Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978

The Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978^[1] (c. 47) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978^[1]

Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to make new provision for contribution between persons who are jointly or severally, or both jointly and severally, liable for the same damage and in certain other similar cases where two or more persons have paid or may be required to pay compensation for the same damage; and to amend the law relating to proceedings against persons jointly liable for the same debt or jointly or severally, or both jointly and severally, liable for the same damage.
Citation	1978 c. 47
Dates
Royal assent	31 July 1978
Commencement	1 January 1979
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The act repealed the relevant common law and made new provision for contribution between persons who are jointly or severally, or both jointly and severally, liable for the same damage and in certain other similar cases where two or more persons have paid or may be required to pay compensation for the same damage; and to amend the law relating to proceedings against persons jointly liable for the same debt or jointly or severally, or both jointly and severally, liable for the same damage.

The core principle of the act is set out in section 1(1):

Subject to the following provisions ... any person liable in respect of any damage suffered by another person may recover contribution from any other person liable in respect of the same damage (whether jointly with him or otherwise).

Application

The act applies to England, Wales and Northern Ireland.^[2]

Interpretation

In Mouchel Ltd v Van Oord (UK) Ltd (No 2) [2011] EWHC 1516 (TCC) it was held that "contribution" is not limited to a contribution in respect of damages. In Birse Construction Ltd v Haiste Ltd.,^[3] Roch LJ pointed out that the word in section 1(1) of the Act "is 'damage', not 'damages', and the two things are quite different. Damages are the financial compensation for the damage, whatever it is that is sustained".^[4]

In Rahman v Arearose Ltd [2001] QB 351 it was held that the "same damage" meant the kind of indivisible injury as arises under common law in a case of concurrent torts. This was affirmed in Nationwide Building Society v Dunlop Haywards (DHL) Ltd [2009] EWHC 254 (Comm).

In Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association v Allgemeines Krankenhaus Viersen GmbH [2022] UKSC 29, [2022] 3 WLR 1111 the Supreme Court held that the Act did not have extra-territorial effect.

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