Research On Defect Food Tort Liability

The law related to defect food tort liability becoming increasingly close in real life, there are several serious social consequences events happened in China because of defect food these years, particularly highlighting the importance of law in this area. Such as, in Sanlu milk powder incident of2008, the State Administration of Quality Supervision identified the Sanlu milk powder with melamine added by people. By the late December2008, China has reported there are296,000children diseased because of taking the milk. China has many laws, regulations related to food, but mostly of them regulate behavior from the perspective of administrative law rather than civil law, thus it’s very important to research the civil liability regime of defect food, investigate food production operators’ cilvil liability and compensate the victim’s losses.Luo Kesi· Pound said:"The law is a social project, which aims to achieve fairness and justice." In the defect food tort liability area, how to realize the fairness between the powerful producers and the powerless consumers, how to let the victims get a satisfactory compensation, which have become a legal issue must be faced in our country. China issued a "Food Safety Law" and a "Tort Law" later in2009, these improved our country’s laws and regulations in defect food. However, the defect food infringement often seen in recent years, shows that China’s laws and regulations are still inadequate.Defect food Tort liability is a special product liability, Product liability attribution principle experienced a contractual liability, fault liability, warranty liability, strict liability and strict liability and fault liability coexistence phase.1842’s "Winterbottom v. Wright case" to establish contractual liability, but with social development, establishing fault liability, making the product liability transferred to tort liability Category. On the basis of contractual liability propese warranty liability. With the function of tort law remedies highlights, product liability is mainly attributable to the principle of strict liability. Later proposed the coexistence of strict liability and fault liability principle of attribution. Defect food Tort Elements including defect food exist, damage facts, flawed food and the fact that a causal relationship between damage. Defect food Tort defenses, including force majeure, the victim’s own fault, caused by intentional or negligent third party and so on. As the special nature of the food, you can also share the fault of the consumer, the consumer non-normal consumption of food, the special sensitivity of consumers into account.In the defect food damage Compensation system of civil liability, general damages from physical, mental damages and punitive damages to consider three aspects. Defect food infringement of personal injury compensation and moral damage compensation can be applied to general product liability law, national requirements are basically mature. General law expressly provides that the tort is applicable to a particular punitive damages. China’s "Food Safety Law" provides consumers has the right to request defective food manufacturers or sellers to pay compensation ten times of the product price.Improvement of defective food Tort system, need to consider from imputation system of principles and ations. Defect food civil liability infringement principles of of attribution should applied principle of strict liability to the production of food manufacturers and marketers, in the defect Food system of civil liability for infringement damages, the expansion of the scope of personal injury compensation, the amount of compensation for moral damage to more implementation details to improve the system of punitive damages.Defect food Tort system improvement related to the people’s lives and health, related to the country’s sustainable development, we should be rigorous and pragmatic to improve the deficiencies food civil tort system.