Also known as: lacking diligence · lacks diligence · negligence
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A failure to exercise the care or promptness that a reasonable person would use in pursuing legal claims or performing duties.
Lamar Lewis left a loaded firearm on a kitchen table while hosting a party. A guest picked up the gun and it discharged, killing another attendee. Prosecutors charged Lewis with involuntary manslaughter. The court found that his failure to secure the weapon demonstrated lack of diligence amounting to criminal negligence.
Leonard Lowe fell on a wet floor at Lattice Systems. After the incident the company installed new mats. At trial Lowe sought to introduce the mats as proof of prior negligence. The court excluded the evidence because the subsequent measures could not establish lack of diligence at the time of the fall.
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Latoya Lane started a fire to clear brush near her property. The blaze spread toward a neighbor's home. When charged with arson she claimed justification. The court rejected the defense because her initial decision to burn showed lack of diligence in assessing the risk.
Luke Latham drove through an intersection without checking for oncoming traffic. His vehicle struck another car. The injured driver sued for negligence. The court held that Latham's inattention constituted lack of diligence falling below the standard of care a reasonable driver would observe.
Lucia Lopez, a local activist, spoke at several town meetings about a proposed development. A newspaper article accused her of corruption. Because Lopez had voluntarily injected herself into the controversy, the court required her to prove actual malice rather than mere lack of diligence to recover presumed damages.
Landon Long leased an apartment from Lone Peak Energy. The landlord hired a contractor to repair a common stairway. The contractor performed the work negligently and a tenant fell. The court held the landlord liable because entrusting repairs without oversight reflected lack of diligence in maintaining the retained portion of the property.
Lack of diligence in the criminal context requires a gross deviation from the standard of care that creates a high risk of death or serious harm. Ordinary civil negligence is insufficient for involuntary manslaughter.
No. Federal Rule of Evidence 407 bars admission of subsequent remedial measures to prove negligence or culpable conduct. Such evidence may be admitted only for limited purposes such as impeachment or proving control.
Under Model Penal Code section 3.02(2), a justification defense is unavailable if the actor was reckless or negligent in creating the situation that required the choice of harms. The defense fails whenever the charged offense can be established by negligence or recklessness.
The Restatement defines negligence as conduct falling below the standard established by law for protection against unreasonable risk of harm. Lack of diligence is measured by this objective standard and does not include reckless disregard.
A private plaintiff suing over a matter of public concern must prove at least negligence, which equates to lack of diligence by the defendant in checking the truth of the statement. Presumed or punitive damages require proof of actual malice.
…in a labor organization. See also The Employers' Liability Cases , 207 U. S. 463, 497 (1908) (invalidating statute creating negligence action against common carriers for personal injuries of employees sustained in the course of employment, because the statute "regulates the persons because they engage in interstate…