Suppose that a car stalls on the railroad tracks because its carburetor is badly maintained. A train collides with the car because the train’s brakes are badly maintained. What is the proximate cause of the accident? Who had the “last clear chance” to avoid the accident? Does the answer to the first question affect the answer to the second question?
Suppose that B’s faulty driving causes an accident that injures driver A. A was not at fault in her driving, but she was not wearing her seat belt, and this fact aggravated her personal injury. Discuss liability under the rules of simple negligence, negligence with a defense of contributory negligence, and comparative negligence.
For purposes of the theory of accidents, how would you define the activity level of a railroad? An airline? For some activities, the level relevant to the probability of an accident is difficult to define. Can you define an activity level relevant to a homeowner’s maintenance of her front steps? A pharmaceutical company’s sale of a drug with dangerous side effects?