The Scandinavian Law of Torts: Impact of Insurance on Tort Law

Abstract

LOOKING AT TEE LAW of Western Europe, most of the countries belong to two main groups. The majority belong to the continental group, comprising countries whose law has been influenced strongly by Roman Law, the other group being formed by the Common Law countries. The Nordic countries do not belong to either of these groups. While each of the three Scandinavian countries, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, has its own law, together with Finland and Iceland they form a special group, the five Nordic countries. These have never received the Roman Law, and their law has had an unbroken evolution from the era of primitive law. At the same time, the Scandinavian laws have not been uninfluenced by foreign law. As these countries are small and have been in close communication with other countries, their law has necessarily been influenced by the laws of many other countries as well as by canon law and by the doctrines of the great European schools of law. In the nineteenth century, Scandinavian scholars were mainly influenced by German doctrine. But the laws have never abandoned their independence, and particularly Denmark, which had to fight Germany in two wars in the middle of the 19th century, has been disposed to criticise German scholars. The Nordic mind is less abstract than the mind of the Germans. On the whole, the Scandinavian laws hold a middle ground between continental Civil Law and English Law. Since the eighteen eighties, most Scandinavian scholars have made use of the method of comparative law and have investigated English law as well as continental law; lately, they have begun to study American law. Like most continental countries, the Scandinavian countries have codes. But these codes are old: The Swedish code dates from 1734; the Danish and the Norwegian codes, which are almost alike and were given by the same king, from 1683 and 1687. These codes are not nearly so detailed and complete as the more modern codes, and their rules are generally based on the law that was in force in Scandinavia at the time. Today, very little of the Danish code is still in force. Many of its pro-