Misfeasance, nonfeasance, and malfeasance are types of failure to discharge public

obligations An obligation is a course of action that someone is required to take, whether legal or moral. Obligations are constraints; they limit freedom. People who are under obligations may choose to freely act under obligations. Obligation exists when ther ...

existing by

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

custom Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Norm (social), a r ...

, or

statute A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

. The Carta de Logu caused

Eleanor of Arborea Eleanor of Arborea or Eleanor De Serra Bas ( Sardinian: Elianora de Arbarée / Elianora De Serra Bas, Italian: Eleonora d'Arborea / Eleonora De Serra Bas; 1347— June 1404) was one of the most powerful and important, and one of the last, judges ...

to be remembered as one of the first lawmakers to set up the crime of misfeasance.

Definition and relevant rules of law

When a contract creates a duty that does not exist at common law, there are three things the parties can do wrong: * Nonfeasance is the failure to act where action is required—willfully or in neglect. Nonfeasance is similar to omission. * Misfeasance is the willful inappropriate action or intentional incorrect action or advice. * Malfeasance is the willful and intentional action that injures a party. For example, if a company hires a catering company to provide drinks and food for a retirement party, and the catering company fails to show up, it is considered nonfeasance. If the catering company shows up but provides only the drinks (but not the food, which was also paid for), it is considered misfeasance. If the catering company accepts a bribe from the client's competitor to undercook the meat, thereby giving those present food poisoning, it is considered malfeasance. The rule of law laid down is that an action in contract (''

ex contractu ''Ex contractu'', Latin for "from a contract", is a legal term that indicates a consequence of a contract. ''Ex contractu'' is often used to denote the source of a legal action (often as opposed to ''ex delicto''). It is often said that damages '' ...

'') will lie for any of the three. However, an action in tort (''

ex delicto Ex delicto, Latin for "from a wrong" or "from a transgression", is a legal term that indicates a consequence of a tort, though the phrase can also refer to the consequence of a crime. This is often opposed to ex contractu. See also *Malfeasance *M ...

'') will lie only in misfeasance or malfeasance. The doctrine was formerly applied to certain callings carried on publicly.''R. v. Kilderby'', 1669, 1 Will. Saund. 311, 312 c Currently, the terms misfeasance and nonfeasance are most often used with reference to the conduct of municipal authorities with reference to the discharge of their statutory obligations; and it is an established rule that an action lies in favour of persons injured by misfeasance, by

negligence Negligence (Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate and/or ethical ruled care expected to be exercised amongst specified circumstances. The area of tort law known as ''negligence'' involves harm caused by failing to act as a ...

in discharge of the duty but that in the case of nonfeasance the remedy is not by action but by indictment or '' mandamus'' or by the particular procedure prescribed by the statutes. This rule is fully established in the case of failure to repair public highways, but in other cases, the courts are astute to find evidence of carelessness in the discharge of public duties and on that basis to award damages to individuals who have suffered. Misfeasance is also used with reference to the conduct of directors and officers of

joint-stock companies A joint-stock company is a business entity in which shares of the company's stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their shares (certificates of ownership). Shareholders are ...

. The word is sometimes used as equivalent to

malpractice In the law of torts, malpractice, also known as professional negligence, is an "instance of negligence or incompetence on the part of a professional".Malpractice definition, Professionals who may become the subject of malpractice actions inc ...

by a medical practitioner. Misfeasance in the context of directors who run companies can be deployed to refer to actions that fall below the standard expected and which may be prescribed in legislative provisions.

References

{{EB1911, wstitle=Nonfeasance Legal terminology Tort law