Exam 8: Negligence and Strict Liability

In determining the duty of care owed by a defendant using the reasonable person standard, the court will consider which of the following factors?

What is the reasonable person standard? How is it applied to each of the following types of people? a. Children b. Persons with physical disabilities c. Persons who are mentally retarded d. Professional people with advanced degrees and training, such as doctors, lawyers, and accountants e. Persons acting in emergency situations f. Persons who violate statutory duties

Stan doesn't like having neighborhood teenagers walk across his yard at night. He rigs an animal trap on the path the teenagers usually use to cross his land. One night, Tim and his friends are walking across the yard when Tim gets caught in the trap. He is taken to the hospital for his injuries. Stan:

If an intervening cause is deemed to be a superseding cause, it does not relieve the defendant of liability for that harm.

Under the Restatement  Second   Torts: Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm , a licensee for purposes of tort law is a person invited upon land as a member of the public or for a business purpose.

Express voluntary assumption of the risk is a defense to an action based upon strict liability.

Assume you are the judge in the Palsgraf case. a. Analyze the fact situation in terms of the elements that need to be proved in a negligence case. b. Why did Mrs. Palsgraf lose the case? What in the fact situation makes it difficult to establish a prima facie case of negligence?

Under the Restatement Third, Torts: Liability for Economic Harm , the harmed party may recover monetary damages for unjustifiable litigation.

Under the Restatement  Third   Torts: Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm , possessors of land:

A defendant will be liable for all harm that can be traced back to the defendant's negligence.

If negligence of the plaintiff and negligence of the defendant proximately caused the injury and damage sustained by the plaintiff, the plaintiff can recover some damages in those states where contributory negligence is still recognized.

Analyze and then discuss why the reasonable standard of care differs for different categories of individuals. Is there any logic on which to base these differences because of societal need and expectations? Does justice demand a different result? Why would the courts make these distinctions?

Mark is out sailing in his boat one evening when he hears a young girl crying for help in the middle of the lake. Which of the following is true?

A form of strict liability applies to all except which of the following situations?

While comparative negligence is generally not a defense in a strict liability case, contributory negligence generally is a successful defense.

Compliance with a legislative enactment or administrative regulation does not prevent a finding of negligence if a reasonable person would have taken additional precautions to avoid harm.

William, who is a waiter, is injured when an unopened bottle of cola explodes in his hand while he is putting it into the restaurant's cooler. If William wants to sue the bottling company for his injuries:

Sarina goes to Marlin's Department Store to look for clothes. The store happens to be in the process of remodeling, and there is a lot of clutter in the aisle. Sarina trips over the clutter and is injured. Under the Restatement  Second   Torts: Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm , Sarina's status with regard to the store is that of:

Under the Restatement  Second   Torts: Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm , the duty of a possessor of land to persons who come on the land usually depends on whether those persons are:

The duty of employers includes the duty to exercise reasonable care in hiring, training, supervising, and retaining employees. This duty is independent of the vicarious liability of an employer for an employee's tortious conduct during the course of employment.