- res ipsa loquitur
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res ipsa lo·qui·tur also res ipsa lo·qui·tor /-'lō-kwə-tər/ n [Latin, the thing speaks for itself]: a doctrine or rule of evidence in tort law that permits an inference or presumption that a defendant was negligent in an accident injuring the plaintiff on the basis of circumstantial evidence if the accident was of a kind that does not ordinarily occur in the absence of negligencea plaintiff who establishes the elements of res ipsa loquitur can withstand a motion for summary judgment and reach the jury without direct proof of negligence — Cox v. May Dept. Store Co., 903 P.2d 1119 (1995)◇ For res ipsa loquitur to apply, the accident in question must not be due to any voluntary action or contribution by the plaintiff. The doctrine has traditionally required that a defendant have exclusive control over the instrumentality of an injury, but now it is commonly applied when multiple defendants have joint or sometimes successive control (as by the manufacturer and retailer of a defective product). In addition to the control requirement, and sometimes superseding it, is the requirement that a defendant have responsibility for the instrumentality as well as responsibility to the plaintiff. In order for res ipsa loquitur to succeed in a medical malpractice suit, the fact that the accident is one that ordinarily does not occur without a failure to exercise due care must be readily apparent to the layperson as common knowledge. The accident alone should afford reasonable evidence of negligence, as when a foreign object is left inside a surgical patient.
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
- res ipsa loquitur
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noun
automatic lack of due diligence, automatic negligence, breach of duty, certain dereliction, definite carelessness, imprudence, irresponsibility, lack of attention
Burton's Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006
- res ipsa loquitur
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n.(Latin) The thing speaks for itself; a presumption that a defendant was negligent based on the fact that an accident occurred that ordinarily would not happen without negligence.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- res ipsa loquitur
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(ray-sip-sah loh-quit-er) Latin for "the thing speaks for itself"; a legal presumption that a defendant acted negligently even though there may be no direct evidence of liability. For example, a construction company is presumed to be negligent if a load of bricks under its control falls off a roof and injures a pedestrian, even though nobody witnessed the accident. The presumption arises only if1) the thing that caused the accident was under the defendant's control,2) the accident could happen only as a result of a careless act, and3) the injured plaintiff's behavior did not contribute to the accident. Lawyers also refer to this doctrine as "res ips" or "res ipsa."Category: Accidents & InjuriesCategory: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- res ipsa loquitur
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n. Latin The thing speaks for itself. An evidentiary rule in torts that the very fact that an accident occurred is enough to provide a prima facie case of negligent behavior. Rear-ending another automobile is an example, showing failure to maintain a safe distance on the part of the rear-ender.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
- res ipsa loquitur
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(Latin: The thing speaks for itself.)A rebuttable presumption or inference that the defendant was negligent, which arises upon proof that the instrumentality or condition causing the injury was in the defendant's exclusive control and that the accident was one that ordinarily does not occur in the absence of negligence.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- res ipsa loquitur
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I
[Latin, The thing speaks for itself.] A rebuttable presumption or inference that the defendant was negligent, which arises upon proof that the instrumentality or condition causing the injury was in the defendant's exclusive control and that the accident was one that ordinarily does not occur in the absence of negligence.II The thing speaks for itself.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- res ipsa loquitur
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[rayz ip-sah loh-quit-her]n.Latin for "the thing speaks for itself," a doctrine of law that one is presumed to be negligent if he/she/it had exclusive control of whatever caused the injury even though there is no specific evidence of an act of negligence, and without negligence the accident would not have happened. Examples: a) a load of bricks on the roof of a building being constructed by Highrise Construction Co. falls and injures Paul Pedestrian below, and Highrise is liable for Pedestrian's injury even though no one saw the load fall. b) While under anesthetic, Isabel Patient's nerve in her arm is damaged although it was not part of the surgical procedure, and she is unaware of which of a dozen medical people in the room caused the damage. Under res ipsa loquitur all those connected with the operation are liable for negligence. Lawyers often shorten the doctrine to "res ips," and find it a handy shorthand for a complex doctrine.See also: negligence
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
