Act on the Liability of Public Bodies and Their Officers (Liability Act) (Haftungsgesetz) - Principle

1. As public entities, this law applies to the canton, the municipalities, the corporations, and the other legal entities of cantonal public law.

2. As officials of the public entities, this law applies to

1. the members of the authorities and commissions;

2. the officials and employees who have a public or private legal relationship with the public entity;

3. the other persons entrusted with a public task.

1. This Act does not apply

1. insofar as the liability of the community and its officials is regulated by federal law;

2. insofar as there are divergent cantonal liability provisions.

1. The state is liable for damage unlawfully inflicted on a third party by its official in the performance of a non-commercial official duty.

2. If an order or decision is amended in appellate proceedings, liability exists only to the extent that an official of the lower instance acted with intent or gross negligence.

3. The state is liable for damage resulting from incorrect information provided by its official only to the extent that its official acted with intent or gross negligence.

4. The third party has no claim for damages against the official.

1. If lawful conduct causes damage to a third party, the public entity is liable only if the legislation provides for it.

2. The public entity is liable for personal injury caused by lawful police measures suffered by uninvolved individuals or persons used by the police who are not disturbers in the sense of the Police Act.

3. For other damages incurred by the persons mentioned in paragraph 2 due to lawful police measures, the public entity is liable if it is unreasonable to expect the injured party to bear the damage themselves and if the police measure was not necessary for their protection or the protection of their property.

4. The public entity is equally liable if damage arises from lawful actions of the public entity serving to avert an emergency, especially a disaster.

5. These obligations are void if the injured party is grossly at fault for the occurrence of the damage.

1. If the damage is caused by the officials of several municipalities, the municipalities shall be jointly and severally liable to the third party.

2. Whether and to what extent recourse can be taken among the involved municipalities shall be determined upon the lawsuit of the municipality that must provide compensation to the third party; the recourse action must be filed with the administrative court within one year from the acknowledgment or judicial determination of the obligation to pay damages.

1. The District Administrator may issue regulations requiring all or certain municipalities to insure themselves against liability consequences.

1. The official is liable for the damage he causes to the community through intentional or grossly negligent violation of his duties.

1. If the public authority has compensated the third party for the damage, it may seek recourse against the official if the official caused the damage through intentional or grossly negligent breach of their duties.

2. The public authority must promptly inform the official, who is threatened with recourse, of any claim for damages made against the public authority.

1. If multiple officials have jointly caused the damage, they are liable to the community jointly in cases of intent, and proportionately according to the degree of their fault in cases of gross negligence.

2. Unless they prove otherwise, members of an authority are presumed to have participated in its actions.

1. Liability of the Official is Asserted

1. by the District Council against members of the District Council and the commissions elected by it, against members of the Executive Council, judicial authorities, as well as the administrative authorities of independent cantonal institutions;

2. by the Executive Council against members of the administrative councils of municipalities and corporations, as well as the administrative authorities of municipal associations;

3. by the administrative authority of the concerned community against other officials.

1. Privately employed or commissioned persons are liable to the community in accordance with the provisions of private law.

1. For the assessment of the liability of the public community, the civil court authorities are responsible within the scope of Article 15.

2. For the assessment of the liability of the official, the administrative court is responsible; if members of the administrative court are to be held liable, the civil division of the superior court takes the place of the administrative court.

1. Insofar as this law does not provide its own regulations, the provisions of the Code of Obligations are accordingly applied as supplementary law.

2. Applicable in particular are the provisions of the Code of Obligations regarding the determination of damages, the exclusion of liability in the event of contributory negligence by the injured party, and the assessment of compensation for damages, as well as the provision of satisfaction.

1. The legality of formally legally binding orders and decisions may not be reviewed.

2. In the assessment of recourse claims by the state against the official, the judge is not bound by the judgment regarding the liability of the state.

1. The liability of the public entity toward the third party is extinguished if the third party does not assert the claim for damages in writing to the administrative authority of the relevant public entity within one year of becoming aware of the damage, or in any case, within ten years from the date of the injurious conduct.

2. If the administrative authority disputes the claim, the third party must file a lawsuit with the competent court in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure within six months from the receipt of the notification; the lawsuit may also be filed if no settlement is reached within six months from the assertion of the damage in accordance with paragraph 1.

1. The Liability of the Official towards the Community expires if the community does not assert the claim for damages within one year from the acknowledgment of the damage, or the right of recourse within one year from the acknowledgment or judicial determination of its obligation to pay damages, in any case within ten years from the day of the damaging conduct, before the administrative court.

1. The deadlines pursuant to Art. 15 para. 1 and Art. 16 are suspended as long as criminal or disciplinary proceedings are conducted concerning the same set of facts.

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1. This law does not apply to claims for damages that were asserted before its entry into force.

1. This law enters into force upon adoption by the Landsgemeinde; the possibility of appeal to the Federal Supreme Court according to Art. 18 sec. 2 comes into force after approval by the Federal Assembly.