Negligence Per Se

The death of a loved one as a result of negligence can be a heartbreaking and tragic experience. The stress of trying to assemble a legal case against the responsible party can only make these matters worse, but an experienced wrongful death attorney such as Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. can help you through the process.

Often, an injury or death can be automatically considered negligent if it falls under the doctrine of negligence per se. Negligence per se finds an act automatically negligent if it violates a safety law and injures someone as a result. Some of the most common applications of this doctrine come when traffic laws or building codes are violated.

What constitutes negligence per se?

Firstly, for an act to be considered as negligence per se, a law must have been violated. A death that results from a lawful (albeit reckless or negligent act) may be considered under other types of negligence, but it cannot be considered negligence per se.

Additionally, that law must be a safety-related law, and the harm that was suffered must be of the kind that the law is protecting against. If a contractor violated a building code, but someone was injured inside as a result of something unrelated to the violation, it does not fulfill the criteria.

Finally, the victim must be in the class of people that the law was designed to protect, but since most public safety laws are designed to protect “the general public”, this is typically the easiest criterion to fulfill.

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This article is not intended to serve as, or as a replacement for, legal advice. If your loved one has been injured or suffered wrongful death, contact the Pennsylvania wrongful death lawyer of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. today at 610-667-7511.