Torts Flashcards
7 cards from real IA BAR practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Torts flashcards as text
What are the four elements a plaintiff must prove to establish a negligence claim?
Answer: Duty, breach, causation, and damages
Negligence requires proof of duty, breach of that duty, causation (both actual and proximate), and damages resulting from the breach.
Under the 'reasonable person' standard in negligence, the defendant's conduct is measured against:
Answer: A hypothetical person of ordinary prudence under similar circumstances
The reasonable person standard is an objective test measuring the defendant's conduct against what a hypothetical ordinary, prudent person would do under similar circumstances.
In a negligence action, the 'but-for' test is used to establish:
Answer: Actual cause (cause-in-fact)
The 'but-for' test establishes actual cause (cause-in-fact) by asking whether the plaintiff's harm would have occurred but for the defendant's negligent conduct.
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur allows a plaintiff to:
Answer: Create an inference of negligence from the circumstances of the accident
Res ipsa loquitur allows an inference of negligence when: the accident is of a type that normally does not occur without negligence, the instrumentality was under defendant's exclusive control, and plaintiff did not contribute.
Under traditional common law, a landowner's duty of care to undiscovered trespassers is generally:
Answer: To refrain from willful, wanton, or reckless conduct
Under traditional common law, landowners owe undiscovered trespassers only the duty to refrain from willful, wanton, or reckless conduct that could injure them.
Under Iowa's modified comparative fault system, a plaintiff is barred from recovery if their percentage of fault is:
Answer: Equal to or greater than 50% of the total fault
Iowa follows modified comparative fault under Iowa Code § 668.3, barring recovery when the plaintiff's fault is equal to or greater than 50% of the total fault.
A defendant who violates a statute may be found negligent per se when:
Answer: The plaintiff is in the protected class and suffers the type of harm the statute was designed to prevent
Negligence per se applies when a defendant violates a statute designed to protect a class of persons from a particular harm, and the plaintiff is a member of that class who suffers that specific type of harm.