Legal Duty. What is it and why do we care about it? This article will explain. This article will explore the basic concept and role of legal duty. “Duty” is a term of art within the law. Its use is pervasive and it provides a floor or minimum level of legally acceptable behavior within a given set of circumstances. It is a method of imposing a legal obligation upon a person to behave in some manner. Injury occurs on a regular basis through accident, neglect, and even through intent. Not all injury is compensable under the law. It is only when a legal duty arises and has been breached that a person is entitled to legal reparations for that injury. Duty provides the very basic threshold of inquiry into the question of liability. Thus, the question of when a legal duty is owed has occupied courts for some time. The seminal U.S. case on the matter is Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co. [i] The facts of the case are instructive on the question of duty. A passe...
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