Also known as: negligently supervise · negligently supervised · negligently supervising
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A tort claim alleging that a defendant failed to exercise reasonable care in supervising a person or activity under the defendant's control. Liability requires proof that the defendant knew or should have known of the need and opportunity to exercise control, that the defendant breached the duty of reasonable supervision, and that the breach proximately caused the plaintiff's harm.
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Luis assigns his 13-year-old son Mateo to supervise a goat-petting area on the family farm even though Luis knows Mateo has previously chased visitors with sticks and spooked animals. Mateo deliberately startles a goat that rams a toddler. The toddler's parents sue Luis. The claim proceeds because Luis knew of both his ability to control Mateo and the specific risk yet failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the foreseeable harm.
Dr. Lewis supervises a university chemistry lab where a pressurized gas cylinder topples and explodes near graduate student Maya. Witnesses conflict on whether the cylinder was strapped to the wall. Maya sues the university for negligent supervision. The case reaches the jury because conflicting testimony creates a factual dispute over whether Dr. Lewis met the standard of care in overseeing storage practices.
East River Steamship charters vessels whose turbines suffer repeated damage after a manufacturer installs parts backwards. The charterer sues the ship owner alleging negligent supervision of maintenance crews. The claim turns on whether the owner knew or should have known of the installation errors and failed to implement reasonable oversight procedures that would have prevented the damage.
Negligent supervision imposes direct liability on the defendant for the defendant's own failure to exercise reasonable care in controlling a person or activity. Vicarious liability holds one party responsible for another's tort without any fault by the supervising party. The Florida Supreme Court explained that parents are not automatically liable for a child's torts but may be liable when their own negligent supervision proximately causes the harm.
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…the Brooklyn , and the Bay Ridge , respectively. The fifth count alleges that Delaval, as part of the manufacturing process, negligently supervised the installation of the astern guardian valve on the Bay Ridge . The initial complaint also had listed Seatrain and Shipbuilding as plaintiffs and had alleged breach of contract and…
…Sav. & Loan Assn. (1968) 69 Cal.2d 850 [73 Cal.Rptr. 369, 447 P.2d 609, 39 A.L.R.3d 224], this court held that a lender who negligently supervised
…(4) intentional infliction of emotional distress (O'Donnell and Reich); (5) invasion of privacy (O'Donnell and Reich); (6)
…to make the manufacturer pay for the injuries. This was a horrible accident caused by the negligent use of the lawn mower and
The plaintiff must show the parent knew or had reason to know of the ability to control the child and knew or should have known of the necessity and opportunity to exercise that control. Luis knew of Mateo's prior dangerous conduct yet assigned him to supervise the goat area, satisfying both elements and supporting liability.
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Yes. Widely circulated and adopted safety practices are evidence of what a reasonable actor should know and do, allowing a jury to find breach when a defendant ignores those customs.
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No. The claim focuses on the supervisor's own breach of the duty to control, not on whether the harmful act occurred within the scope of any employment relationship. Employers and parents may face liability even when the actor's conduct falls outside traditional respondeat superior bounds.
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