Do government bodies and public authorities have a duty to warn the public of an impending disaster?

What is this resource?

This legal practice memo considers the duty for government bodies, local councils, emergency services agencies or other public authorities to issue warnings in relation to impending disaster emergencies.

It also considers whether a breach of a statutory duty to issue warnings gives rise to a cause of action against a public authority.

Summary

In Victoria, there is legislation imposing responsibility upon certain public authorities to issue warnings in relation to disasters. As far as we are aware, these provisions have not been considered by Courts, and as such is it unclear whether a breach of the provisions create a civil right for individuals.

However, earlier decisions of Courts suggest there are potential difficulties establishing a cause of action for breach of statutory duty to warn.  

At common law, the duty to warn of disasters has not been fully considered by the Courts either, although decisions to hand have been unwilling to impose a general duty of care upon fire authorities for the benefit of the general public. However, there is an arguable case that in certain factual circumstances a public authority owes a duty of care to use or maintain its early warning systems. 

The law of negligence and public authorities is a very complex, broad and emerging area of the law. Not every aspect of the law in this legal practice memo. Instead, this memo intends to provide a high-level overview about the key issues underpinning the duty of public authorities to warn of disasters. 

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