6. Defences to Negligence

Abstract

This chapter examines the following defences to a claim in negligence: volenti non fit injuria; contributory negligence; exclusion of liability; and illegality. The defence of volenti non fit injuria reflects the common sense notion that ‘[o]ne who has invited or assented to an act being done towards him cannot, when he suffers from it, complain of it as a wrong’. Contributory negligence is a partial defence that operates not to defeat the claimant’s claim entirely but rather to reduce the amount of damages the defendant must pay. A defendant may seek to exclude all potential liability to another person in advance of exposing himself to the risk of a possible claim. The defence of illegality denies recovery to certain claimants on the grounds that their claim is tainted by their own illegal conduct.