Culpa

Culpa simply means fault (generally the omission of some act) which leads to legal liability for the immediate consequences. It may arise under a contract, especially where many of the obligations of the parties are left to implication—e.g. in the contract of carriage of passengers; or from the mere relative position of parties, as where a member of the public, or a neighbour, is injured by the negligent use of property. The distinction between culpa and breach of contract, while theoretically clear, is practically difficult; and accordingly the opinion of a jury is constantly required to ascertain whether fault has been committed in the execution of a contract.