“‘[The] characterization of the negligence standard as moral or moralistic does not advance analysis. The morality of the fault system is very different from that of everyday life. Negligence is an objective standard. A man may be adjudged negligent though he did his best to avoid an accident and just happens to be clumsier than average’. R. Posner, ‘A Theory of Negligence’, The Journal of Legal Studies (1972) 1 (1) 29-96, at 31. With reference to case law, to what extent do you agree with Posner?”

Negligence is the failure to act as an ordinary prudent and a reasonable man required by the law. Negligence is the most important modern tort and has been the dominant standard of civil liability for accidents for the last 150 years; and accident cases, mainly negligence cases, constitute to the largest part of business on the civil side of the nations trial courts.  Yet the law lacks theory to explain the concept of negligence accordingly to the social function and the fault system of negligence liability that is built upon it….(short extract)