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PDF Test Bank For Essentials of Business Law and The Legal Environment 11Th Edition Richard A Mann Online Ebook Full Chapter
PDF Test Bank For Essentials of Business Law and The Legal Environment 11Th Edition Richard A Mann Online Ebook Full Chapter
PDF Test Bank For Essentials of Business Law and The Legal Environment 11Th Edition Richard A Mann Online Ebook Full Chapter
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Test Bank for Essentials of Business Law and the Legal Environment, 11th Edition: Richard A.
TRUE/FALSE
1. A blind person will be held to the standard of care of the reasonable blind person rather than that of the
reasonable sighted person for purposes of determining negligence.
2. In applying the reasonable person standard, the court takes into account a person's physical, but not
mental, handicaps.
3. A "reasonable person standard" does not apply to children since they do not have the judgment,
intelligence, knowledge, or experience of adults.
4. The standard of conduct which is the basis for the law of negligence is usually determined by a
cost-benefit or risk-benefit analysis.
5. In the majority of states, in a case of negligence per se, the plaintiff would only have to prove violation
of a statute in order to show negligent conduct.
6. A reasonable person, as used in the law of torts, is a fictitious individual who is always careful,
prudent, and never negligent.
7. The general rule for the standard of care used in tort law is: a person is under a duty to all others at all
times to exercise reasonable care for the safety of other persons and their property.
8. 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.
9. In most of the states, a sixteen-year-old who drives a car will be held to the same standard of care in
driving as an adult for purposes of determining negligence.
10. Liability for the negligent conduct of a defendant requires not only that the conduct in fact caused
injury to the plaintiff but also that it was the proximate cause of the injury.
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room use.
ANS: T PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
11. A defendant will be liable for all harm that can be traced back to the defendant's negligence.
12. All intervening events that occur subsequent to the defendant's negligent conduct will relieve the
defendant of liability.
13. 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.
14. The Love v. Hardee’s Food Systems, Inc. case dealt with the responsibility of the owner or possessor
of property to an invitee to warn of, remove, or barricade a dangerous condition of the premises.
15. 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.
16. A violation of a statute constitutes negligence per se regardless of whether the injured party is a
member of the class protected by the statute.
17. In some instances, people may be held liable for injuries they have caused even though they have not
acted intentionally or negligently.
18. 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.
19. 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.
20. Under the Second Restatement, the owner of land is liable to adult trespassers for failure to maintain
the land in a reasonably safe condition.
22. A widely applied test for causation in fact is the "but for" rule.
23. 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.
24. If an intervening cause is deemed to be a superseding cause, it does not relieve the defendant of
liability for that harm.
25. A tiger gets loose from the tent of a circus and mauls a passerby. The circus claims it has always
treated the animal well and that it was not at all negligent in its handling of the animal. The circus has
no liability for the injury caused by the animal.
26. 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.
27. 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.
28. Express voluntary assumption of the risk is a defense to an action based upon strict liability.
29. Ray is informed that his six-year-old child is shooting in the street with a handgun. Ray fails to take
the gun away from the child. The child unintentionally shoots Bill, a pedestrian. Ray is liable to Bill.
30. Under the Second Restatement, a licensee for purposes of tort law is a person invited upon land as a
member of the public or for a business purpose.
31. Under the Second Restatement, a possessor of land has a legal duty to warn business invitees of
obvious dangers that invitees should be able to discover themselves.
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as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website for class-
room use.
32. 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.
33. In determining a defendant's liability for negligence, his or her superior skill or knowledge will be
attributed in applying the reasonable person standard, thus increasing the chance that the defendant
may be held liable.
34. If a defendant acts under emergency conditions, these conditions will be taken into account in applying
the reasonable person standard.
36. There is an established rule in the law of torts that even one who has not created a peril has a duty to
take affirmative action to assist an imperiled person, no matter what the relationship with that person,
when the imperiled person can be saved from harm at little or no personal risk to the rescuer.
37. Robert, a salesperson for Brightway Home Products, made a sales call at the Todds’ house. The Todds
have no duty of care toward Robert regarding the condition of their property since Robert was not an
invitee or a licensee.
38. Res ipsa loquitur makes it easier for the defendant to prevail in a negligence action.
39. In the majority of states, a defendant is liable for negligently inflicted emotional distress, even in the
absence of resultant physical harm.
