rules applied by courts … The overall definitions generalize a rule instead of limiting its application … damage would seem to be always compensable, or liability to be always dependent on a right. The operative rules, in contrast, are more articulated.

Rodolfo Sacco