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3 Cards in this Set
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What is Simple negligence |
FAILURE TO USE ORDINARY CARE: Simple Negligence
In most injury cases, you only need to show simple (ordinary) negligence to establish the defendant’s liability and recover damages. However, there are exceptions.
Simple negligence “involves the failure to use the degree of care that an ordinarily prudent person would exercise under similar circumstances to avoid injury to another.”
Generally, ordinary negligence means carelessness, heedlessness, inattention, or inadvertence. It does not refer to purposeful acts.
For example, courts have recognized that simple negligence may occur routinely when a person fails to understand or adequately follow instructions or rules, exercises poor judgment, or has a lapse in attention to their task. |
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What is gross negligence? |
Gross negligence “is a degree of negligence showing indifference to another and an utter disregard of prudence that amounts to a complete neglect of the safety of such other person.”
UTTER DISREGARD OF PRUDENCE THAT WOULD SHOCK FAIR-MINDED PERSONS. Gross negligence refers to an act or omission “that would shock fair-minded persons” but is less than willful recklessness. It includes actions that are an unusual and marked departure from the routine and expected performance of a “reasonable” person.
In Virginia, you must prove gross negligence to establish liability against individual defendants who can assert sovereign immunity or municipalities (cities, counties, towns, etc.) operating a recreational facility, park, or playground under Virginia Code Section 15.2-1809. |
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What is willful and wanton negligence? |
Willful and Wanton Negligence
CONSCIOUS DISREGARD, RECKLESS INDIFFERENCE: A defendant is liable for willful and wanton negligence if they acted “consciously in disregard of another person’s rights or acting with reckless indifference to the consequences, with the defendant aware, from his knowledge of existing circumstances and conditions, that his conduct probably would cause injury to another.”
Unlike ordinary and gross negligence, willful and wanton negligence requires a showing that the defendant acted consciously to disregard risks of harm to other persons.
You must prove willful and wanton negligence to get an award of punitive damages or overcome an otherwise successful contributory negligence defense (this means your negligence contributed to the accident and injury).
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