40. Even though contributory negligence is proven by a defendant in a state in which it acts as a complete
bar to recovery, the plaintiff may still recover if the defendant had the last clear chance to avoid the
injury.
41. Because of the harshness of the all-or-nothing contributory negligence rule, nearly all states have now
substituted the last clear chance doctrine for contributory negligence.
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as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website for class-
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42. 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.
43. Some states have today merged the implied assumption of risk doctrine into their comparative
negligence systems.
45. While comparative negligence is generally not a defense in a strict liability case, contributory
negligence generally is a successful defense.
46. A number of states have abolished or modified the defense of implied assumption of risk.
48. Under the Second Restatement, a possessor of land must warn licensees of dangerous conditions of
which the possessor has knowledge and the licensees do not and which they are not likely to discover.
49. A duty to act is imposed on those whose innocent conduct has injured another and left him helpless
and in danger of further harm.
50. There are no defenses available for strict liability; it is imposed absolutely.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. 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. Mark must help the girl or he will be liable for negligence.
b. Mark must help the girl only if he knows her.
c. Mark must help the girl if he is the girl's uncle.
d. Mark must help the girl if he begins to rescue her and increases her danger.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
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2. By law, all apartment buildings in the state where Mary lives must have smoke alarms in the ceilings.
Mary suffers smoke inhalation because the smoke alarm in her apartment building was not yet
installed. To win a negligence action against the building owner, Mary would have to prove:
a. a duty existed toward her.
b. a breach of that duty.
c. injury and causation.
d. All of the above.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
3. Which of the following is correct with respect to the reasonable person standard?
a. It makes allowance for mental deficiency.
b. It makes allowance for physical disability.
c. It applies an individualized test to children that takes into consideration the child's age,
intelligence, and experience.
d. Two of the above, (b) and (c).
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
4. If Janice, while driving her car, negligently runs into Paul, a pedestrian who is carefully crossing the
street, Janice is liable for:
a. physical injuries Paul sustains from the collision because Janice’s negligent conduct
proximately caused harm to a legally protected interest.
b. offensive contact if her side mirror brushes against Paul, even if there are no physical
injuries to him.
c. offensive contact if her car touches Paul’s coat, even if there is no damage to the coat.
d. All of the above.
ANS: A PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
5. The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur would permit the court to infer negligence in which of the following
situations?
a. A ladder rung broke under the weight of a worker's foot.
b. A sign over a storefront fell on your head.
c. A dead tree limb overhanging the sidewalk fell onto your head.
d. (a) and (b).
e. (b) and (c).
ANS: E PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
6. Chris was driving a car with defective brakes very slowly down Fifth Avenue looking for a parking
place. Mindy jumped out into the street five feet in front of his car. Chris could not help but hit her.
What is Chris's best defense to the charge of negligence?
a. Mindy had a mental deficiency.
b. He was not negligent since he did not have a statutory duty to keep his brakes in top
condition.
c. Mindy crossed in the middle of the street, which is against the law.
d. He was lawfully seeking a parking place and did not see her jump out.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
7. Henry was burning leaves in his backyard. One of the burning leaves was lifted by the wind into Bob's
yard next door. It landed on the lawnmower which exploded, setting fire to the wooden lawn furniture.
Henry's best argument against liability to Bob would be:
a. the leaf was not a substantial factor in causing the damage.
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b. the gasoline in the lawnmower is a superseding cause of the damage.
c. it was not foreseeable that the lawnmower would explode.
d. the damage was not caused by the leaf but by the gasoline.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
8. An action for negligence consists of which of the following elements which the plaintiff must prove?
a. Injury.
b. Res ipsa loquitur.
c. A reasonable person.
d. All of the above.
ANS: A PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
9. Joe intentionally pushed Bill into a fence negligently erected by Sam around Sam's swimming pool.
The fence caved in and Bill nearly drowned. Who is liable?
a. Sam because of his negligent conduct.
b. Sam because Joe's conduct would be foreseeable.
c. Joe because of his intentional intervening conduct.
d. Sam and Joe because they both contributed to the harm.
e. Under the Third Restatement, the determination of liability is an issue for the factfinder in
a lawsuit.
