MN Bar Torts 1

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

Minnesota's modified comparative fault rule bars recovery only when the plaintiff's fault is greater than (not merely equal to) the defendant's fault, so a 50/50 split still allows recovery.

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

Breach of duty is the element that measures whether the defendant's conduct fell below the applicable standard of care, typically judged against a reasonably prudent person under the circumstances.

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

Negligence per se requires that the statute aimed to prevent the specific type of harm at issue and that the plaintiff belongs to the class of persons the statute was designed to protect.

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

Res ipsa loquitur allows an inference of negligence when the type of accident ordinarily implies negligence and the defendant had exclusive control over the instrumentality causing harm.

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 'but for' test asks whether the plaintiff's injury would have occurred absent the defendant's negligent conduct; if the injury would not have happened without that conduct, causation is established.

MN Bar - Minnesota Bar Exam Practice Test

MN Bar - Minnesota Bar Exam Practice Test

MN Bar Torts 1