The Samaritan’s dilemma and the duty to rescue under Maltese law

Abstract

Nothing in this world is quite as precious as human life and the law at best should be aimed at actively preserving it and at worst should not discourage anyone conscientious enough to put all else aside to try and protect it. This is precisely the subject matter of this thesis, an analysis on how Maltese law deals with the duty to rescue on the one hand and the newly promulgated Good Samaritan Law on the other. Malta does not have a general duty to rescue and before Act XXIX of 2020, which introduced what is commonly known as the Good Samaritan Law, the good soul, personified in the fictional Samaritan, who voluntarily and gratuitously lent a helping hand, was held liable for damages caused both to the person or property of the person rescued as well as to those of third parties. This piece of legislation thus filled in a lacuna much to the benefit of conscientious rescuers. In this study the author first examines the position of the rescuer under the various legal systems as well as the situation in Malta prior to the enactment of the said Act. Against this background, the limelight is then shifted on domestic legislation, particularly the Merchant Shipping Act with regards to the duty to rescue and to the Maltese Civil Code where the Good Samaritan Principle was introduced under Article 1033A. An analysis of various quasi-contracts including ‘negotiorum gestio’ which deals with the managing of the affairs of another, were examined alongside Maltese judgements and parliamentary debates to try and understand why the need for the enactment of the Good Samaritan law was felt, how the protections it affords the rescuer were not previously found under the laws available prior to its promulgation and whether the aims it set out to achieve have been reached. In conclusion the author mulls overs queries that still exist and hints at ways the present law can be bettered.