Also known as: superseding cause · supercede cause · supersede cause · intervening cause · proximate cause
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An intervening act or force that by its operation prevents an actor from being liable for harm to another which the actor's antecedent negligence is a substantial factor in bringing about.
Simon Stern negligently leaves a pasture gate unlatched after inspecting fencing. A passing stranger opens the gate fully and drives away. The escaped bull then tramples a neighbor's garden. The stranger's deliberate opening of the gate prevents Simon from remaining liable for the damage.
Solomon Silver allows his twelve-year-old son to keep a BB gun after repeated warnings from neighbors. The son later shoots out a car window while playing unsupervised. The father's failure to supervise does not make him liable because the son's independent decision to fire at the vehicle is the proximate cause of the harm.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Sebastian Santos negligently stores gasoline near an open flame in his garage. A delivery driver, startled by smoke, instinctively kicks the cans aside to reach a fire extinguisher. The spreading fire damages the neighbor's property. The driver's instinctive action does not relieve Sebastian of liability.
Spencer Silver negligently leaves a ladder leaning against a building. A construction crew later uses the ladder to access the roof and drops a heavy beam that injures a pedestrian. The crew's unforeseeable misuse of the ladder constitutes a superseding cause that shields Spencer from liability.
Selena Singh negligently parks her truck on a steep hill without setting the brake. A passerby bumps the truck while trying to retrieve a dropped package, causing it to roll downhill and damage a storefront. The passerby's foreseeable contact does not constitute a superseding cause.
Sydney Santos negligently leaves a live electrical wire exposed near a public walkway. A pedestrian, terrified by sparks, jumps backward into traffic and causes a collision. The pedestrian's fear-driven reaction does not relieve Sydney of liability for the resulting injuries.
A superseding cause is an intervening act or force that by its intervention prevents the original actor from remaining liable. An intervening force alone does not relieve liability unless it meets the criteria in the Restatement factors such as producing harm different in kind or appearing extraordinary after the fact.
Supporting sources
An act done by another in normal response to fear or emotional disturbance to which the actor's negligent conduct is a substantial factor in subjecting the other is not a superseding cause. The original actor remains liable for harm resulting from that response.
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No. Where the negligent conduct of the actor creates or increases the foreseeable risk of harm through the intervention of another force and is a substantial factor in causing the harm, the intervention is not a superseding cause even if the third person acts wrongfully.
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The intervention of a force that is a normal consequence of a situation created by the actor's negligent conduct is not a superseding cause. Liability therefore continues when the intervening force follows naturally from the original negligence.
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…or omissions in the United States and the resulting damage or injury in a foreign country"). Recognizing this connection of proximate cause between domestic behavior and foreign harm or injury is not, however, sufficient of itself to bar application of the foreign country exception to a claim resting on that same foreign…