ANS: E PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
10. 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?
a. Sally is liable for ALL of Pat's injuries.
b. Sally is liable for Pat's injuries in proportion to the degree of fault or negligence found
against her.
c. Sally is not liable for any of Pat's injuries.
d. Sally is liable for Pat's injuries only if Pat was more negligent than Sally.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
11. Which of the following would not be considered an abnormally dangerous activity, subjecting the
person who carries it out to strict liability?
a. Pile driving.
b. Transmitting gas through a gas pipe.
c. Collecting water in a dangerously large quantity.
d. Emitting noxious fumes in a subdivision.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
12. Cal sprayed pesticide on his crops in a very careful manner on a windless day. Nevertheless, some of
the pesticide spray fell on his neighbor's side of the fence and contaminated the cracked corn for the
chickens. The chickens died and the neighbor sues. What is the likely result?
a. Cal is not liable because he was not negligent in his spraying operation.
b. Cal is not liable because the neighbor assumed the risk of damage to the feed by placing it
so close to the fence.
c. Cal is liable because spraying pesticides is an abnormally dangerous activity.
d. Cal is not liable for the damage because of contributory negligence.
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as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website for class-
room use.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
13. If a statute is found to be applicable to a fact situation, then the courts will hold that an unexcused
violation of that statute which causes an injury to another is:
a. strict liability.
b. res ipsa loquitur.
c. negligence per se.
d. assumption of the risk.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
14. The legal doctrine upon which Justice Cardozo based his decision in the Palsgraf case is the doctrine
of:
a. res ipsa loquitur.
b. foreseeability.
c. negligence per se.
d. assumption of the risk.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
15. Which of the following is/are considered in determining the application of the reasonable person
standard?
a. Physical disability.
b. Superior skill or knowledge.
c. Emergency circumstances.
d. All of the above are considered.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
16. The rule which permits the jury to infer both negligent conduct and causation from the mere
occurrence of certain events is:
a. proximate cause.
b. res ipsa loquitur.
c. causation in fact.
d. comparative negligence.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
17. 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:
a. he will lose, because it will be impossible for him to prove that the bottle was
overpressurized by the bottler.
b. he will lose, because the bottling company has no duty to him.
c. he will probably win if the court allows him to use the res ipsa loquitur doctrine.
d. he will win based on the last clear chance rule.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
18. 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 Second Restatement, Sarina's status with regard to the store is that of:
a. licensee.
b. business visitor.
c. public invitee.
d. trespasser.
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ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
20. Barb 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. Barb trips over the clutter and breaks her leg.
Under the Second Restatement, what standard of care does the store have toward Barb under the
circumstances?
a. None, because she came to the store voluntarily.
b. The store owes her a duty of only ordinary care, because she is a trespasser.
c. Because she is a public invitee, the store must warn her of hazards of which the store
knows but which Barb is not likely to recognize.
d. Because Barb is a business visitor, the store must exercise reasonable care to protect her
against dangerous conditions she is unlikely to discover.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
21. A(n) __________ is a sudden, unexpected event calling for immediate action, that is considered when
determining whether conduct was reasonable in a negligence lawsuit.
a. res ipsa loquitur.
b. duty to act.
c. emergency.
d. None of the above.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
22. The local supermarket has a large, glass front door which is well lighted and plainly visible. Nelson,
who is new in the neighborhood, mistook the glass for an open doorway and walked into it, shattering
the door and injuring himself. Under the Second Restatement, the store:
a. is strictly liable to Nelson.
b. is not liable to Nelson since the door was well lighted and plainly visible.
c. would be liable under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur.
d. has no duty to Nelson.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
23. 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:
a. has the right to strongly discourage anyone from trespassing, and Tim was a trespasser.
b. has no duty toward Tim.
c. is not free to inflict intentional injury on a trespasser.
d. All of the above.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
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room use.
24. Seventeen-year-old Brice has just received his driver's license. He is driving a little too fast one day
and slams into the back of another car, which has just stopped for a stop sign. In most states:
a. since Brice is engaging in an adult activity, he will be held to the same standard as an
adult.
b. since Brice is a minor, he will have no responsibility for his torts.
c. Brice's parents are responsible for any torts he commits.
d. Two of the above, (b) and (c).
ANS: A PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
25. In determining the duty of care owed by a defendant using the reasonable person standard, the court
will consider which of the following factors?
a. The existence of emergency conditions.
b. A physician's training and years of experience.
c. A person's severe mental retardation.
d. (a) and (b), but not (c).
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
26. 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:
a. negligence per se.
b. res ipsa loquitur.
c. contributory negligence.
d. assumption of risk.
