Liability in tort of private healthcare establishments
In addition to the contractual liability of private healthcare establishments, these establishments may also be held liable in tort.
In particular, in the event of a fall, they may be liable to third-party visitors:
“Whereas, according to the statements in the confirmatory judgment, F., leaving the Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire clinic, where he had been visiting, fell on the staircase and was injured; he attributed the fall to the abnormal condition of the staircase, its spiral shape, its irregular and narrow steps, its lack of lighting and its poor maintenance, and sued the clinic and the Concorde insurance company, on the basis of articles 1382 and 1384, paragraph 1, of the Civil Code, to obtain compensation for his loss; [… In the light of these statements, the Court of Appeal, which […] legally justified its decision on these grounds. ”
Cass. civ. 2, 3 June 1970, no. 68-14.242
Unless the victim is found to be at fault.
In addition, a private healthcare establishment would also be held liable for faults committed by its employees.
Faults committed within the establishment by its salaried staff give rise to the civil liability of the said establishment in tort on the basis of the provisions of article 1242 of the Civil Code.
The private hospital establishment is therefore liable for its own faults and those of its employees, as well as for the things they use.
For example, even the fault of an employed doctor would give rise to the establishment’s liability in tort:
“Therefore, if, notwithstanding the inalienable professional independence which a doctor enjoys in the practice of his art, a health establishment may, without prejudice to its recourse action, be declared liable for faults committed by a practitioner in the course of medical acts of investigation or care practised on a patient, it is on condition that this doctor is its employee”.
Cass. civ. 1, 26 May 1999, no. 97-15.608
Do not hesitate to contact our firm to see if you have been the victim of a fault in this context.
