Negligence - Std. of Care for Specific Classes of Defendants

Question 1

Common Carriers & Innkeepers

Answer 1

Common Law - Both held to the highest duty of care consistent w/ the practical operation of the bus.

• Can be held liable for slight negligence

Majority - Common carriers held to high std. but innkeepers liable only for ord. neg.

Third Rest. Approach - both must exercise reas. care toward their passengers and guests

• Duty based on the special rel.

Question 2

Auto Drivers

Answer 2

Majority - Owe ord. care to guests and passengers (those who get econ. ben. for the ride)

Minority

• Guest statutes distinguish the two
• Impose duty to refrain from gross or wonton misconduct with a guest in the car

Question 3

What is a Bailment ?

Answer 3

A person (bailee) temp. takes poss. of another’s (bailor’s) personal prop.

Question 4

Bailors Standard of Care

Answer 4

Gratuitous bailee - Duty to inform only of known dangerous defects in personal prop.

Bailee for Hire - Duty to inform of defects that are known or should have been known by bailor had he used reas. diligence

Question 5

Bailee’s Duty

Answer 5

If bailor gets the sole benefit from the bailment

• bailee has lesser duty to care for the prop
• Liable only if he has been grossly negligent

If bailee gets the sole benefit from the bailment

• Must exercise extraordinary care for bailor’s prop.
• liable for slight negligence

Mutual Benefit Bailment - reasonable care

Question 6

Emergency Situations - Standard of Care

Answer 6

Reasonable Person in the same situation

• Less may be expected of reas. prud. pers.
• Only if Defendant’s conduct didn’t cause the emergency

Question 7

Who is a trespasser?

Answer 7

One who enters or remains on the land of another without consent or privileg to do so

• Doesn’t matter how they got on the land
• Mistake doesn’t change their status

Question 8

Trespassers - Traditional Approach

Answer 8

Landowner is oblig. to refrain from willful, wanton, reckless or intentional misconduct towards the trespasser

Question 9

Can land owner use deadly force against a trespasser?

Answer 9

No not directly or indirectly

• Can’t use spring guns or traps
• Will lead to liab. for the land possessor
• Can’t do indirectly what he would be forbidden to do directly

Question 10

Trespassers - Traditional Approach

Discovered Trespassers

Answer 10

Must warn or protect them from concealed, dangerous, artificial conditions

• No duty to warn of natural cond.
• No duty to warn of artificial cond. that don’t involve risk of death or serious bodily harm

Question 11

Trespassers - Traditional Approach

Undiscovered Trespassers

Question 12

Who is an Invitee?

Answer 12

1. Business Visitor OR
   
   • Invited on land to for purp. of bus. dealing with the land possessor
2. Public Invitee
   
   • Any pers. in public space - place held open to pub. at large

Question 13

What is the duty owed by land possessors to an invitee ?

Answer 13

Duty of reasonable care, including:

• reas. care to inspect the prop
• Discover unreas. dangerous conditions AND
• Protect invitee from them

Non-delegable duty - land owner still liable even if hires indep. contractor to maintain

Question 14

What is the effect if an invitee stays beyond the scope of the invitation ?

Answer 14

Duty of reas. care owed to the invitee doesn’t extend past the scope of the invitation

• Invitee is treated as a trespasser

Question 15

Invitees - Recreational land use

Answer 15

Some Jurisdictions

• Land possessor who opens his land to the pub. for rec. purp
  
  • Not liab. for injuries of others
  • so long as didn’t charge a fee to use his land
  • Unless, he acts willfully and maliciously or gross neg. (in some juris)

Question 16

Who is a Licensee?

Answer 16

Someone who enters the land of another with express or implied permission or with privilege, includes:

1. Social Guest
2. Those whose presence is tolerated by the land poss.
   
   • e.g. children who routinely cut across his land
3. Emergency Personnel
   
   • Police, firefighters etc.

Question 17

What is a landlord’s liability ?

Answer 17

No duty to land tenants

• Exceptions:
  
  • Condition is in a common area (lobby)
  • D negligently repairs the prop.
  • LL knows of concealed conditions at the time of lease and doesn’t warn
  • LL knows that tenant is going to hold the prop. open to pub. at large

Question 18

What is a tenant’s liability ?

Answer 18

As poss. of land, tenant is liable for injuries to third parties arising from dangerous conditions w/in the tenants control

Question 19

What is the duty owed to an Off-premises Victim?

Answer 19

Landowner doesn’t owe duty to pers. not on the prem. who is harmed by a natural condition on the landowner’s premises

• Exception - Trees in urban areas

Artificial Conditions - landowner owes duty to prevent unreas. risk of harm to pers. who aren’t on the prem.

Question 20

What duty does a seller of real property owe?

Answer 20

Owe duty to disclose to buyers those concealed and unreas. dang. cond. known to the seller

• Cond. that buyer is unlikely to discover with reas. inspection
• Seller’s liab. cont. until buyer has reas. opp. to discover and remedy the defect

Question 21

The Duty of Care Owed by a land possessor for liability depends on what ?

Answer 21

The status of the visitor:

1. Invitees
2. Licensees
3. Trespassers

Question 22

What is the duty owed by land possessors to a licensee ?

Answer 22

Land Poss. has a duty to:

1. Correct or warn licensee of concealed dangers that are
2. Known or should be obvious to her
3. must exercise reas. care in conducting activities on the land
4. NO duty to inspect for dangers

Question 23

What is the key to analyzing land possessor liability?

Answer 23

Status of the Plaintiff in the specific area the injury occurred

• Status can change mult. times w/in same facility

Question 24

If a land possessor is performing activities on their land, what duty is owed?

Answer 24

Duty of reasonable care is owed to any person on the land

• Except for unknown trespassers

Question 25

To whom does a landowner have a duty to search out dangers on the property?

Answer 25

Invitees

Question 26

What are the elements of an attractive Nuisance ?

Answer 26

A land possessor may be liable for injuries to children trespassing on the land if:

1. An artificial cond. exists in a place where the land possessor knows or has reason to know children are likely to trespass
2. Land possessor knows or has reason to know the condition poses an unreas. risk of death or serious bodily injury to children
3. Child is too young to appreciate the danger
4. The utility to land poss. of maintaining the cond. & the burden of elim. the danger are slight compared to the risk of harm presented to children AND
5. land poss. fails to exercise reas. care to protect children from the harm

Question 27

If the doctrine of attractive nuisance applies, what duty is owed ?

Answer 27

Child is treated as an invitee and owed a duty of reasonable care

Question 28

What is the duty of a land poss. to a plaintiff on adjacent land if an artificail condition exists on their land ?

Answer 28

The land possessor owes a duty of reasonable care to the plaintiff

Question 29

What is the duty of a land possessor to plaintiffs on adjacent land if a natural condition exists on their land?

Answer 29

There is no duty