ANS: A PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
27. The harshness of the contributory negligence doctrine has been mitigated by:
a. the last clear chance rule.
b. comparative negligence.
c. assumption of risk.
d. (a) and (b), but not (c).
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
28. A form of strict liability applies to all except which of the following situations?
a. A lawnmower sold in a defective condition that injures its owner.
b. A fireworks factory that blows up and injures townspeople and their property.
c. Abnormally risky medical procedures.
d. A herd of goats that walk onto a neighbor's property and trample and eat the neighbor's
roses.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
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room use.
30. 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?
a. The examination and balancing of intervening causes and physical capabilities.
b. The financial duties of victim to rescuer.
c. Moral blame attached to the defendant's conduct and the policy of preventing future harm.
d. Moral blame attached to the victim's conduct.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
31. Arnie negligently stopped his car on the highway. Beth, who was driving along, saw Arnie's car in
sufficient time to attempt to stop. However, Beth negligently put her foot on the accelerator instead of
the brake and ran into Arnie's car. In this case:
a. Arnie's contributory negligence will prevent his recovery from Beth in all jurisdictions.
b. Beth had the last clear chance to avoid the accident and will bear legal responsibility for it.
c. Arnie has assumed the risk of the accident.
d. because both parties were negligent, in a state that follows the pure comparative
negligence doctrine, both parties will share the liability for their injuries.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
32. While driving his car five miles over the speed limit, Carl struck Darla, who was jaywalking across the
street. When the case came to trial, the jury determined that Carl was 40% negligent and that Darla
was 60% negligent. Darla's injuries are $10,000. If this accident occurred in a state following the
modified comparative negligence theory of recovery, Darla will:
a. recover $10,000.
b. not recover anything.
c. recover $6,000.
d. recover $4,000.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
33. Chris and Bev just purchased a house and twenty acres. They now have the right to use that property:
a. for their own benefit and enjoyment in any manner they choose.
b. for their own benefit and enjoyment as long as they do so in a reasonable manner.
c. exercising reasonable care to protect others who are not on the property.
d. Both (b) and (c).
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
34. Garnett, who was driving too fast for conditions, collided with a truck carrying explosives. The truck
was unmarked, so Garnett had no way of knowing what it contained. The collision caused an
explosion, which shattered glass in a building a block away. The glass injured Ida, who was working
inside the building. John, who was walking down the street near the site of the collision, was seriously
burned as a result of the explosion. In this case:
a. Garnett's negligent driving is the proximate cause of Ida's injury.
b. Garnett's negligent driving is the proximate cause of John's injury.
c. both Ida and John are within the zone of danger of the collision.
d. All of the above.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
37. Which of the following is a defense that a defendant could raise in an action based on strict liability?
a. The plaintiff negligently failed to observe a sign on a highway warning of blasting
operations and was injured from the operations.
b. The owner of a car knowingly and voluntarily parked his vehicle in a blasting zone as a
result of which the car was damaged.
c. A child played with a neighbor's pet raccoon which had escaped from its cage. The child
teased the pet and was bitten.
d. All of the above are valid defenses which would be successful if raised by the defendant.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
38. A ninety-year-old patient walked away from a nursing home and wandered onto some nearby railroad
tracks. Once on the tracks, the patient stumbled and sprained his ankle. A few minutes later a train
approached. The engineer saw the man on the track and could have stopped, but the train's brakes were
defective. As a result, the train hit and killed the man. His family is suing the railroad for negligence in
a state that follows the contributory negligence doctrine. In this case,
a. the patient has assumed the risk of wandering onto the railroad tracks.
b. because the patient was contributorily negligent, the railroad has no liability.
c. the train had the last clear chance to avoid the accident, so the patient's contributory
negligence does not bar his estate's recovery.
d. the train's striking of the man was an intervening cause, so the railroad company was
negligent.
ANS: C PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Reflective Thinking
39. In which of the following situations would a court be likely to find that the witness to the situation had
an affirmative duty to act?
a. Where a pedestrian witnessed an auto accident in which one of the drivers was injured.
b. Where an airline attendant witnessed one passenger threaten another passenger.
c. Where the driver of a car saw a two-year-old toddler wandering in the middle of a busy
street.
d. All of the above are situations where legally there is an affirmative duty to act.
ANS: B PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
40. Under the Second Restatement, the duty of a possessor of land to persons who come on the land
usually depends on whether those persons are:
a. invitees, trespassers, or licensees.
