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Causal Inference in Law: An Epidemiological Perspective

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Bob Siegerink ,
Wouter den Hollander ,
Maurice Zeegers  and
Rutger Middelburg
Bob Siegerink
Affiliation:
Center for Stroke Research, Charité, Univeristitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Nehterlands
Wouter den Hollander
Affiliation:
Institute for Private Law, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
Maurice Zeegers
Affiliation:
Maastricht University, School of Nutrition, Toxicology and Metabolism & Maastricht Forensic Institute, Maastricht, the Netherlands
Rutger Middelburg
Affiliation:
Center for Clinical Transfusion Research, Sanquin Research, Leiden, the Netherlands, and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
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Extract

Causal inference lies at the heart of many legal questions. Yet in the context of complicated disease litigation, in particular, the causal inquiry is beset with difficulties due to gaps in scientific knowledge concerning the precise biological processes underlying such diseases. Civil courts across the globe, faced with increased litigation on such matters, struggle to adhere to their judicial fact-finding and decision-making role in the face of such scientific uncertainty. An important difficulty in drawing evidentially sound causal inferences is the binary format of the traditional legal test for factual causation, being the ‘but for’ test, which is based on the condicio-sine-qua-non principle. To the question ‘would the damage have occurred in the absence of the defendant's wrongful behaviour’ the ‘but for’ test requires a simple yes or no answer. This is increasingly deemed unsatisfactory in cases in which, given the state of science, true causation cannot possibly be determined with certainty.

Type
Articles
Information
European Journal of Risk Regulation , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , March 2016 , pp. 175 - 186
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016

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References

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