Legal Speak Made Easy

You may come across the phrase res ipsa loquitur (Latin for “the thing speaks for itself”) in damages claim cases when a court has no direct evidence before it as to the exact cause of an accident or injury. The court might then infer negligence from the nature of the accident/injury itself. The person accused of negligence would have an opportunity to put forward an alternative explanation that excludes negligence.

For example, if a wheel comes off a moving vehicle and causes an accident, the court might reason that wheels don’t ordinarily detach from properly maintained vehicles without negligence and leave it to the vehicle owner to counter that inference.