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b. reasonable persons.
c. fiduciaries.
d. involved in abnormally dangerous activities.
ANS: A PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
41. Which of the following are activities that give rise to strict liability?
a. Performing abnormally dangerous activities.
b. Selling defective, unreasonably dangerous products.
c. Keeping animals.
d. (a), (b), and (c) are correct.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
42. A principal factor that the courts consider in determining limitations on the causal connection between
the defendant's negligence and the plaintiff's injury is:
a. negligence per se.
b. unforeseeable consequences.
c. superseding causes.
d. Both (b) and (c) are correct.
ANS: D PTS: 1 MSC: AACSB Analytic
ESSAY
ANS:
An action for negligence consists of the following five elements, each of which the plaintiff must
prove: (a) duty of care (that a legal duty required the defendant to conform to the standard of conduct
established for the protection of others); (b) breach of duty (that the defendant failed to exercise
reasonable care); (c) factual cause (that the defendant’s failure to exercise reasonable care in fact
caused the harm the plaintiff sustained); (d) harm (that the harm sustained is of a type protected against
negligent conduct); and (e) scope of liability (that the harm sustained is within the “scope of liability,”
also called “proximate cause”).
2. What is the difference between contributory negligence and comparative negligence? Why have so
many states adopted comparative negligence?
ANS:
Contributory negligence is a failure of a plaintiff to exercise reasonable care and that legally causes the
plaintiff's harm. It is normally a complete bar to the plaintiff's recovery. Comparative negligence is a
more recent doctrine that allows a jury to apportion fault between parties. States have adopted
comparative negligence to avoid the harshness of the contributory negligence doctrine.
3. What activities give rise to strict liability and what defenses are available to strict liability?
ANS:
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room use.
Strict liability, or liability without fault, arises from (a) performing abnormally dangerous activities,
(b) keeping animals, and (c) selling defective, unreasonably dangerous products. Abnormally
dangerous activities are those that (a) create a foreseeable and highly significant risk of physical harm
even when reasonable care is exercised by all actors and (b) are not a matter of common usage.
Examples include blasting, crop dusting, drilling for or refining oil in populated areas. Trespassing
animals or any action by a wild animal generally causes strict liability for the owner. Merchant sellers
and manufacturers who sell goods in a defective condition unreasonably dangerous to the user or
consumer are held strictly liable. Contributory negligence is not a defense to strict liability. However,
comparative negligence is available in some states for some types of strict liability. Express voluntary
assumption of risk is also a defense to strict liability.
ANS:
a. The elements of a negligence case are: breach of a duty of care, factual cause, proximate
cause, and harm. The railroad porter was assisting a passenger to board the train. That in
itself was not a breach of the railroad's duty to Mrs. Palsgraf. The employee had no way
of knowing that the passenger was carrying explosives in his package. The harm to Mrs.
Palsgraf was not foreseeable from the porter's action in assisting the men onto the train.
Since the harm was not foreseeable, it was not a proximate cause of the harm. Mrs.
Palsgraf was injured and may have had a case against the man carrying the package, but
that did not automatically mean that she had a strong case against the railroad.
b. Mrs. Palsgraf lost because her injury was not a foreseeable result of the action of the
railroad personnel. It is difficult to establish a prima facie case of negligence against the
railroad, because the act of the railroad in helping a passenger to board the train was a
remote cause of the injury which Mrs. Palsgraf sustained.
5. 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
ANS:
The “reasonable person” is a fictitious individual who is always careful and prudent and never
negligent. The reasonable person is a standard of conduct which is external and objective.
a. Children must conform to the standard of a reasonable person of like age, intelligence,
and experience under like circumstances.
b. The standard is that of a reasonable person under like disability.
c. A mentally retarded person is held to the standard of conduct of a reasonable person who
is NOT mentally deficient.
d. Persons who practice a profession are held to the same care and skill normally possessed
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by members of their profession
e. Emergencies are taken into consideration.
f. If the statute is found to be applicable, the majority of courts hold that an unexcused
violation is negligence per se; that is, it is conclusive on the issue of negligent conduct.
6. In responding to the previous question (Question 5), think about and then discuss why in your analysis
the reasonable standard of care differs for the above listed 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?
