Teachers’ duties to report suspected child abuse and tortious liability

Society’s greater awareness of the incidence of and damage caused by child abuse and neglect has led to the enactment in most Australian states and territories of legislation requiring teachers, among others, to report suspicions of abuse. These jurisdictions impose penalties for failure to comply with the mandatory duty, but make no provision for child victims to recover compensation for harm they suffer as a result of a failure to report. This article considers whether the common law provides an avenue for recovery of damages in such circumstances. It also considers whether liability may be incurred in cases where a report is incorrectly made and causes harm to be suffered by a person or persons wrongly accused of child abuse