Factual and Proximate Causation

Suppose an emergency department doctor, Dr. B, missed a fracture on an x-ray. Upon discovering Dr. B's error the following day, the radiologist informed the on-call physician, Dr. C. Unfortunately, Dr. C failed to notify the patient. Did Dr. C's negligence free Dr. B from liability? In a case with similar facts, the 6th Circuit Court held this was a superseding cause relieving the first doctor of liability (Siggers v. Barlow, 906 F.2d 241 [6th Cir. Ky, 1990]).

To analyze causation issues, one has to identify factual cause issues separately from proximate cause issues. To make matters worse, the term “legal cause” is sometimes used interchangeably with “proximate cause.” And of course, there can be more than one proximate cause for any given injury. Reflecting this complexity, the California Supreme Court now disallows confusing jury instructions regarding proximate cause, requiring instead that the jury be simply directed to determine whether the defendant's conduct was a contributory factor in the plaintiff's injury (Mitchell v. Gonzales, 819 P.2d 872 [Cal. 1991]).

Contact the author at siang@hawaii.edu.