You first redid the quiz on all of the elements of Negligence and Intentional Torts. Because these ideas (the elements) are elemental to (ha, sorry about that, it means that they are the basis for) Tort Law you really need to know them well.
Defences to Negligence
Contributory Negligence - at one time society felt that if someone contributed in any way to an accident that they should NOT be able to claim damages - seems a little harsh today, though. So now, if the plaintiff and the defendant are both negligent to some degree then damages are divided between them.
A judge will decide the proportion of negligence for each party and damages are assigned accordingly. For example, a judge finds one driver 75% at fault for driving too fast. The judge finds the other driver 25% for not stopping fully at a stop sign and for not wearing a seat belt.
Voluntary Assumption of Risk - this assumes that reasonable people understand that some risks are associated with certain activities. Defendants must prove that plaintiffs knew the risk involved in their actions and chose to assume that risk. Things like scuba-diving, sky-diving, playing contact sports, etc. have inherent risks.
Also, if you get into a car with a drunk driver, and you KNOW the driver is drunk, and an accident occurs and you get hurt - the judge may reduce the damages awarded to you based on the fact that you assumed a risk by riding with a drunk driver.
Inevitable Accident - sometimes called, "Act of God", certain accidents happen that are really no person's fault. Examples include lightning strikes, high winds, hail. If a tornado picks up a tree and it falls into your path when you're driving and you drive into the ditch to avoid it, you really can't blame anyone.
Vicarious Liability - when a person is held responsible for the actions of someone else. For example, society expects that people who own cars will protect society by loaning the car out only to responsible people. So if you loan your car to someone who crashes it, you may be partly responsible, e.g. my friend's dad's insurance company paid damages to me as the passenger in the car.
This concept applies to the workplace too - the owners of a company may be liable for the safety of their workers and the public who buys their products.
Host Liability - this is a new area of tort law where commercial and social hosts (homes, restaurants, bars) where alcohol is served are being held responsible for guests who drive away drunk and cause accidents.
Commercial Hosts are especially liable for drunk guests, mostly because they supplied the alcohol that got the patrons drunk. Commercial hosts have to follow these rules to reduce liability:
1. Train servers to recognize drunk patrons.
2. Monitor patrons' consumption of alcohol
3. Do not serve drunk guests
4. Ensure a designated driver or taxi ride is available for drunk patrons.
5. Call friends or family to get the drunk home safetly.
6. Take away the patron's keys.
7. Call the police if they try to drive.
Social Hosts - tbcontinued . . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment