In law, ''volens'' is a state of mind, referring to voluntary acceptance of a specific risk. It is usually pleaded by way of defence, and often employs the legal Latin ''

volenti non fit injuria ''Volenti non fit iniuria'' (or ''injuria'') (Latin: "to a willing person, injury is not done") is a common law doctrine which states that if someone willingly places themselves in a position where harm might result, knowing that some degree of h ...

''. The term ''volens'' itself is often used in contradistinction to the terms ''

sciens In law, ''sciens'', the Latin word for "knowlingly", describes a state of mind. It refers to knowledge of a fact, usually of a specific risk. It is usually pleaded by way of defence. For example, where a claimant suffers a personal injury, the ...

'' (meaning mere knowledge of the risk, without any voluntary assumption of it). The effect of the defence varies from country to country. In some countries it is (or can be) a total defence to show that the

claimant A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the ...

knew and accepted the risk of the injury in undertaking their course of conduct. In other countries it can give rise to a partial defence of

contributory negligence In some common law jurisdictions, contributory negligence is a defense to a tort claim based on negligence. If it is available, the defense completely bars plaintiffs from any recovery if they contribute to their own injury through their own negl ...

. In

contract law A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

, many clauses in

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

s which at first appear to be

exemption clause An exclusion clause is a term in a contract that seeks to restrict the rights of the parties to the contract. Traditionally, the district courts have sought to limit the operation of exclusion clauses. In addition to numerous common law rules limi ...

s relating to

personal injury Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. In common law jurisdictions the term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit in which the person bringing the suit (t ...

(which are in many countries invalid by lawSee for example the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

) are in fact phrased so as to demonstrate that the person signing the contract was aware of and voluntarily accepted the risk of personal injury, which may then subsequently establish a successful ''volenti'' defence.

Footnotes

{{Italic title Latin legal terminology