Laptop damaged: Who is at fault?

[justalayman]

I'm sure if you search FA there was a " simular " post where a drink was spilled on a laptop in a dorm room .

Well there is this one. BB is consistant in his stance although IAAL seemd to belive differently.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=286592&highlight=laptop spilled drink

this one. BL is on the BB team.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=260646&highlight=laptop girl steps on laptop on floor

I understand it partially but, it seems that his could be applied to many situations where the careless/negligent party ends up paying.

Heck, in a true "accident" involving a car, rain slick road, driver never in an accident before. Car slides off the road hits parked car. Now I really think the driver will be held liable but he would be no more the cause of damgae than the girl with the wine (in my mind). As I see it using the proximate liability rule,,,,sh*t happens. Both were careless in their actions but I don't think the driver is goin to get off by saying the other guy left his car in the way.

After all, the laptop was left within the OP's premises so OP had a legal right to do so.
Any reasonable person would understand that if I knocked over a glass of wine, it would spill and if next to a computer, damage it. Therefore, forseeable to a reasonable man. But maybe I'm being unreasonable.

I guess this is why you guys get the big bucks,,,,, to confuse the hell out of us so you can charge the big bucks to explain it to us.

Just wait until you need electrical work, there will be hell to pay Cleaning up all those spilled electrons is hard and expensive work.

thanks BB, I will continue my education off-thread to so as to quit hijacking.

 

[BelizeBreeze]

Well there is this one. BB is consistant in his stance although IAAL seemd to belive differently.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=286592&highlight=laptop spilled drink

Not quite the same. The owner of the laptop did not (based on the post) invite the poster to sit on the desk. And there is no mention of who put the beer bottle on the table.

This one goes against the poster because of the consequences being 'forseeable' that utilizing the desk as a support to hold his/her weight may have caused an accident to happen.
And by the way, we were ALL in agreement on this one, IAAL included (in fact he broached the fault first).

this one. BL is on the BB team.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=260646&highlight=laptop girl steps on laptop on floor

I didn't post to this thread because there are facts which are required that have not been forwarded.

I understand it partially but, it seems that his could be applied to many situations where the careless/negligent party ends up paying.

All dependent on the missing facts.

Heck, in a true "accident" involving a car, rain slick road, driver never in an accident before. Car slides off the road hits parked car. Now I really think the driver will be held liable but he would be no more the cause of damgae than the girl with the wine (in my mind). As I see it using the proximate liability rule,,,,sh*t happens. Both were careless in their actions but I don't think the driver is goin to get off by saying the other guy left his car in the way.

If the other guy had left his car parked in the middle of the street around a blind curve then yes, you would be correct (partly). However, since we can assume that the car was legally parked no fault can attach to the parked car owner.

After all, the laptop was left within the OP's premises so OP had a legal right to do so.
Any reasonable person would understand that if I knocked over a glass of wine, it would spill and if next to a computer, damage it. Therefore, forseeable to a reasonable man. But maybe I'm being unreasonable.

And again, what is forseeable and what is accident are not the same. Based solely on the facts posted and lacking specific intent, it was an accident. nothing more.

I guess this is why you guys get the big bucks,,,,, to confuse the hell out of us so you can charge the big bucks to explain it to us.

Just wait until you need electrical work, there will be hell to pay Cleaning up all those spilled electrons is hard and expensive work.

thanks BB, I will continue my education off-thread to so as to quit hijacking.

I do my own electrical work....just put in a new transformer and two fuse boxes for the garage on my brother's estate but, thanks for the offer.

 

[BL]

Well there is this one. BB is consistant in his stance although IAAL seemd to belive differently.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=286592&highlight=laptop spilled drink

this one. BL is on the BB team.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=260646&highlight=laptop girl steps on laptop on floor

I understand it partially but, it seems that his could be applied to many situations where the careless/negligent party ends up paying.

Heck, in a true "accident" involving a car, rain slick road, driver never in an accident before. Car slides off the road hits parked car. Now I really think the driver will be held liable but he would be no more the cause of damgae than the girl with the wine (in my mind). As I see it using the proximate liability rule,,,,sh*t happens. Both were careless in their actions but I don't think the driver is goin to get off by saying the other guy left his car in the way.

After all, the laptop was left within the OP's premises so OP had a legal right to do so.
Any reasonable person would understand that if I knocked over a glass of wine, it would spill and if next to a computer, damage it. Therefore, forseeable to a reasonable man. But maybe I'm being unreasonable.

I guess this is why you guys get the big bucks,,,,, to confuse the hell out of us so you can charge the big bucks to explain it to us.

Just wait until you need electrical work, there will be hell to pay Cleaning up all those spilled electrons is hard and expensive work.

thanks BB, I will continue my education off-thread to so as to quit hijacking.

Apples and oranges .. And BB hope you're licenced or Layman will hunt you down .

