The “Duty of Care” in Maltese Court Judgements

The “Duty of Care” in Maltese Court Judgements

Published March 25, 2025

Dr Ivan Mifsud, Dean of the Faculty of Laws at the University of Malta, presented to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, Judge Joseph Zammit McKeon, his latest publication entitled: The “Duty of Care” in Maltese Court Judgment – Adding Value or Just a Cliché?

This important work explores how the doctrine of "duty of care" has increasingly featured in Maltese court judgments across civil, criminal and commercial law cases. Dr Mifsud examines the legal basis of the principle and questions whether it has been fully embraced in Maltese legal doctrine and whether it has added real value in the sources of interpretation of Maltese Law.

In his foreword, Judge Professor David Joseph Attard, Chancellor of the University of Malta, describes the work as a comprehensive and authoritative treatise. He commends Dr Mifsud for his meticulous research and ability to trace how the courts in Malta adopted and applied the principle of “duty of care”. He highlights the author’s valuable comparative review of the developments of the doctrine in English, French, German, and Italian jurisprudence.  He lays emphasis on the manner how the European experience influenced Malta’s hybrid legal tradition. Judge Attard further referred to the author’s distinction between the “duty of care” and the “duty to care”, remarking the relevance of the distinction in areas of law of particular interest to the community, particularly environmental law.

In his meeting with the Ombudsman, Dr Mifsud explained that his latest work was inspired by a desire to answer three central questions: What is this "duty of care" which the Maltese courts have adopted? Was it incorporated using traditional sources of Maltese legal interpretation? And has the duty added genuine value to the legal system or brought about fundamental changes in how Maltese law is interpreted by the courts?

On his part, the Ombudsman welcomed the work of Dr Mifsud as a significant contribution to legal scholarship and observed that the changing nature of the State in Malta, from a monolithic structure to one increasingly managed on commercial lines including where essential services are concerned, invites renewed reflection on how the duty of care has evolved as a principle of social responsibility. In such a context, the question of how this duty is applied becomes more crucial and pertinent than ever.

The book was published by the Malta University Press.