[Brief facts of the case].
At about 15:00 on August 22, 2020, the defendant Xiao Zhang (11 years old) went to find the victim Xiao Wang (9 years old), and then the two found Xiao Li (9 years old), and the three of them played at Xiao Li's house. After that, the three of them made an appointment to go to the Taojiang River to play, on the way Xiao Zhang met his mother, after staying for a few minutes, Xiao Zhang lied that he was going home, and then came to about 100 meters downstream of the old bridge in Jifu Village with Xiao Wang and Xiao Li. At about 16 o'clock, Xiao Li accidentally slipped after entering the water, Xiao Wang stretched out his hand to pull him, and then the two drowned together. After Xiao Zhang found that Xiao Wang and Xiao Li were drowning, after finding the passerby Cao Moumou, Cao Moumou immediately called the police. After that, the XXX Township rescue team salvaged the bodies of Xiao Wang and Xiao Li. Subsequently, the plaintiff and the defendant failed to negotiate on the matter of compensation, resulting in this lawsuit.
It was also ascertained that Xiao Zhang's legal guardians were his parents, Lao Zhang 1 and Lao Zhang 2Xiao Li's parents are Lao Li 1 and Lao Li 2.
Court decision
In accordance with Articles 6, 16 and 32 of the Tort Liability Law of the People's Republic of China, and Articles 17, 18, 27 and 29 of the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Personal Injury Compensation Cases, the judgment is as follows:
1. Defendants Xiao Zhang, Lao Zhang1 and Lao Zhang2 shall, within one month from the effective date of this judgment, compensate the plaintiffs Lao Li 1 and Lao Li 2 for funeral expenses, death compensation, spiritual solace and other losses totaling RMB 12284783 yuan;
2. The other litigation claims of plaintiffs Lao Li 1 and Lao Li 2 are rejected.
[Lawyer Zhang Xiaobin's comment].
Juveniles or adult mentally ill persons are unable to "voluntarily participate" in civil activities because they lack capacity for civil conduct. In order to achieve equality of civil capacity, it is necessary to implement remedies for lack of civil capacity. Guardianship is such a relief system for persons lacking civil capacity, and persons with no or limited capacity for civil conduct can indirectly participate in civil legal relations through guardianship.
The Civil Code stipulates that the parents of minors are the guardians of minors. Parents have parental authority over their children and are the natural first guardians. The duties of the guardian are mainly to protect the health of the ward, take care of the ward's life, discipline the ward, protect and manage the ward's property, conduct civil activities for the ward, conduct litigation for the ward, and bear the civil liability of the guardian.
With regard to the civil liability borne by the guardian, the Civil Code stipulates that if a person who lacks or has limited capacity for civil conduct causes damage to others, the guardian shall bear the civil liability. Where a guardian has fulfilled his guardianship responsibilities, his civil liability may be appropriately reduced. If the ward has property at the time of assuming the liability for compensation, the compensation fee shall be paid from his or her own property. The guardian shall compensate for the shortfall.
Specifically, in this case, the defendant Xiao Li, as a person with limited capacity for civil conduct, drowned while playing with other minors, and his guardian (Xiao Li's parents in this case) failed to fulfill his guardianship duties and bore primary responsibility. Xiao Zhang and the victims, Xiao Wang and Xiao Li, are all persons with limited capacity for civil conduct, but Xiao Zhang is two or three years older than the victims Xiao Wang and Xiao Li, and his awareness of the dangers of playing in the water is obviously higher than that of the victims Xiao Wang and Xiao Li; However, Xiao Zhang did not effectively stop it, but played in the water together, which eventually led to the drowning of Xiao Wang and Xiao Li. Xiao Zhang was at fault for Xiao Li's death and should bear a certain amount of liability for compensation, and the court approved that he should bear 15 liability. As an 11-year-old Xiao Zhang, he had no property to compensate, so the court ruled that his legal guardian (parents) was liable for compensation.
[Legal Provisions].
Article 1165 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China stipulates: "Where an actor infringes upon the civil rights and interests of others and causes damage due to his fault, he shall bear tort liability. Where it is presumed that the actor is at fault in accordance with the provisions of law, and he cannot prove that he is not at fault, he shall bear tort liability. ”
Article 1188 stipulates: "Where a person who lacks or has limited capacity for civil conduct causes harm to others, the guardian shall bear tort liability. Where guardians perform their guardianship duties, their tort liability may be reduced. Where a person with property who lacks or has limited capacity for civil conduct causes harm to others, compensation is to be paid from his or her own property; The guardian shall compensate for the shortfall. ”
[Conclusion].
In order to cool off in the summer, many teenagers choose to swim in swimming pools, or even run to open waters such as outdoor ponds, rivers, and reservoirs to play and play in the water. Since there is no adult to supervise and there are no relevant safety protection measures, as guardians, parents should take responsibility for education and guardianship, continue to strengthen children's summer safety education, and enhance children's awareness of drowning prevention; At the same time, the relevant functional departments should also strengthen the investigation of potential safety hazards, do a good job in the safety and security of young people, and prevent the occurrence of youth drowning incidents.
[Case**].
China Judgments and Judgments (2020) Gan 0722 Min Chu No. 26xx Civil Judgment of the People's Court of Xinfeng County, Ganzhou City, Jiangxi Province.