Exam 8: Negligence and Strict Liabilitypart Iii: Contracts

Tom's dog has bitten three mail carriers, but Tom can't bear to chain him up.When the dog bites the newsboy, Tom will be strictly liable.

Violation of a statute designed to protect underage, unlicensed drivers, as well as innocent third parties, from the consequences of juvenile car theft and "joy riding," by prohibiting car owners from leaving the keys in their car if the car is unattended, is likely to be characterized as:

All states have enacted workers' compensation statutes that make employers liable to employees for injuries arising out of the course of employment.Because the law imposes this liability without regard to the employer's negligence, it is a form of strict liability.

What activities give rise to strict liability and what defenses are available to strict liability?

In Soldano v.O'Daniels , the court re-examined the common-law rule of nonliability for not taking affirmative action to save someone from peril.The court considered which of the following factors with respect to imposing duties for affirmative action by third parties?

Even if a defendant's own negligent conduct created an emergency, he will not be liable for the consequences of the conduct if he acted with care in the resulting emergency situation.

The plaintiff must prove that the defendant's negligent conduct proximately caused harm to a legally protected interest in order to have a valid negligence action.

As a general rule:

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:

In applying the reasonable person standard, the court takes into account a person's physical, but not mental, handicaps.

In some instances, people may be held liable for injuries they have caused even though they have not acted intentionally or negligently.

If a person's 150-pound sheep dog has a propensity to jump enthusiastically on visitors, the animal's keeper would be liable for any damages done by the dog's playfulness.

Res ipsa loquitur means "the thing speaks for itself" and it permits the jury to infer negligent conduct and causation from the mere occurrence of certain types of events.

If a raccoon gets loose from a cage and harms someone, the owner can escape liability by showing that he took great care to keep the animal confined.

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:

By law, bystanders are always required to help others in peril.

The "but for" test is useful when two or more forces, each of which is sufficient to bring about the harm in question, are actively operating.

Pat and Sally started a charcoal fire for Sally's backyard barbecue and left it uncovered.Then Sally went into the kitchen to make hamburger patties.While Sally was inside, Pat backed up to catch a football and hit the grill, knocking the coals onto his feet.In a pure comparative negligence state, who is liable?

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

The rule which permits the jury to infer both negligent conduct and causation from the mere occurrence of certain events is: