Civil Jury Instructions Home

3.1-2  Cause in Fact

Revised to January 1, 2008

A cause in fact is an actual cause.  The test for cause in fact is, simply, "Would the injury have occurred were it not for the defendant's negligence?"  If your answer to this question is "yes," then the defendant's negligence was not a cause in fact of the plaintiff's injuries.

Authority

Winn v. Posades, 281 Conn. 50, 56 (2007) ("[t]he test for cause in fact is, simply, would the injury have occurred were it not for the actor's conduct"); Shaughnessy v. Morrison, 116 Conn. 661, 666 (1933) ("[a]n act or omission can hardly be regarded as the cause of an event which would have happened if the act or omission had not occurred").