Fundamental Questions of Compensation Law and Practical Applications

The liability for incorrect information gains significance through the division of information provision prior to the conclusion of a contract. The resulting disadvantages are usually pure financial losses, which are only exceptionally compensable outside of a legal special relationship. If the incorrect information originates from external third parties, the question arises whether an alternative basis for liability supports the compensation for the mere financial losses of the information recipients.

This work addresses the fundamental questions of compensation law regarding informational liability towards third parties in its general part and introduces a new tort-based liability approach based on § 1300 S 1 of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB). In the special part, this liability approach is applied to practical cases of non-contractual informational liability, including liability for property appraisals, confirmation statements, balance sheets, capital market prospectuses, and ratings.