Volenti non fit iniuria
No injury is done to one who consents.
Volenti non fit iniuria is a Latin legal maxim providing that no wrong is done to a person who voluntarily and with informed consent agrees to an act that would otherwise be regarded as unlawful.
The principle of volenti non fit iniuria provides that a person who voluntarily and with full knowledge agrees to a particular act or risk may not claim damages or the protection of the criminal law. Consent must be given voluntarily, specifically and without coercion or deception.
This principle is relevant in the law of liability and in criminal law, where it operates as a defence to claims in tort or to criminal liability. It prevents a person who has knowingly assumed a risk from later claiming the status of an injured party and thereby abusing the law.
In practice, the principle is frequently invoked in connection with sports and recreational activities, medical treatment and hazardous work, where the participant has expressly or impliedly consented to the possibility of harm.
“The defendant's counsel argued that the defence of volenti non fit injuria applied, as the plaintiff had voluntarily participated in the boxing match.”
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