MN Bar Torts

Question 1

Under Minnesota's comparative fault statute (Minn. Stat. § 604.01), a plaintiff is barred from recovering any damages when their fault is:

Accepted Answer

Greater than the fault of the defendant

Answer

Equal to the fault of the defendant

Answer

More than 25% of total fault

Answer

More than 10% of total fault

Question 2

Which element of a negligence claim addresses whether the defendant's conduct fell below the standard of a reasonably prudent person?

Accepted Answer

Breach of duty

Answer

Actual causation

Answer

Proximate causation

Answer

Damages

Question 3

Negligence per se is established when a defendant violates a statute, provided the plaintiff shows that:

Accepted Answer

The statute was designed to prevent the type of harm suffered and the plaintiff is within the class the statute was meant to protect

Answer

Any statute was violated, regardless of its purpose or the parties involved

Answer

The statute imposed criminal liability on the defendant for the same conduct

Answer

The plaintiff suffered purely economic damages as a direct result

Question 4

The res ipsa loquitur doctrine permits a jury to infer negligence from circumstantial evidence when:

Accepted Answer

The accident is of a kind that ordinarily does not occur without negligence and the instrumentality was in the defendant's exclusive control

Answer

The defendant cannot offer any explanation for how the accident occurred

Answer

Expert testimony conclusively establishes the standard of care was violated

Answer

The plaintiff suffered severe injuries while in the defendant's presence

Question 5

Under the 'but for' test of actual causation, a defendant's negligent act is the cause-in-fact of the plaintiff's injury if:

Accepted Answer

The injury would not have occurred but for the defendant's negligence

Answer

The defendant's negligence was a significant contributing factor among many causes

Answer

The injury occurred within the zone of danger created by the defendant's act

Answer

The defendant was the last actor to engage in conduct before the injury occurred

Question 6

The 'eggshell skull' (thin skull) rule requires a negligent defendant to:

Accepted Answer

Pay for the full extent of the plaintiff's injury even if the plaintiff had an unusual vulnerability that made the harm unforeseeable in scope

Answer

Compensate only for injuries a person of ordinary health would have suffered

Answer

Prove the plaintiff's pre-existing condition was the primary cause of harm

Answer

Limit liability to injuries that were objectively foreseeable at the time of the negligent act

Question 7

Under the rescue doctrine, a defendant who negligently created a dangerous situation is liable for injuries sustained by a rescuer who:

Accepted Answer

Was injured while attempting to save a person endangered by the defendant's negligence

Answer

Voluntarily and knowingly assumed the risk of the dangerous situation before acting

Answer

Was a professional first responder acting within the scope of official duties

Answer

Acted in a grossly negligent manner during the rescue attempt itself