Chapter 7: Negligence and strict liability

When applying the "flexibility" analysis, the most important factor is the _________ of the harm.

reasonable foreseeability

Negligence law assesses the conduct of an individual based on the _____.

reasonable person test

Liability irrespective of fault or without fault is known as _____ liability.

strict

The following activities can be treated as abnormally dangerous and subject to judicially imposed strict liability: _________. (Choose three correct answers)

stunt flying blasting crop dusting

A defendant's violation of ordinances, administrative regulations, and statutes may create a breach of duty which may allow a plaintiff to win a case under _____.

the doctrine of negligence per se

Generally, in negligence cases requiring proximate cause _________.

the parties must assume the existence of an actual cause.

If a defendant owes a plaintiff a duty of care, then whether the defendant satisfies or breaches that duty depends upon the application of the _________.

the reasonable person test

Contributory negligence in negligence cases refers to a(n) _________.

plaintiff's failure to exercise reasonable care for his or her own safety

Donald drives his car at a high speed on a crowded street and hits Melanie who collapses in front of his car due to a sudden black out. Melanie sustains a major injury and incurs expenses worth $150,000. If the court finds that Donald is at 70% fault and Melanie is at 30% fault, calculate the damages Melanie would recover if pure comparative negligence defense is applied to this case.

$50,000

Deborah sues Mike for injuring her during a basketball tournament. If the jury awards a total of $100,000 in damages in a state with mixed comparative law defense, and apportions Deborah with 55% of the fault she will recover: $_______.

0

Identify an example that illustrates a breach of duty.

A car driver ignores a traffic signal and injures a pedestrian who was crossing the road.

Assume the following: (1) Atlas Corp., a construction company, constructs Funday, an amusement park. (2) Atlas Corp. enters into a partnership with Zeta Corp., a fun ride manufacturer. (3) Zeta Corp. supplies poorly designed rides to Funday because Atlas Corp. refuses to purchase technologically advanced rides, (4) Consequently, the rate of mishaps inside the park increases. Given this scenario what is the most likely result?

Atlas Corp. will be charged with liability because the mishaps were foreseeable.

Identify the two general types of invitees to whom property owners owe a duty. (Choose two correct answers).

Business visitors Public guests

Casey, a neurosurgeon, prescribes a course of medication to her patient, Ralph. However, she forgets to check Ralph's medical history. She later realizes that the current medication will have a detrimental effect on his health. She does not acknowledge her mistake for fear of being sued. Identify a true statement about this scenario.

Casey will be held liable for neglecting her duty of reasonable care.

What kind of damages are generally recoverable for property damage to a car?

Compensatory damages are recoverable in negligence litigation for property damage.

A true statement about the availability of compensatory damages in negligence cases would be that _______.

growing numbers of courts allow recovery for foreseeable emotional harms that stand alone.

Identify the factors that are involved in establish liability for negligence. (Choose three correct answers.)

Intervening causes Proximate causes Actual causes

Match the persons to whom property owners owe duty (left column) to their descriptions (right column).

Invitees ----- They include business visitors and persons using government or municipal facilities, attendees of church services, etc. Licensees ----- They enter a property for their own purposes and not for a purpose connected with the possessor's business. Trespassers ----- They enter a land without its possessor's consent and without any other privilege.

In the scenarios below, choose who is entitled to recover compensatory damages in a negligence case.

Plaintiffs who have experienced personal injury and have proven all elements of a negligence claim

________ concerns arise when it seems unfair to hold a defendant liable for all the injuries actually caused by his breach—no matter how remote, or bizarre they are. (Choose two correct answers)

Proximate cause Foreseeability

Assume Rico uses a stolen car, dumps it at a beach during high tide, and the car moves deeper into the sea with the retreating water, getting completely wrecked. Assume further Rico did not intend to destroy the car, but the high tide was foreseeable. What result?

Rico is liable for the car's wreckage because the occurrence was foreseeable.

Assume Rob rides his bike at a high speed on a narrow road an he loses control over his bike and collides with Mark's car. If Mark sustains a major injury due to the collision the actual cause of Rob's injury is ________.

Rob's breach of duty by riding at a high speed

Amy notices that Jim is drowning. She makes an effort to rescue him. During the process, Jim's leg hits a rock and gets fractured. Jim files a case of negligence against Amy. What would be one of the main criteria a court would consider in analyzing this case?

The context in which Amy acted to rescue Jim.

Identify the elements necessary to validate a negligence claim. (Choose two correct answers.)

The defendant commits a breach of his or her duty to the plaintiff. The defendant owes a duty of care to the plaintiff.

Match the elements of a negligence claim (in the left column) to their descriptions (in the right column).

The first element of a negligence claim ----- The duty to exercise reasonable care The second element of a negligence claim ----- The requirement on the part of a plaintiff to establish that a defendant failed to act as a responsible person

Choose all the factors that are considered when analyzing a negligence case. (Choose two correct answers)

The social utility of a defendant's conduct The seriousness or magnitude of a foreseeable harm

An example that illustrates a licensee would be that _________.

Tom, a salesperson, enters the property of the Bakers to sell a new garden equipment.

Liability for negligence does not exist where ________.

a causation link between breach and injury is absent

Generally, an intervening causes in negligence litigations _________.

absolves a defendant of liability for harms that result directly from her actions.

Both _______ and _______ are necessary for a negligence recovery. (Choose two correct answers)

actual cause proximate cause

A contract that purports to relieve a defendant of a duty of care she would otherwise owe to a plaintiff is known as ____________.

an exculpatory clause

According to negligence law, the risk created by a defendant's conduct need only be __________.

an unreasonable one.

