Has negligence law gone overboard?

[annebrightside]

I am interested in knowing what would be your take on negligence law as of late. Has it gone too far?

 

[NYClex]

In what way? In the awards given? Or in finding conduct negligent?

I lived a long time in a country where there is a totally different law of negligence, where personal responsibility is stressed much more than here. I had some difficulties adjusting to American thinking again. But I understand its merits.

On a whole I think the danger is great that we attempt to hold people responsible for negligence whose fault, if any, is smaller than our own, because we shy responsibility for our own conduct. The funny thing is, that historically we had actually the opposite kind of thinking. English common law knew the doctrine of contributory negligence, where a plaintiff was totally barred from recovery for others' negligent conduct when any kind of negligence on his part contributed to the harm.

Then our courts and legislatures abolished that and started the trend I mentioned above.

 

[annebrightside]

I suppose it would be in both, in the compensation doled out and in finding conduct negligent. I believe that negligence has gone too far especially in the latter, where we are a sort of blaming and claiming society these days.

Foreseeability has been defined quite outrageous in several seemingly unecessary lawsuits, as with reasonable-person guidelines.