Torts Study Guide
TORTS EXAM 2 STUDY GUIDE
NEGLIGENCE
• Negligence: The failure of individuals to appreciate the risks caused by their conduct.
• Synonymous with carelessness did not intend to cause harm to Plaintiff
• To determine whether negligence exists, must ask:
1. Was the Defendant’s conduct unreasonable?
2. Did the Defendant cause the Plaintiff’s injury?
Elements of Negligence:
1. Duty by the Defendant to the Plaintiff
2. Defendant breached the duty of reasonable care
3. Defendant’s actions were the proximate cause (nearest cause/ number of factors that collectively caused the Plaintiff’s injuries) or actual cause (specific factor that caused the Plaintiff’s injuries) of the harm to Plaintiff
4. Plaintiff sustained damages/injuries
• Foreseeability: The capacity for a party to reasonably anticipate a future event/ the extent to which something is predictable.
- Intend the event/result or knew with substantial certainty the result would happen
- Measured by an objective standard (based on conduct and perceptions external to a particular person)
- Factors in Considering Foreseeability
1. Area- physical situation and location in which the event occurred
2. Activity- specific activities going on at the time of the accident/event
3. People- types of people involved in the activities that led to the event/result
4. Preparation- amount of preparation involved in an activity (longer preparation, more likely to foresee possible damages/injuries that could occur
5. Human Nature- kind of behavior usually expected of someone engaged in the kind of activity being examined
6. History- more frequently something has occurred in the past, the more foreseeable it is
7. Sensory Data- eyes, ears, nose, fingers, feet, etc. provide signs of what could happen?
8. Common Sense
REASONABLE PERSON
• Measured by objective standard
• Should possess a certain minimum level of knowledge (understanding gained by actual experience) that enables them to understand the
NEGLIGENCE
• Negligence: The failure of individuals to appreciate the risks caused by their conduct.
• Synonymous with carelessness did not intend to cause harm to Plaintiff
• To determine whether negligence exists, must ask:
1. Was the Defendant’s conduct unreasonable?
2. Did the Defendant cause the Plaintiff’s injury?
Elements of Negligence:
1. Duty by the Defendant to the Plaintiff
2. Defendant breached the duty of reasonable care
3. Defendant’s actions were the proximate cause (nearest cause/ number of factors that collectively caused the Plaintiff’s injuries) or actual cause (specific factor that caused the Plaintiff’s injuries) of the harm to Plaintiff
4. Plaintiff sustained damages/injuries
• Foreseeability: The capacity for a party to reasonably anticipate a future event/ the extent to which something is predictable.
- Intend the event/result or knew with substantial certainty the result would happen
- Measured by an objective standard (based on conduct and perceptions external to a particular person)
- Factors in Considering Foreseeability
1. Area- physical situation and location in which the event occurred
2. Activity- specific activities going on at the time of the accident/event
3. People- types of people involved in the activities that led to the event/result
4. Preparation- amount of preparation involved in an activity (longer preparation, more likely to foresee possible damages/injuries that could occur
5. Human Nature- kind of behavior usually expected of someone engaged in the kind of activity being examined
6. History- more frequently something has occurred in the past, the more foreseeable it is
7. Sensory Data- eyes, ears, nose, fingers, feet, etc. provide signs of what could happen?
8. Common Sense
REASONABLE PERSON
• Measured by objective standard
• Should possess a certain minimum level of knowledge (understanding gained by actual experience) that enables them to understand the