M7 Contributory Negligence Part I

Overview of the Defense of Contributory Negligence

  • The defense of contributory negligence shifts the legal focus from the defendant's actions to the conduct of the plaintiff.

  • The plaintiff is defined as the person who was injured in the accident.

  • This defense is used to mitigate or bar the plaintiff's recovery based on their own role in causing the harm they suffered.

Requirements for Proving Contributory Negligence

  • To successfully establish a defense of contributory negligence, two primary elements must be demonstrated:

    • 1. Negligent Conduct of the Plaintiff:

    • The plaintiff must have acted in a way that is legally classified as negligent.

    • This necessitates showing that the plaintiff had a specific duty to act reasonably under the circumstances.

    • It must be proven that the plaintiff breached this duty by failing to act as a reasonable person would have.

    • 2. Causation of Harm:

    • The plaintiff's negligence must be a direct contributor to the resulting injury.

    • Actual Cause: The plaintiff's negligence must be the actual cause of the harm.

    • Proximate Cause: The plaintiff's negligence must also be the proximate cause of the harm that occurred.

The Analytical Framework: Mirroring Negligence

  • The analysis used for determining contributory negligence directly mirrors the structure of a standard negligence analysis.

  • Methodological Consistency: The process for evaluating whether a plaintiff's conduct was reasonable is identical to the process for evaluating a defendant's conduct.

  • The Reasonable Person Standard: In both scenarios, the court applies the objective standard: "What would a reasonable person have done under the circumstances?"

Distinct Differences Between Defendant and Plaintiff Negligence

  • While the analytical method is the same, there is a fundamental distinction regarding the target of the duty of care:

    • Defendant's Negligence: This involves a failure to exercise due care to protect other people from harm.

    • Plaintiff's Contributory Negligence: This involves a failure to exercise due care to protect oneself from harm.

Foundational Legal Precedent

  • The first reported case to recognize and formally establish the defense of contributory negligence is Butterfield v. Forrester.

  • Students should review Butterfield v. Forrester to gain a deeper understanding of the origins and application of this legal doctrine.