State civil responsibility and the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This paper aims to discuss the civil liability of the State due to the coronavirus pandemic. Starting from a historical panorama, we seek to analyze the fundamentals and requirements of state civil liability, especially addressing the issue of the strict civil liability in cases of omission. When concluding that the State should not be seen as a universal insurer, liable for all damages that have occurred in society, it is analyzed in what cases the state omission would entail the duty to compensate the victim. The issue of fault in civil liability for omission and the relevance of the causation in the imputation of liability are addressed. It is also debated in which measures the public authorities can be held liable for behaviors or discourses out of step with the sanitary rules to fight the coronavirus, taking as an example the case of the earthquake that occurred in the city of L'Aquila, capital of Abruzzo, in Italy. It is investigated whether it is possible to establish a causal link between the conduct of the public agent and the damage suffered by the victims of the Covid-19 pandemic.