Battery is the intentional tort of harmful or offensive physical contact without consent. In the medical context it provides a distinct cause of action from negligence: a physician who performs a procedure to which the patient gave no consent at all, or who performs a substantially different procedure from the one consented to, may be liable in battery regardless of whether the treatment was performed competently.
Canadian law confines battery in the medical setting to cases of no consent or fundamentally exceeded consent. Where the patient consented to the procedure but alleges that the disclosure of risks was inadequate, the claim sounds in negligence under the informed consent framework rather than in battery. The distinction matters: battery does not require proof of a separate injury caused by inadequate disclosure, and its limitation and damages analysis can differ from a negligence claim on the same facts.
Posts tagged Battery analyze Ontario decisions involving treatment without consent or beyond the scope of consent, and the line between battery and a negligent informed consent claim.
OPSDT accepts joint submission for permanent resignation after physician surreptitiously drugged a patient/employee with Rohypnol and Lorazepam, then self-administered to evade detection.
A 17-day birth injury trial. Battery, informed consent, five negligence allegations, and causation all addressed and rejected. A multi-ground defence dismissal.
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