Author:	Brenda McGivern University of Tasmania Faculty of Law
Subjects:	Medical laws and legislation (Other articles) Negligence (Other articles)
Issue:	Volume 5, Number 4 (December 1998)
Category:	Current Developments

1. Medical negligence cases have attracted considerable attention and comment, particularly with the perception that this kind of litigation is on the increase. As such, this work is topical and a welcome addition to the literature in this field. The authors have targeted both practitioners and law students in this practically styled book.
2. The text is divided into seven chapters covering some major themes in medical negligence actions: medical confidentiality; consent; duty [of care]; limitation; standard of care; causation; and damages. Each chapter is itself divided into major sections, each section dealing with a "rule", being a general principle emerging from the leading authorities in the area. Each rule is accompanied by the authors’ explanatory notes and references. The body of the text is then followed by a substantial collection of appendices which include statutory extracts, Court rules, practice directions, ethical guidelines, and a glossary of terms and abbreviations.
3. Perhaps the only perplexing aspect of the book is the sequence of its chapters. It begins with chapters on two manifestations of a health carer’s duty of care: confidentiality and [obtaining] consent. It proceeds to discuss the duty of care generally. However, it then has a chapter on limitation periods, before looking at the standard of care required by law. Chapters on causation and damages are (appropriately) placed last. There is no stated reason for this sequence, and the insertion of the limitation chapter between duty of care and standard of care is somewhat jarring. However, this is a minor criticism and in no way detracts from the excellent substance of this work.
4. The collection of material in the appendices makes this book a useful tool and a good starting point for analysis. What is particularly appealing is that, although this book is based primarily on English law, the commentary and references include authorities from other major common law jurisdictions (Australia, Canada and the United States). The authors acknowledge that this is not a book that seeks to explore the theoretical underpinnings of negligence, nor to provide much critical analysis of the law. Rather, it aims to marry the procedural aspects of medical negligence actions with the substantive issues that must be considered. This aim is achieved remarkably well, the structure and writing style being rich but concise.