Tort Liability of Hospitals

In recent years, hospitals have undergone changes both in their financial and physical structures. These changes have resulted in a general alteration of the attitude of the courts toward the liability of hospitals for their torts. From a position of almost total immunity the pendulum is rapidly swinging toward liability generally for their negligence. Since most jurisdictions classify hospitals into three types: private, charitable, and public, when determining their liability or particular acts, this article will discuss each of these classes separately.

However, for the sake of convenience, the general rules of liability will be set forth in the discussion of private hospitals.