BTW thanks for being in a thread where you were not .< shacking head violantly , or crazy like > : )

 

[BelizeBreeze]

Apples and oranges .. And BB hope you're licenced or Layman will hunt you down .

BTW thanks for being in a thread where you were not .< shacking head vilantly , or crazy like > : )

No need to be licensed....it's rural with no building codes
Hell, I also built the barn....cinder block footings with tongue n groove siding, 10 stalls and a tack room.

 

[justalayman]

No need to be licensed....it's rural with no building codes
Hell, I also built the barn....cinder block footings with tongue n groove siding, 10 stalls and a tack room.

Don't know where BB lives but in most, if not all, areas near me, a homeowner is allowed to perform their own work sans license, even with codes. I guess they figure if the want to burn down their own house, have at it. Actually the non-licensed areas can be scary. Jimmy joe bobs house of electric and bull neutering can do some pretty scary work but they sure do have some good eats around. Mountains oysters,,mmm mmm good.

and BL, are you speaking of moi?. I apologize for my fervor. It gets the best of me,,,,,,occasionally??

From what I have read of BB and knowing what I know of electricity and associated work, I have no doubts BB is quite capable of taking on being an electrician in his spare time. I don't know why he would want to, but apparently capable.

After all, it's not rocket science but I can guarantee that none of my work will run into Mars.

 

[WoWnotebook]

Quote:
Originally Posted by justalayman
Well there is this one. BB is consistant in his stance although IAAL seemd to belive differently.https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthre...ghlight=laptop spilled drink


Not quite the same. The owner of the laptop did not (based on the post) invite the poster to sit on the desk. And there is no mention of who put the beer bottle on the table.

To be quite honest I dont' see how this varies all that significantly. It seems ludicrous to honestly believe that I am at fault for someone spilling wine on my computer. Granted, I know very little about law, it still seems as if she is negligent. There is one witness that was in the room at the time this event happened. It is also known that this couple acts like children 99% of the time when they are around each other. They are in no way mature and quite frankly, act in a manner similar to a six year old. Now I am fairly certain that this may not be a correct definition or even justifiably legal, however there are a number of roommates and friends that would hold strong to the notion of them acting like children. In this instance the witness did not see her knock over the wine but saw the reactions immediately after the incident. Before she knocked over the glass of wine she was heard, (and I don't exactly know how to properly write out this highly probably assumption) skipping/hoping/dancing to be next to my roommate who was now already sitting on my computer. After she spilled the wine they turned the computer upside down and tried to shake the liquid out of it.

Alright, so he had previously had permission to be on my computer throughout our years as roommates. On this particular occassion I did not tell him or give him any indication that it would be acceptable for him to get on my computer. However, if we can assume that he always has permission to be on my computer then at the time of the incident since he was indeed on the computer would he not be negigent and/or liable for the damages? I apologize in advance for any of this that may seem random however I am admitedly a bit frustrated and distraught about this whole situation. I honestly can't believe that it has even gotten near to the point of small claims. Thanks again for any help or info you can offer. I'd be happy to give any more information I can to the situation.

 

[BL]

Don't know where BB lives but in most, if not all, areas near me, a homeowner is allowed to perform their own work sans license, even with codes. I guess they figure if the want to burn down their own house, have at it. Actually the non-licensed areas can be scary. Jimmy joe bobs house of electric and bull neutering can do some pretty scary work but they sure do have some good eats around. Mountains oysters,,mmm mmm good.

and BL, are you speaking of moi?. I apologize for my fervor. It gets the best of me,,,,,,occasionally??

From what I have read of BB and knowing what I know of electricity and associated work, I have no doubts BB is quite capable of taking on being an electrician in his spare time. I don't know why he would want to, but apparently capable.

After all, it's not rocket science but I can guarantee that none of my work will run into Mars.

Well before totting around your head side to side , and stomping your feet , think maybe some are acually capable , and in there own right so . My unc although not in such a state , did his own , the sloppering pig farm he had out back n all . The BBBQs i heard were nice , and his kids ( my cousins i never meant ) were into Meat . Now what is your point ??? and what has it do do with the OP ( original p-oster's) Question ????

Are we trying to shot **** here ?

 

[seniorjudge]

What is the name of your state? I reside in Oregon.

Just over a month ago I was on my notebook and my roommates and I decided to make a quick run to the store. In our moment of absence one of the other roommates quickly jumped on my computer and while he was on it his girlfriend came over and knocked over a glass of wine that was on the table beside my notebook. Today they told me that they had spoke with an attorney and that legally she is only liable for half the damage. I find this absurd and have to believe that she is fully at fault. They are holding strong to the idea that they are only going to pay half of whatever is eventually worked out. Any thoughts on this issue?

Sue all of them in small claims court for the actual and direct damages in dollars that you suffered.

 

[BL]

Sue all of them in small claims court for the actual and direct damages in dollars that you suffered.

Sr. I must oppogize Ya stated ya would NEVER question me , but I'm questiioning " something " . How did my reply get inserted where it didn't belong .
LOL Pig farmers ...

