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Joint liability (and see “several liability”) meaning
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What does Joint liability (and see “several liability”) mean?
In practice, joint liability describes two or more parties sharing a single obligation so that a creditor or claimant may enforce the whole debt or damages against any one of them; payment by one satisfies the common liability to the claimant. It is a descriptive expression used across contract, tort/delict and partnership contexts rather than a single defined term, while rights of recourse between co‑obligors are governed by statute and case law.
Typical uses include co‑borrowers, joint guarantors, partners and joint tortfeasors/concurrent wrongdoers. The paying party will usually have a right to contribution from others: in England & Wales and Northern Ireland under the Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978; in Scotland under the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1940; and in Ireland under the Civil Liability Act 1961. Allocation is commonly by what is just and equitable.
Usage is broadly consistent across the UK and Ireland, though terminology varies. Under the Partnership Act 1890, partners are jointly liable for firm debts in England & Wales and Northern Ireland (and jointly and severally for wrongs), while in Scotland partners are jointly and severally liable.
Compare several liability, where each party is liable only for its own share.
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View the related News about Joint liability (and see “several liability”)
NEWS
UK corporate crime and regulatory update: legal privilege, sanctions, sentencing consultations, cyber offences, enforcement policy, consumer protection, financial services, health and safety, and Brexit reforms—week ending 1 February 2024
In this issue: Brexit Legal privilege in criminal cases Criminal procedure and evidence Appeal and judicial review Sentencing Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Consumer protection and cartels Corporate liability Cybercrime and data protection offences Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Insolvency and Companies Act offences Local authority prosecutions LexTalk®Corporate Crime: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Brexit Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (Consequential Provision) Regulations 2024 SI 2024/80: Exercising powers granted by the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (REUL(RR)A 2023) in the context of Brexit, these Regulations revise 17 items of UK secondary legislation and set aside three others to further the reform of retained EU law. They take...
01 February
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View the related Practice Notes about Joint liability (and see “several liability”)
PRACTICE NOTES
NEC3/NEC4 ECC liabilities and insurance: allocation between Client and Contractor, with Contractor’s All Risks, public and employers’ liability, joint names, subrogation waivers and Option X15 professional indemnity
This Practice Note Explores the allocation of risk and the insurance obligations within the NEC Engineering and Construction Contract (ECC). It identifies the insurances each party is expected to maintain, including Contractor’s All Risks insurance and public liability cover, and indicates the scope of cover to be in place... For wider context on NEC3 and NEC4, and how insurance is addressed under other standard forms, see: Practice Note: NEC contracts—introduction Practice Notes: JCT contracts—insurance, FIDIC contracts 2017—insurance and FIDIC contracts (pre-2017 editions)—insurance This guidance applies to both the NEC3 and NEC4 editions of the ECC. For consistency, the term ‘Client’ is used throughout, aligning with NEC4 usage for the developer/employer (the NEC3 ECC uses ‘Employer’). For defined NEC expressions, refer to Practice Note: NEC contracts—glossary. Where no distinction is made between clause numbers, all clause references in this Practice Note are intended to apply to the corresponding provisions in both the NEC3 and NEC4 versions of the ECC...
21 May
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