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Res Ipsa Loquitor
What is Res Ipsa Loquitor?
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur is used in personal injury cases to establish that a defendant acted negligently. The law allows a judge or jury to presumptively presume negligence if the facts of a case show that an accident occurred and no other explanation can be found except for the defendant's actions. Most states in the U.S. have adopted the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. Sometimes it is referred to as "res ips."
This theory posits a presumption that is rebuttable. As a result, a defendant may counter or challenge it once a plaintiff uses it to establish negligence. In order to do this, a defendant can use the facts of the case to prove they acted reasonably.
Res ips arguments can also be contested by a defendant using a legal defense. The defendant might have acted reasonably, the defendant was not in control of the object that caused injury, or the plaintiff's own negligence caused the injury.
The doctrine of negligence per se is also used in tort law to prove negligence. In contrast to res ips, however, the theory shows that a party was negligent because he/she violated the law.
Legal Definition
A plaintiff may use circumstantial evidence to prove the defendant acted negligently under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur in personal injury law.
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To be entitled to compensation, a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit for personal injury must prove negligence. A defendant is negligent when: he does something that a reasonable person would not do under the circumstances, or fails to do something a reasonable person would do in the same situation.
Res ips was created to fill the gap in personal injury cases where: the injury victim is trying to prove negligence but is unable to do so because someone else was likely responsible for the accident.
Generally, a plaintiff must prove the following to show someone was negligent: the accident or injury would not normally have happened without some negligence, the thing that caused the injury was under the defendant's exclusive control, and the harm wasn't caused by the plaintiff's actions.
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Res ipsa loquitur raises an inference of negligence (a rebuttable presumption). A defendant can challenge this presumption. A party can do this by claiming that he or she was not negligent.
Best Defense Claims
Defendants may also challenge allegations by invoking a defense in addition to rebutting them. In order to challenge the res ipsa loquitur doctrine, defense lawyers rely on several legal strategies. A plaintiff must show that they either caused their own injury or that the defendant acted reasonably.
In the case of a trial, the plaintiff will have to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the defendant was responsible for the plaintiff's injury. Expert testimony is often used as evidence.
Defendant Acted Reasonably
Despite negligence, the outcome of the case cannot be attributed to res ipsa loquitur. It is then possible to assert that the defendant did not act negligently. In other words, the defendant acted reasonably.
No Exclusive Control
In such cases, a person must have exclusive control over the object that caused the injury in order to establish negligence.
As a result, the defendant may assert that another person was in control of the object that caused the damage.
Plaintiff Was Negligent
The plaintiff must not have been negligent to invoke res ips. Defendants may always claim that the plaintiff was negligent in some way as a defense. The plaintiff may have acted in a way that caused her/his injury, for example.
Res Ipsa Loquitur Differ V. Negligence Per Se
An example of negligence per se is res ipsos, a legal doctrine used in personal injury cases to establish liability.
It differs from negligence per se because negligence per se relies on the violation of a law to prove its existence - instead of merely on circumstantial evidence. Whenever a defendant violates a statute or ordinance, his or her actions are presumed to be unreasonable.
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An individual is presumed to be negligent in most states if he/she violated a statute, ordinance, or regulation, the violation caused death or injury to a person or property, the death or injury was caused by an act the law was designed to prevent, and the person who suffered the death or injury was one who the law was designed to protect.
The negligence per se doctrine is the same as res ipsa loquitur. Defendants can refute or challenge negligence once it has been presumed.
California Law
According to California law, res ipsa loquitur applies and the rules outlined above are followed.
Evidence Code 646 lays out the law. In general, a person is negligent, per res ips, if: the plaintiff's harm would not have happened unless someone was negligent, the harm was caused by something only the defendant could control, and the plaintiff's actions were not the cause of the harm.
Once negligence is established in California, a person can rebut a res ips showing. It may be done by showing that: he/she was not negligent, and/or his/her negligence was not a significant factor causing the plaintiff's harm.
In medical malpractice cases, res ips is often used.