Description

A key concern of businesses, industries and Government agencies is the extent of their liability for torts committed by their employees or independent contractors. The law imposes liability on employers for torts committed by third parties in a
variety of ways, including through direct duties, vicarious liability and non-delegable duties. This is a dynamic area of law, and as the United Kingdom Supreme Court noted earlier this year in a landmark decision, “The law is on the move.” Singapore’s jurisprudence is also on the move, as seen in recent cases involving incidents on the MRT, construction sites and a public pool as well as cases involving the Government. By imposing strict liability or recasting the duty, an internal conflict arises with the general fault-based approach to negligence as well as to the contractual allocation of risks. This seminar provides a timely refresher on these areas of law while exploring significant recent decisions to explain emerging principles and to identify
new trends.

About the Speaker
Professor Kumaralingam Amirthalingam obtained his LLB (Hons) and PhD in law from the Australian National University where he commenced his academic career. He joined the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore in 2000 and over the years has served as Vice Dean (Academic Affairs), Vice Dean (International Programmes) and Director, Asian Law Institute. He is presently the Chair of the NUS Teaching Academy and a member of the University Committee on Educational Policy. From 2012 to 2014, he was on secondment to the Attorney-General’s Chambers, Singapore as a Deputy Public Prosecutor and Senior Director (Research & Policy). His research is primarily in the areas of criminal law and justice, and tort law, with a special interest in medical negligence and economic loss.