Abstract
The book deals with the topic of (mainly civil) liability for damage to health and life caused as a result of the implementation of new medical methods, which has so far only attracted limited attention in the legal literature. Current Czech law only regulates this issue within the framework of the evaluation of new procedures which, due to its highly formal nature, is rarely applied in practice. Many procedures that can be considered new methods are carried out solely on the basis of the local ethics committee's approval. At the same time, legal certainty regarding liability is low even in the case of the formalised evaluation of new procedures.
Based on case studies, the book analyses the liability framework of three possible situations: i) evaluation of new procedures according to Act No. 373/2011 Coll., on Specific Health Services, ii) implementation of a new method outside of the formalised evaluation regime in a situation of time constraint, and iii) implementation of a new method outside of the formalised evaluation regime in other cases.
The author approaches the topic in its broader social and political context. The book seeks answers to the questions of how the liability regime could best fulfill the meaning and purpose of tort liability, how it could reflect the need to maintain and develop patients' trust in health care providers and in science, and what the role of case law should be in establishing liability regime in relation to the (in)activity of the legislator. Based on the said considerations, a liability framework is proposed for the individual above-outlined situations.