The Supreme Court restored the compensation of Rs 5 lakhs awarded by the district consumer forum in a medical negligence case after it find ‘eggshell skull’ legal principle was incorrectly applied.
The eggshell skull rule is a common law principle applied in civil litigation.
Essentially, when the offender would be liable for all injuries that might be intensified due to the peculiar conditions of the injured person that the offender might not have known.
Simply put, the defendant would be held responsible for injuries caused to a person when he hit him on the head, even if the victim had a particularly delicate skull or an ‘eggshell’ for a skull.