Special duty rules (pt3) DUTY LIMITED BY THE NATURE OF THE PRIMARY HARM Flashcards
Zone of danger ( in the context of duty not to negligently cause emotional distress).
A defendant is liable for damages if his negligent conduct proximately causes fright to a plaintiff in the immediate area of physical danger created by the negligence and results in the plaintiff sustaining physical injuries.
How is the zone of danger proven and how is recovery framed?
To prove it, the following needs to be met: (1) that the defendant should have realized that his conduct involved an unreasonable risk to the plaintiff, (2) that plaintiff was present at the scene of an injury-producing, sudden event, (3) and that plaintiff was in the zone of danger, i.e., placed in reasonable fear of physical injury to his or her own person.
- To recover damages in a negligent infliction of emotional distress action as a bystander to the death or serious bodily injury of another the plaintiff must prove that she was located at or near the scene of the incident, was emotionally injured by the contemporaneous sensory observance of the accident and was related to the victim by blood or marriage (There MUST be a breach of legal duty).
Could economic harm be argued in the context of negligence?
No, a private individual may not recover damages for economic loss suffered from a public nuisance if the loss is commonly suffered by members of the community
