The principle of ex turpi causa may be invoked as a defence to many claims in tort. The principle is a recognition that the law ought not to compensate people who have suffered loss in the course of their own wrongful actions, even where the primary cause is attributable to someone else. For example, if I run you down in the getaway car while you are making an escape from the bank you just robbed, it is unlikely that you will be able to sustain an action in negligence against me. However, it isn't impossible. The law does not rule out the possibility that people involved in a joint criminal activity do owe each other a DutyOfCare.
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