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22 October 2009 / Richard Scorer
Issue: 7390 / Categories: Features , Personal injury
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Casualties of war

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Richard Scorer examines a hidden epidemic suffered by British soldiers

The possibilities for civil compensation for soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are currently bedevilled by several legal limitations.

The first is “combat immunity”: while the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has a duty of care as employer of soldiers, no such duty arises in battlefield situations. A soldier does not owe a fellow soldier a duty of care in tort when engaged with an enemy in the course of combat. The MoD is not under a duty at common law to maintain a safe system of work for service personnel engaged in combat.

“Combat” has an extended meaning, and covers all active operations against the enemy: attack and resistance, advance and retreat, pursuit and avoidance, reconnaissance and engagement. Due to combat immunity, a claim cannot be brought against the MoD simply because a serviceman or woman suffers PTSD as a result of combat experiences.

The claimant has to identify a negligent failure on the part of his employers to diagnose and treat

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