Medical Liability (civil and criminal)

Recommended Prerequisites

Criminal Law/Civil Law; proficiency in some foreign languages required, namely English and Latin languages.

Teaching Methods

In the seminars, the presentation and discussion of national and foreign case law will be held along with a critical and doctrinal discussion on the legal regime applicable. Students will be encouraged to develop autonomous, in-depth scientific research, and they are expected to be acquainted with the Faculty of Law library resources and databases.

Learning Outcomes

Students are expected to gain a good grasp on the national sources on medical liability in both the civil law and the criminal law areas, as a means of knowing about the doctrine and the case law  in the matter. They must also get acquainted with the relevant bibliography on comparative law, and be able to master the research tools necessary for in-depth legal research work.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

(I) Medical Civil Law

1. Introduction to Health Law

2. Patients' rights relating to personality

3. Medical services contract

4. Medical and healthcare organizations tort law

5. Patients' rights and duties

(II) Medical Criminal Law

1. Facti species exclusion of medical acts

2. Concrete criminal facti-species in the area of medical criminal law

(III) Criminal law of Medicament

1. Medicament and criminal liability

2. International criminal law and the Medicrime Convention

3. National law

3.1 Analysis of relevant facti species

3.2 Main criminal law issues

a) Criminal law dignity of the conduct and the legal goods to be protected

b) Public healthcare as a legal good

c) Causation

d) Criminal liability of legal persons

 

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Research work: 100.0%

Bibliography

AA.VV., Responsabilidade Civil dos Médicos, Centro de Direito Biomédico, Coimbra, Coimbra Editora, 2005.

DIAS, Jorge de Figueiredo, Comentário Conimbricense do Código Penal, I e II vol, Coimbra

OLIVEIRA, Guilherme de, Temas de Direito da Medicina, 2.ª edição, Coimbra, Coimbra Editora, 2005.

PEDRO, Rute Teixeira, A responsabilidade civil do médico. Reflexões sobre a noção de perda de chance e a tutela do doente lesado, Coimbra, Coimbra Editora, 2008.

PEREIRA, André Gonçalo Dias, O Consentimento Informado na Relação Médico-Paciente. Estudo de Direito Civil, Coimbra, Coimbra Editora, 2004.

PEREIRA, André Gonçalo Dias, Direitos dos Pacientes e Responsabilidade Médica, Coimbra, 2012.

SOUSA, Susana Aires de, Responsabilidade Criminal pelo Produto e o Topos Causal em Direito Penal, Coimbra: Coimbra Editora, 2014 (em curso de publicação).