Management and Organizational Studies 2275A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Ginger Beer, Ski Lift, Contributory Negligence

• School: Western University
• Department: Management and Organizational Studies
• Course: Management and Organizational Studies 2275A/B
• Professor: Cristin Keller

Document Summary

The central objective of this chapter is to introduce students to the tort of negligence. - the most prevalent form of tort liability that a business faces. The chapter spends considerable time on the steps involved in establishing negligence in order to assist students in understanding that the law identifies general standards which it then uses to evaluate the conduct of the defendant. The law generally requires reasonableness from business owners, managers, and employees, not perfection. This insight helps students regard negligence law from a risk management perspective in that there are many steps that businesses can take to prevent a successful negligence claim. Put another way, understanding the ingredients to a negligence claim is critical to devising effective strategies to reduce the scope of business-related harm from occurring in the first place. This chapter also illustrates the evolving nature of negligence law, including the more recently established commercial host liability. Understand the conduct that the law of negligence addresses.