Negligent Tort Under the Law the General

¶ … Negligent Tort

Under the law the general public is entitled to a certain amount of protection. This is because everyone is expected to provide safeguards for the people they are dealing with. When there is an accident, the odds are high of a particular party becoming the subject of possible tort litigation. In the case of negligent tort, the other party unintentionally violated the standard duty of care. This is defined as someone who is acting within reason to ensure that everything is safe. Once some fails to follow these basic guidelines, is when this will increase the odds that they could be the subject of a negligent tort claim. ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010) ("Standard of Care," 2012)

Proving Negligent Tort

To prove any kind of negligent tort, the plaintiff must demonstrate that the defendant violated several different criteria. To include: the duty to protect, the actual injury, breach of duty and legal / factual causation. These different elements are important, because if these areas can be proved in court is when the defendant will be liable for their actions. ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010)

As far as the duty to protect is concerned, this is when the individual party must do everything in their power to safeguard anyone from being harmed from reckless behavior. This means that the other party cannot engage in some kind of activity that could cause someone to become injured because of their actions. For example, if a pharmacist fills the wrong prescription. They can be held liable for not protecting their customer. ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010)

Actual injury is when the plaintiff must demonstrate that they were physically harmed from the incident. This includes everything ranging from: physical injuries to emotional distress that other party is going through. Moreover, the loss or damage to property will fall under this category. ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010)

The breach of duty is when the other party fails to practice reasonable standards of care to protect others. This means that the actions of this individual were such that: they resulted in or posed a threat of possible injury / damage occurring. Once this has been demonstrated, is the point that it will be easier for the plaintiff to make their case. ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010)

Legal / factual causation is when there must be a connection between the above three elements. This will allow the plaintiff to successfully demonstrate, that the other party has breached their legal responsibilities. This is when they can fully demonstrate that the defendant is negligent (which entitles them to some form of compensation). ("Elements of Tort Negligence," 2010)

Remedies