Play along would ya ..

 

[justalayman]

Well before totting around your head side to side , and stomping your feet , think maybe some are actually capable , and in there own right so . My unc although not in such a state , did his own , the sloppering pig farm he had out back n all . The BBBQs i heard were nice , and his kids ( my cousins i never meant ) were into Meat . Now what is your point ??? and what has it do do with the OP ( original p-oster's) Question ????

Are we trying to shot **** here ?

I didn't think I was head totting. No intention to. I was actually trying to both complement BB and attempting to be humble.

I didn't mean to offend you if your unc IS Jimmy joe bob of Jimmy joe bob's house of electric and bull neutering, it was merely a name I pulled out of the air.(actually I think it would have been funnier if I had used "Jimmy joe bob's house of electric and bull fixin'") I was merely stating that those with some basic knowledge, intelligence, and preferably access to the National Electrical Code (current version 2005 but updated tri-annually ) can do the work, but there are a lot of folks out there that do things that if done in my house, would actually make me move. You wouldn't believe the horrors I have seen **************..but I digress.

Actually this has nothing to do with the OP's situation so I'll turn the corner.

OP: I understand their advice (to an extent). I too am justalayman. It just doesn't seem fair to me either.
What's small claims cost, $50 bucks or so? Is it worth the possible loss for the (possibly small or non existent) chance of winning. Either Seniorjudge figures it is worth a shot or he tires of reading this thread but he suggested giving it a shot as well.

 

[WoWnotebook]

OP: I understand their advice (to an extent). I too am justalayman. It just doesn't seem fair to me either.
What's small claims cost, $50 bucks or so? Is it worth the possible loss for the (possibly small or non existent) chance of winning. Either Seniorjudge figures it is worth a shot or he tires of reading this thread but he suggested giving it a shot as well.

Thanks layman, that however is just it. The money truly would be insignificant in the long run and that is my point in posting on here. I wanted to get some solidification to the fact that there is a high likelihood that they are indeed negligable and therefore we would never have to proceed to small claims. I honestly dont' think it will get that far and I think this is a fairly good step in avoiding that. I appreciate everyone's comments and thoughts so far though.

 

[shell007]

Thanks layman, that however is just it. The money truly would be insignificant in the long run and that is my point in posting on here. I wanted to get some solidification to the fact that there is a high likelihood that they are indeed negligable and therefore we would never have to proceed to small claims. I honestly dont' think it will get that far and I think this is a fairly good step in avoiding that. I appreciate everyone's comments and thoughts so far though.

WOW...we actually have a polite poster!

What a breath of fresh air!

 

[BelizeBreeze]

Thanks layman, that however is just it. The money truly would be insignificant in the long run and that is my point in posting on here. I wanted to get some solidification to the fact that there is a high likelihood that they are indeed negligable and therefore we would never have to proceed to small claims. I honestly dont' think it will get that far and I think this is a fairly good step in avoiding that. I appreciate everyone's comments and thoughts so far though.

If you still do not understand the legal issue, complete this sentence...."If not for.....your computer would not have been damaged."

Now, think about all the circumstances that led up to its being damaged. And you'll see that at a mimum you share a requisite amount of blame.

 

[ronda_jeremy]

Did the damage to the laptop occur during a "lap dance" in the dorm room"?

 

[WoWnotebook]

If you still do not understand the legal issue, complete this sentence...."If not for.....your computer would not have been damaged."

Now, think about all the circumstances that led up to its being damaged. And you'll see that at a mimum you share a requisite amount of blame.

How can I not be dumbfounded by that statement? Sure, I see the legal aspect of how completing that sentence may possible put me at some fault, but at the same time the list of possibilites that could be placed in that sentence can almost result in an infinite regress of causes. Simply put, that seems silly to me for this reason. When I put all the reasons into that sentence, the one factor that overwhelming stands atop the others, is thus: "If not for her being ingnorant to her surroundings and acting 'recklessly' in the proximity of the stationary entities during the time that her boyfriend (my roommate) consciously made the voluntary act of momentarily possessing my computer...my computer would not have been damaged".

http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/161.html
161.085

Admittedly, that glass of wine being on the table next to my notebook possibly shows someone's ignorance and/or stupidity, but the wine did not fall over on it's own. Logically it just doesn't all add up. If i'm in a coffee shop and I slip and knock over somone's coffee and it destroy's the notebook that they were on at the time there is no way that individual should be culpable whatsoever. If I were to adhere to the previous rules then I could state something along the lines of "If not for the DUST on my shoe then I may not have slipped and his computer would not have been damaged, therefore I am in no way fully at fault because I could not have known that the dust on my shoe would make me slip". I don't know...it just seems ludicrous to believe that they are not responsible for this unfortunate event.

Now before you rhetorical war on me BB, remember that i'm just a college student trying to find a way out of going to small claims court with one of my best friends. I do thank you for yours, and everyone elses input and advice.