Exam 6: Negligence

Correct Answer:

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Both statements are True.The concept of reasonable foreseeability pertains to the issues of duty of care,standard of care,and remoteness of damage.It can both help and hurt a business.
On the positive side,the concept of reasonable foreseeability means that Jinyan will not be liable for every loss that she inflicts,even if she acts carelessly.For instance,she is not liable in negligence,as long as she does not owe a duty of care to an injured person.Likewise,even if she owed a duty of care,breached the standard of care,and in fact caused a plaintiff to suffer a loss,she will be relieved of liability if the plaintiff's type of harm was too remote.She is responsible only to the extent that the plaintiff's loss was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of her conduct.
On the negative side,the concept of reasonable foreseeability can be unforgiving.As long as the notion of reasonable foreseeability is satisfied,Jinyan may be held liable even if she honestly did her best.For instance,as a novice Internet service provider,she may not be aware of the various ways in which her business can harm others.She nevertheless may be held liable if a reasonable internet service provider would have recognized the danger.The notion of reasonable foreseeability is objective,and therefore does not generally make allowances for the defendant's subjective inadequacies.
Finally,it should be noted,from a risk management perspective,that the reasonable foreseeability test is open-ended and consequently somewhat unpredictable.The prudent approach therefore is either to act with all reasonable caution,and acquire adequate liability insurance coverage.