Editing Consent (section)

==Tort==
{{Main|Tort}}
Consent can be either expressed or implied. For example, participation in a [[contact sport]] usually implies consent to a degree of contact with other participants, implicitly agreed and often defined by the rules of the sport.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/rules_and_equipment/4200680.stm  Example of permitted and regulated contact in sport - BBC Sport: Rugby Union: "... you can tackle an opponent in order to get the ball, as long as you stay within the rules."]</ref> Another specific example is where a [[Boxer (boxing)|boxer]] cannot complain of being punched on the nose by an opponent; implied consent will be valid where the violence is '''ordinarily and reasonably to be contemplated as incidental to the sport in question'''.<ref>{{cite AustLII|VicRp|29|1976|litigants=Pallante v Stadiums Pty Ltd (No 1) |parallelcite=[1976] [[Victorian Reports|VR]] 331 at 339 |courtname=auto}}.</ref> Express consent exists when there is oral or written agreement, particularly in a contract. For example, businesses may require that persons [[Digital signature|sign]] a [[waiver]] (called a [[liability waiver]]) acknowledging and accepting the hazards of an activity. This proves express consent, and prevents the person from filing a [[tort]] lawsuit for unauthorised actions.{{citation needed|date=August 2019}}

In [[English law]], the principle of ''[[volenti non fit injuria]]'' ([[Latin]]: "to a willing person, injury is not done") applies not only to participants in sport, but also to spectators and to any others who willingly engage in activities where there is a risk of injury. Consent has also been used as a defense in cases involving [[Death during consensual sex|accidental deaths during sex]], which occur during [[Bondage (BDSM)|sexual bondage]]. ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' (May 23, 1988) referred to this latter example, as the "''rough-sex defense''". It is not effective in English law in cases of serious injury or death.

As a term of jurisprudence prior provision of consent signifies a possible defence (an [[excuse]] or justification) against civil or criminal liability. [[Defendant]]s who use this [[defense (legal)|defense]] are arguing that they should not be held [[legal liability|liable]] for a tort or a [[crime]], since the [[action (philosophy)|actions]] in question took place with the plaintiff or "victim's" prior consent and permission.{{Citation needed|date=May 2009}}