Legal issues in accidents caused by sleepiness

The impact of shift-work on sleep, performance and general health appears to be substantial. The most immediate consequence of night shiftwork is sleep loss. The aim of the present paper is to describe legal cases involving accidents attributed to sleepiness or fatigue, mainly as a consequence of shift-work or prolonged work hours, in the UK, USA and Australia. The paper will describe how legal systems are dealing with such incidents and how this may change in the future. Accidents related to sleepiness may result in criminal prosecution, for example charges of culpable driving. For acts performed while a person is sleeping (e.g., motor vehicle accidents), the legal question of voluntariness may be raised. The issue of employers' liability in such cases is contentious. Special liability regimes are in place to cover employers' liability. Employers may be deemed liable for injuries of third parties caused by wrongful acts of employees committed in the course of their employment. In the future, it is likely that employers will need to take greater precautions to reduce sleepiness and fatigue in the workplace, especially where the risk to public and environmental safety, health and productivity are significant.