Children in Tort Law: Children as Tortfeasors and Victims

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The intended project will focus primarily upon three issues: 1) at what age does a minor gain the legal capacity to be held liable for tortious conduct or should children generally be held liable, 2) to what extent does the age of a tortfeasor influence the question of contributory-comparative negligence and should compensation on equitable grounds apply to child offenders, and 3) what is the nature and extent of parents' liability for the conduct of their children? The selected approach marks a significant contrast to the manner in which the role of minors in European tort law has been investigated thus far, namely as a subordinate topic within a general analysis of more traditional legal questions. In addition, the issues central to this study must be resolved within the broader framework of a European Civil Code, on which work ist currently in progress. Finally, the topic of liability of minors in tort law is of immense importance for the demestic law of torts as well. This is illustrated by a famous decision of the Federal Constitutional Court (cited at NJW 1998, 3557), holding that fundamental civil rights guaranteed by the Federal Constitution must be respected in framing rules of tortious liability. Additionally, in Germany parliamentary proceedings concerning a draft bill to modify the rules of tortious liability of minors are underway (BMJ, 2. Schadenrechtsänderungsgesetz). As the reasoning of the bill refers to the law of other European states (ibid, p. 15), there is a need for intensified and comprehensive coooperative legal analysis of the three issues stated above.