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Negligence in Tort: Duty, Breach, Causation, and Damages Elements

Four elements of negligence: duty, breach, causation, and damages including reasonable person standard and proximate cause for law exams.

10 cards· by GuruOwl

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  1. 01
    To establish a prima facie case for negligence, a plaintiff must prove: duty, breach, causation, and damages.
    The standard of proof for these elements is a preponderance of the evidence.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Negligence
  2. 02
    What is the default standard of care in a negligence action?
    The care that a reasonably prudent person of ordinary prudence would exercise under the same or similar circumstances.
    This is an objective standard that does not account for the defendant's individual mental or physical shortcomings.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Standard-of-Care
  3. 03
    How is the standard of care adjusted for children in negligence cases?
    A child is held to the standard of a child of like age, intelligence, and experience.
    This is a subjective-objective hybrid standard, unlike the purely objective adult standard.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Standard-of-Care
  4. 04
    Under the Hand Formula, a breach occurs if the burden of precaution (B) is less than the probability of harm (P) multiplied by the gravity of loss (L).
    Formula: B < PL.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Breach
  5. 05
    What are the two requirements for a statute violation to constitute negligence per se?
    1. The plaintiff is in the class of persons the statute was intended to protect; and 2. The harm is the type the statute was intended to prevent.
    Negligence per se establishes duty and breach as a matter of law.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Negligence-Per-Se
  6. 06
    Actual cause is typically established by the but-for test, but if there are multiple sufficient causes, the substantial-factor test applies.
    Actual cause (cause-in-fact) must be established before moving to proximate cause.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Causation
  7. 07
    What is the test for Proximate Cause (Legal Cause)?
    Whether the harm was a reasonably foreseeable result of the defendant's conduct.
    Proximate cause is a policy-based limitation on liability for remote or highly unusual consequences.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Causation
  8. 08
    What are the three elements of Res Ipsa Loquitur?
    1. The accident is of a kind that does not normally occur without negligence; 2. The instrumentality was in the defendant's exclusive control; and 3. The plaintiff did not contribute to the injury.
    Res ipsa loquitur allows the jury to infer negligence even without direct evidence of a specific act.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Breach
  9. 09
    Unlike intentional torts, nominal damages are unavailable in negligence; the plaintiff must prove actual injury.
    Negligence requires a showing of real economic or non-economic loss to be actionable.
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Damages
  10. 10
    Distinguish between Contributory and Comparative Negligence.
    Contributory negligence is a complete bar to recovery; Comparative negligence reduces recovery by the plaintiff's percentage of fault.
    Most jurisdictions have moved from contributory to comparative negligence (either pure or modified).
    Flashify::Law::Torts::Defenses