Epidemiologic Causation in Toxic TortLitigation in Taiwan

In recent years, toxic tort litigation has increasingly emerged as a viable legal response toenvironmental pollutions in Taiwan. However, plaintiffs, i.e., victims of environmentalpollutions, often face various legal hurdles in suchlitigation, one of which is the difficulty facedby plaintiffs in proving causation between the actions of the defendant and the injuries sufferedby the plaintiffs. In response, various court decisions in Taiwan have begun incorporating theidea of epidemiological causation to adjust theburden of proof between plaintiffs and defendantsas a potential remedy. This article examines this developing trend. It first introduces thedefinition, characteristics, and legal hurdles for toxic tort litigation in Taiwan, followed by anoverview of the idea of epidemiological causation, as well as a compilation of court decisionsadopting such idea of causation. Finally, the articlelists several legal issues that the court maypotentially encounter for adopting epidemiological causation. In conducting these analyses, thearticle attempts to expand existing jurisprudential understanding of the idea of epidemiologicalcausation.

Keywords:Tort, Toxic Tort Litigation, Epidemiologic Causation, Burden of Proof, ReasonableProbability, Reasonable Medically Certaint

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