Overview: NC State Tort Claims Act and Defense of Local Environmental Health Specialists (G.S. Chapter 143, Articles 31 & 31A)

When a private individual behaves in a manner that causes harm to another individual’s person or property, the injured person might file a lawsuit seeking monetary compensation for the harm. This basic action in civil law may not be possible, however, when the party that causes the harm is the state government or its agents or employees. Because of a concept called “sovereign immunity,” the state is immune from liability for damages caused by tortious conduct, unless the state expressly consents to be sued. One way to consent to be sued is by enacting legislation that authorizes lawsuits against the state for certain claims. By enacting the State Tort Claims Act (STCA), the state of North Carolina has consented to be sued and potentially held liable for damages caused when persons acting on behalf of the state are negligent. If the state is found to be liable, the Act authorizes the payment of up to $1 million in damages for a claim.

Lawsuits against environmental health specialists (EHS) in local health departments usually involve claims of negligence. When an authorized EHS enforces state public health rules, the EHS is acting as an agent of the state. If a person believes the EHS failed to exercise reasonable care in carrying out his or her duties under the state rules and decides to sue the EHS for negligence, the claim would be brought under the STCA. This document addresses questions local health directors and their attorneys may have about the STCA, with a focus on practical matters associated with the representation of environmental health specialists who are sued for negligence.