Study on Legal Nature of Liability Arising from Negligence in Prenatal Diagnosis: Experience from UK

One of the new technologies of genetic science is pre-natal diagnostic tests to prevent the birth of children with congenital malformations. Physicians and genetic counselors as real person and laboratories and medical centers as legal person in the negligeecs in the case of patients will be laibel. What is important about the physician's liability and health centers due to a negligence in prenatal diagnosis is compensation. The negligence of the physician or health centers, even unintentional, is warranted. In Iran's law, the legal nature of the physician's liability in the negligence of the prenatal diagnosis is strict (non-contractual) and the existence of the contract is not an obstacle prevents compliance with the rules of strict liability in cases where the conditions are met, because the compensation does not include any kind of damage. The effect of the contract on proof of a fault and the method of assessing compensation can be beneficial. Currently, the legal nature of the liability of a physician in the UK legal system is non-contractual according to the rules of the National Services Organization, however, if the contract is concluded, a contractual relationship can be invoked according to the circumstances. In the legal system of Iran and the UK, The legal nature of the liability of the health centers (genetic laboratories) due to a negligence in the prenatal diagnosis occurs in two assumptions, or the damage resulting from the fault of the health center, in which case the health center has a direct or legal liability to the injured, Or the damage that the birth of a disabled child is due to a medical staff negligence, however, From the views expressed in the legal system of Iran and Britain, the theory of corporate negligence and joint liability is accepted as the most complete view, the injured party can file a lawsuit in court.