Res Ipsa Loquitur in United States

Res Ipsa Loquitur Definition

The thing speaks for itself. A phrase used in actions for injury by negligence, where no proof of negligence is required beyond the accident itself, which is such as necessarily to involve negligence.

Res Ipsa Loquitur in Foreign Legal Encyclopedias

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Legal Issue for Attorneys

The thing speaks for itself. A phrase used in actions for injury by negligence, where no proof of negligence is required beyond the accident itself, which is such as necessarily to involve negligence.

This definition of Res Ipsa Loquitur is based on The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary. This entry needs to be proofread.

Res Ipsa Loquitur in the context of Juvenile and Family Law

Definition ofRes Ipsa Loquitur, published by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges: Lit., “The thing speaks for itself”; a legal doctrine that allows evidence to be admitted even though no one actually saw what happened, only the results. For example, in a child abuse case the medical reports indicating multiple broken bones and reflecting the physician’s opinion that they could not have been sustained by accident would be admissible even though no witness saw anyone strike the child. Under this doctrine, the court can convict a person having exclusive custody of an abused child and/or assert juvenile court jurisdiction over the child even though there was no direct testimony as to how, when, where or by whom the injuries were inflicted.

Meaning of Res Ipsa Loquitur

In plain or simple terms, Res Ipsa Loquitur means: Literally, “a thing that speaks for itself.” In tort law, the doctrine which holds a defendant guilty of negligence without actually showing he was negligent.