Striking a balance: Resolving conflicts between the duty of confidentiality and duties to third parties in genetics
Hawkins, NL; Hughes-Davies, T
Date: 1 October 2018
Journal
Legal Studies
Publisher
Cambridge University Press / Society of Legal Scholars
Publisher DOI
Abstract
Genetic information is relevant not only to the patient, but also to their family. Where a patient refuses to share that information with family members, then their legal rights may conflict. This paper focuses on that conflict between the rights of individuals and the rights of third parties. We first examine the nature of the duty ...
Genetic information is relevant not only to the patient, but also to their family. Where a patient refuses to share that information with family members, then their legal rights may conflict. This paper focuses on that conflict between the rights of individuals and the rights of third parties. We first examine the nature of the duty of confidence as it applies in these circumstances, and the extent to which it can appropriately accommodate the familial nature of genetic information. We then consider the situations in which a health care practitioner might owe a third party family member a tortious duty of care. We conclude that in most cases, there will be no duty owed to third parties, but that in certain limited circumstances, a duty of care should arise.
Law School
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
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