Definition of civil liability

In general terms, the responsibility civil is the obligation that falls on a person to fulfill the obligation of him. For example, if a child causes damage to a car, the civil liable for this action is the child's parents. This is because the person who causes damage to another is obliged to compensate him for it even though there is no contract that establishes it (for this reason there is talk of extra-contractual civil liability). For a person to be responsible for his acts by margin of a contract, four circumstances must converge: the action, the fraud or fault, the causal link and the certainty of the damage (if one of these elements is missing, there is no civil liability).

Analysis of the circumstances involved

First, there must be an unlawful act or omission that causes the harm (for example, in a car accident). automobile the action is the run over of someone or in a medical practice it would be the omission to suture the wound of the patient). However, in certain cases there may be an action but not a liability (for example, when someone acts in self-defense).

Second, there must be fraud, that is, the intention to harm another. There is also civil liability when there is fault, which implies that despite not having the intention to harm someone, one acts negligently and causes damage.

The third aspect, the causal link, indicates that the damage caused is a consequence of the action (for For example, an accident is the consequence of the driver's negligent driving and not of the victim). If there is no causal link, civil liability disappears.

As for the certainty of the damage, there must be a clear and evident damage. With respect to classification of the damages can be ordered into: patrimonial damages (which are divided into consequential damages and loss of earnings) and extra-patrimonial damages (which are divided into damages to the person and moral). The consequential damage is the loss of assets that an action produces (for example, the expenses that a victim assumes to repair the evil that he has suffered). Loss of profit supposes the gain frustrated (ceased to perceive) as a result of an event (for example, a person who is the victim of an accident may fail to obtain income during the period of convalescence).

Damage to the person is the physical damage suffered by a victim and must be compensated and it must be taken into account that the damage must be objectively proven. On the other hand, moral damage is the mental impairment that a person suffers from a certain action and as it is personal damage it can only be assessed through evidence.

In any case, if the existence of damage is proven, it must be compensated (in patrimonial damages, what was spent or that that has ceased to be perceived and in the extra-patrimonial damages, a judge must assess the facts and determine the damage caused and the consequent compensation).

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