When people think of the word "negligence", they probably think about small mistakes that people may absentmindedly make on a day-to-day basis, such as a busy employee forgetting to put up a "Wet Floor" sign or a driver texting while driving. However, these 'small mistakes' can have disastrous consequences and can turn a small mistake into legal liability if it causes harm or injury to another person.

Negligence is a legal concept that attributes responsibility to a person (or entity) whose careless action, or lack thereof, causes harm to another. Real world examples of negligence may look like the following: 

• A grocery store employee freshly mops the floor and fails to place warning signs. As a result, a customer shopping in the store slips and injures himself.
  
  • The grocery store has a duty to maintain safe conditions for shoppers. Their failure to warn customers of potentially hazardous conditions could be considered negligence.
    
    • In Ortega v. Kmart Corp., Kmart was found liable for a slip and fall that caused the plaintiff to sustain torn ligaments in his knees. During litigation, Kmart's lawyers argued that their employees did not know about the spill and thus could not be held liable for any injuries. However, the jury sided with the plaintiff, stating that since Kmart failed to demonstrate that the area had been inspected within a reasonable period of time, it could be reasonably inferred that the puddle was there long enough for Walmart employees to have discovered it and cleaned it, a judgement that the Court of Appeal later upheld. In other words, stores have a duty to regularly maintain safe conditions for their customers and a failure to demonstrate regular inspections of the premises could open them up to liability. 
      
      
• A doctor fails to check their patient's medical history and unknowingly prescribes medication that interacts dangerously with their existing prescriptions.
  • If a direct link can be established between the doctor's oversight and the patient's injury, the doctor and/or the hospital can be found liable for negligence.
    
    
• A driver picks up their phone to respond to a text message while driving and strikes a pedestrian crossing the street.
  • Drivers owe a duty of care to others on the road and failing to pay full attention while driving is considered negligence.

In order to prove negligence in a personal injury case, the burden is on the injured party (plaintiff) to demonstrate to the court that all of the following 4 key elements were present:

1. Duty of Care: This means that the defendant had a legal obligation to the plaintiff to act with reasonable care and prudence to avoid causing harm or injury.
   
   • Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co., was a 1928 landmark case which established that the defendant's conduct must create foreseeable risk of harm in order to be held liable for negligence.
     
     
     • The plaintiff, Helen Palsgraf, was waiting to board a train when a man, assisted by railroad employees, was rushing to board a departing train and dropped a bag of fireworks onto the tracks during the process. The fireworks exploded, causing a set of scales at the other end of the platform to topple and injure the plaintiff. The plaintiff subsequently sued Long Island Railroad Company, alleging that the railroad company's employees' negligence in the handling of the passenger and the fireworks was the cause of her injuries. The case was eventually brought to the Court of Appeals of New York, where Judge Benjamin Cardozo stated that while the railroad employees did owe a duty of care to the passenger they were assisting and to anyone else within the foreseeable range of harm, the plaintiff, Helen Palsgraf, was too far removed from the foreseeable area of risk for the railroad company to be held liable for her injuries. 
       
       
2. Breach of Duty: This means proving that the defendant failed to meet the standard of care that a "reasonable person" would exercise in the same situation. 
   • If an entity or person is aware of a risk of harm or injury to another and actively chooses to ignore or refuses to mitigate the risk of harm, this is also considered breach of duty.
     
     
     • In a very famous case, Liebeck v. McDonald's (also known as the hot coffee lawsuit), the plaintiff sued McDonald's after she spilled hot coffee on her lap while adding cream and sugar. The spill caused third degree burns and she required extensive medical treatment, including skin grafts, and caused permanent scarring from the burns. The plaintiff's lawyers showed that McDonald's served coffee at temperatures between 180 and 190 degrees Fahrenheit, 30 to 40 degrees higher than industry standards - and enough to cause third degree burns within seconds. They also provided evidence that McDonald's had received hundreds of complaints about the temperature of the coffee, which means they knew the temperature of the coffee was capable of causing severe burns to their customers. The jury eventually found McDonald's largely liable for serving customers dangerously hot coffee without providing adequate warnings.
       
       
     • In Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Co.,  a 1981 landmark product liability case, the jury also sided with the plaintiff after investigation found that the Ford Pinto's faulty design, which placed the fuel tank behind the rear axle to maximize trunk space, caused the fuel tank to be extremely vulnerable to rear-end collisions. Evidence showed an internal Ford memo that estimated implementing a safer fuel tank design would be more costly than the potential legal and settlement payouts from burn-related injury claims resulting from the Pinto's faulty design, meaning Ford consciously ignored the flaws in their car's design to maximize profits. The jury awarded the plaintiff a substantial settlement, claiming that Ford acted with a "conscious disregard for the safety of consumers".
        
3. Causation: The defendant's breach of duty directly caused the plaintiff's injury or loss.
4. Damages: The plaintiff suffered measurable harm or injury, such as physical injury, property damage, or financial loss. 

How Negligence Claims Evolve

1. The Incident

   • A harmful event takes place—be it a car accident, slip-and-fall, or a medical error.
   • The injured party is left with expenses and possibly long-term emotional or physical repercussions.

2. Evidence Gathering

   • Attorneys and investigators collect all relevant documentation: photos, witness statements, surveillance footage, medical records, and police reports.
   • This step is critical to establishing the four elements of negligence.

3. Negotiation and Potential Settlement

   • Often, the parties involved engage in negotiations. An insurance company may offer a settlement in exchange for dropping the claim.
   • Settlements can be reached relatively quickly if the facts are clear and damages are well-documented.

4. Filing a Lawsuit

   • If negotiations fail or if liability is heavily contested, a lawsuit is filed.
   • During discovery, both sides gather further evidence and build their cases. Eventually, the case may go to trial.

5. Trial and Judgment

   • At trial, the plaintiff must demonstrate that the defendant's breach of duty caused their injuries, and that the injuries have caused them harm that can be measured financially.
   • If successful, the plaintiff may be awarded damages for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses.

Why Does This Matter?

Negligence in personal injury isn't just about obtaining compensation for injuries or holding people accountable for causing harm. While these are critical components of negligence in personal injury, these lawsuits and claims help shape safer communities. When corporations and businesses realize that they can face significant legal (and financial) liability for lax, subpar safety practices, they often find it more cost efficient to enforce stricter safety protocols, such as installing safety mechanisms in cars or purchasing wet floor signs, than to deal with the aftermath of a potential negligence lawsuit. This plays an essential role in protecting the public and incentivizing companies to conduct their business in a responsible manner. 

Need Legal Representation?

If you believe you've been injured due to someone else's negligence, our law firm is here to help you navigate the legal landscape. We'll guide you step by step, from gathering evidence to securing the compensation you deserve—all while you focus on healing and moving forward. For more information on your rights and potential options under personal injury law, contact Williams, Brown & Williams to schedule a consultation. We look forward to discussing your situation and helping you find the best path toward resolution and recovery.