Negligence

Negligence

Law relating to the duty of care.

Elements of negligence

Duty of care, breach of a duty of care, causation, injury loss or damage.

Duty of care

The obligation of the defendant to ensure the safety of the plaintiff.

Breach of a duty of care

Occurs when a person fails to act as a reasonable person would.

Causation

The requirement that the harm was directly caused by the breach of duty.

Injury, loss or damage

The plaintiff must prove suffering of injury, loss, or damage to seek legal remedy.

Defences to negligence

Contributory negligence and assumption of risk.

Impact on plaintiff

Loss of life, serious physical injury, loss of wages, effect on mental health, unemployment, permanent physical incapacity.

Impact on defendant

Loss of business, public humiliation, costs, physical injury, needs to sell assets, effect on mental health.

Possible remedies

Compensatory damages, special damages, general damages, aggravated damages.

Compensatory damages

Money awarded to a plaintiff for harm, injury, or losses suffered.

Special damages

Damages for loss that can be accurately measured in monetary terms.

General damages

Damages for loss that cannot be accurately measured in monetary terms.

Aggravated damages

Money awarded for extreme humiliation, embarrassment, or insult suffered by the plaintiff.