ANS:
The courts have not been merely arbitrary in coming to the distinctions. The distinctions are based on
what a reasonable person can expect from such individuals, what usually occurs in the majority of
situations, justice, and the perennial fear the courts have of being flooded by cases that have no
solution.
a. Children vary in their capabilities, responsibilities, and what their parents will allow them
to do. Third parties dealing with children who may be negligent deserve some protection.
However, minor children cannot be held to the same standards as adults. Generally, the
third person is aware of dealing with a child and can respond accordingly. In the case of a
child performing an adult activity, a third person's expectation can understandably be that
the child should behave as an adult would.
b. People who deal with others with physical disabilities are generally put on notice by the
physical appearance of the disabled person that they are indeed dealing with someone
whose physical capabilities will be different from those who are not physically
challenged. Therefore, parties dealing with physically challenged people can react
accordingly to protect themselves from harm or at least make adjustments in their actions.
Example: If you left your child at a day care with a caregiver who was confined to a
wheelchair, you would be on notice, assume the risk, that without taking additional
precautions, the provider may not be able to do some physical activities that may be
necessary in some emergencies.
c. Persons who are mentally retarded. In contrast to the above analysis, the fact that persons
who are mentally retarded or otherwise mentally impaired may not be discernible.
Therefore, persons dealing with them may not be on notice of their capabilities. The
courts are concerned also about the floodgates problem: People may use mental
impairment as a defense in the extreme, i.e., "My I.Q. is a few points below what is
average for childcare providers in this country and so I should be excused from all
liability," or "I was under a great deal of stress and suffering from neurosis and so I should
have a lower standard of care ascribed to me."
d. Professional people with advanced degrees. It would be unjust, a windfall of excusable
neglect to ascribe to these people a standard of care lower than their actual knowledge.
e. Persons acting in emergency situations. Emergency situations bring to bear their own set
of factual circumstances that call for immediate judgment of the actions involved. It
would be unjust to ignore the unique pressures, factual circumstances, and human
differences in emergencies and hold people acting in such situations to the same standard
of care as people in calm, reasonable circumstances.
f. Persons who violate statutory duties. We are all held to be knowledgeable of the law,
whether we are actually aware of a particular law or not. If we were not, people could use
as an excuse that they did not know of a law. Once again, the floodgates problem would
raise its head. Also, courts generally defer to legislative judgment in creating statutes. If
the legislature deemed it of societal value to promulgate a particular statute, then the
courts are bound to enforce it. These kinds of statutes are designed to avoid the problems
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of proof of standard of care and breach of duty. The harm is either of such a serious
nature, or so prevalent, that the legislature has seen fit to treat the problem with a
negligence per se statute.
7. Jack is a trucker who makes his living moving modular homes. This is a dangerous business in that the
portions of the houses, when on the truck, are wider than the road lanes. Also, Jack frequently has to
travel much more slowly than the other vehicles on the road. One day Jack, on his way to Atlanta with
a modular home in tow, found himself approaching two trucks coming from the opposite direction
with the words "High Museum Exhibits" on the truck panels. When Jack swerves to avoid a bicyclist,
the High Museum truck runs off the road and tumbles down an embankment. No one is harmed, but
the painting exhibit being transported is damaged. Discuss the various theories of negligence that
might be applied here and why they would be appropriate.
ANS:
The first question that needs to be addressed is whether the plaintiff would be successful using the
strict liability theory or if simple negligence would be appropriate. In discussing strict liability the
student must articulate that Jack was involved in an abnormally dangerous activity. The elements of
what constitutes an abnormally dangerous activity would need to be discussed. The student should
discuss (a) the high degree of risk or harm involved and (b) that the activity is not common.
In discussing simple negligence the question becomes whether meeting the museum exhibit truck was
foreseeable and whether the museum assumes any risk. The bicyclist may be discussed in the context
of whether he would be considered a superseding cause.
8. Robin owns a dog. If there are no applicable statutes, what is her liability for damage if her dog digs
up her neighbor’s prize roses? Would it make any difference if the animal that destroys her neighbor’s
flower garden is her pet pot-bellied pig?
ANS:
Keepers of animals are generally held strictly liable for harm their animals cause by trespassing on the
property of another. However, keepers of dogs and cats are liable only for negligence unless a statute
or ordinance imposes strict liability. Therefore, Robin would be liable if she had been negligent in
allowing her dog to damage her neighbor’s flowers, but would be strictly liable for any damage her
trespassing pig causes.
MATCHING
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