A plaintiff's voluntary consent to a known danger is referred to as __________.

assumption of risk

Traditionally, __________ has been a defense in cases involving abnormally dangerous activities.

assumption of risk

Adam joins a fitness club, Zenith. Prior to admission, the club warns Adam of the possible dangers associated with the training. but Adam voluntarily consents to it. During a training session, Adam fractures his leg and sues the club for negligence. In this scenario, Zenith could defend against the lawsuit by proving a(n) _______.

assumption of risk defense

Joyce is the caretaker of three-month-old Robert. She takes him to a park in his carriage and forgets to pay attention to him when she gets busy with her friends. In this scenario, Joyce's failure to pay attention to Robert can be classified as a(n) _____.

breach of duty

Proving that the defendant ________ does not guarantee the plaintiff will win a negligence case.

breached a duty

In many states, traditional common law defenses have been superseded by two new defenses to negligence: ________.

common law comparative fault comparative negligence

Negligence law is sensitive to the _______ in which the defendant acted.

context

Clara volunteers to work extra overtime at Kiddos Corp., a toy manufacturing company. During her shift, Clara injures herself as a result of fatigue and carelessness. She sues Kiddos Corp. for compensation for her injuries. If the court rules in favor of Kiddos Corp for $100,000 and awards Clara $0, the state would have a(n) _______ defense.

contributory negligence

The common law traditionally recognized two defenses to negligence: _______. (Chose TWO correct answers)

contributory negligence assumption of risk

The traditionally recognized defenses to negligence include: _______. (Choose two correct answers.)

contributory negligence assumption of risk

Under the doctrine of strict liability in negligence cases, a(n) __________.

defendant is liable even though he or she did not bring it about through recklessness.

According to the Restatement of Torts, a defendant's breach of duty is not the legal cause of a plaintiff's injury if __________.

it appears highly extraordinary to a court that the breach would have brought about an injury

Rick, a real estate agent, is warned by Carla, his client, to be careful when he visits her home for their appointment because her dog does not like strangers. Assuming this scenario, Rick would be classified as a(n) ______.

licensee

A plaintiff's injuries may take the form of economic loss such as ______ or ______ but which have no connection to personal injury or property damages. (Choose two correct answers)

lost profits out-of-pocket expenses

A conduct that falls below the level reasonably necessary to protect others against significant risks of harm is called _________.

negligence

Courts typically hold that a defendant owes no duty to those who are ________ victims of the defendant's actions.

not foreseeable

Negligence law does not require ________.

people to protect others against all foreseeable risks of harm.

Identify the circumstances that require a defendant to owe a duty of reasonable care toward a plaintiff. (Check all that apply.)

If a special relationship exists between the plaintiff and the defendant that logically calls for a duty of reasonable care If the plaintiff is among those who will foreseeably be at risk of harm stemming from the defendant's activities

Identify the factors on which the outcome of negligence cases depends. (Check all that apply.)

If a defendant breached a duty of reasonable care If the requisite causation link between a defendant's breach and a plaintiff's injury is established

According to the doctrine of negligence per se, identify the conditions that may make a defendant liable. (Choose two correct answers.)

If a plaintiff is within the class of persons intended to be protected by a statute or other law If a plaintiff suffers harm of a sort that a statute or other law was intended to protect against

Assume Sharon and Laura argue during a practice session at the gym and as Sharon tries to balance herself on a balancing beam, Laura knocks her down. If as a result of the fall, Sharon sustains an injury to her ankle what would be the actual cause of Sharon's injury?

Lara knocking down Sharon from a beam

Jeff often walks through Samantha's backyard without her permission. Samantha warns him to stay away off her property. Assume that Samantha places a set of spikes at the entrance of the backyard and Jeff gets injured when he tries entering again. What is the best result?

Samantha owes a duty of reasonable care to Jeff since his presence was known.

To prevail in a negligence case, the plaintiff must prove the defendant breached a legal duty and that the breach ________.

caused her injuries

A possessor of property must exercise reasonable care for the _______ of his invitees and must take appropriate steps to protect an invitee against _______ on-premises conditions. (Choose two correct answers)

dangerous safety

Until fairly recently, most courts would not allow a plaintiff to recover damages for _______ allegedly resulting from a defendant's negligence.

emotional harms

An event management company organizes a rock concert. It sets a condition with every ticket purchase whereby the event organizers cannot be held liable for any mishap that may occur during the concert. In this scenario, the condition set by the event management company can be called a(n) __________.

exculpatory clause

One of the noteworthy characteristics of the reasonable person test is its ________.

flexibility

The "reasonable person" test has a noteworthy characteristic: __________.

flexibility

Perhaps the most important factor(s) in determining whether a duty was owed by the defendant to the plaintiff is the concept of: ________. (Pick TWO correct answers)

foreseeability the existence of a special relationship

If the later act, force, or event was ________, the defendant will not be relieved of liability.

foreseeable

In negligence cases, a personal injury is ________.

harm to a plaintiff's body

A possessor of property has a duty to protect an invitee against dangerous _______ conditions that she knows about, or reasonably should discover, and that the invitee is _______.

on-premises

Under traditional distinctions, an obligation of a possessor of property towards trespassers would be that she _________.

owes a duty not to willfully and wantonly injure trespassers once their presence is known.

In a negligence case, _____ cause concerns the required degree of closeness or proximity between a defendant's breach and the injury it actually caused.

proximate

Lilly and her friends regularly play soccer in a field located next to Larry's backyard. If Lilly retrieves the ball whenever it lands in Larry's backyard, Lilly can be classified a(n) _____ under traditional distinctions.

trespasser

A significant number of courts have limited defendant's liability to plaintiffs whose injuries: __________.

were the natural and probable consequences of defendants actions

A few courts have limited a defendant's liability for unforeseeable harms to plaintiffs who were: ___________.

within the scope of the foreseeable risk