Ch. 7 Flashcards
negligence
occurs when someone suffers injury because of another’s failure to live up to a required duty of care
What 4 things must a plaintiff prove to succeed in negligence action?
(1) Duty. that the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff. (2) Breach. that the defendant breached that duty. (3) Causation. that the defendants breach caused the plaintiffs injury. (4) Damages. that the plaintiff suffered a legally recognizable injury.
duty of care
people are free to act as they please so long as their actions do not infringe on the interests of others
business invitees
retailers and other firms explicitly invite persons to come on their premises
malpractice
if a professional violates his or her duty of care toward a client
causation in fact
if the injury would not have occurred without the defendants action. “but for” the wrongful act, the injury would not have occurred
proximate cause
the connection between an act and an injury is strong enough to justify imposing liability
What are the three basic affirmative defenses in negligence cases?
(1) assumption of risk (2) superseding cause (3) contributory and comparative negligence
assumption of risk
(1) knowledge of the risk (2) voluntary assumption of the risk
superseding cause
an unforeseen intervening event occurs to break the connection between the wrongful act an injury, thus it relieves a defendant of liability for injuries caused by the intervening event
contributory negligence
no matter how insignificant the plaintiffs negligence was relative to the defendants negligence the plaintiff would be precluded from recovering damages
comparative negligence
the plaintiffs and the defendants negligence is computed and the liability for damages is distributed accordingly
res ispa loquitor
the facts speak for themselves
