civil liability of good samaritans and volunteers - Law Reform ...

statutes go so far as to extend protection to the simple act of volunteering. TheCommission observes that Good Samaritan statutes may be seen as anattempt to eliminate the perceived inadequacies of the common law rule underwhich a Good Samaritan or volunteer who acts voluntarily for the benefit ofsociety, by assisting an injured person or providing services to another, can beheld liable for failing to exercise reasonable care.4.14 The Commission emphasises that any Good Samaritan legislationproposed by the Commission must be clear. It must also offer a coherent andcomprehensive guide to Good Samaritans, voluntary rescuers and voluntaryservice providers as to their legal position.4.15 In the subsequent sections, the Commission examines the legislationthat applies to Good Samaritans and volunteers in other States. Drawing ontheir experience, the Commission identifies the type of legislation that is suitedto Ireland. The Commission notes at this stage that, where full immunity is notinvolved, these statutes often state that a Good Samaritan or volunteer is notrequired to comply with the normal standard of negligence but is only to be heldliable where gross negligence is established. The Commission considerswhether this standard should be applied to Good Samaritans, volunteers andvolunteer organisations in Ireland or whether the current standard of ordinarynegligence is more appropriate. An underlying objective in this is to strike anacceptable balance between the need to afford protection to Good Samaritansand volunteers and an injured person‟s legitimate interest to seek redress forinjury or harm.(2) Good Samaritan Legislation in other Jurisdictions(a)Introduction4.16 In this section, the Commission examines the scope of GoodSamaritan statutes in other comparable common law jurisdictions to determinetheir relevance to the proposed legislation in this State. The Commissionobserves that most common law jurisdictions have adopted either GoodSamaritan or volunteer legislation, if not both. The Commission notes,however, that there is no generally accepted formula for the creation of suchlegislation and that legislation differs greatly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.(b)United States4.17 Every State in the United States has enacted some form of GoodSamaritan legislation. 17 Much of this legislation protects from litigation to thosewho assist in emergencies. This protection is usually predicated on the17See Eric A. Brandt, Comment: Good Samaritan Laws – The Legal Placebo: ACurrent Analysis 17 Akron L. Rev. 3030-303 (1983) for an overview.90