Miller v. Warren
390 S.E.2d 207 · West Virginia Supreme Court · 1990
Facts
Plaintiffs, a family including a two-year-old, suffered severe burns in a motel room fire. They sued the motel for negligence, alleging the fire was caused by a heater and injuries were aggravated by the lack of a smoke alarm. The jury returned a verdict for the defendant, and the plaintiffs appealed, challenging the jury instructions.
Issue
Did the trial court err by instructing the jury that compliance with fire codes conclusively established the defendant's standard of care, and by improperly instructing on the contributory negligence of the infant plaintiff and the imputation of negligence between adult plaintiffs?
Holding
Yes, the court reversed the judgment and remanded for a new trial for all plaintiffs. It held that fire code compliance is not conclusive evidence of due care and that a two-year-old child cannot be found contributorily negligent.
Rule
Compliance with a regulation is competent evidence of due care but not conclusive; circumstances may require greater care than regulations mandate. A two-year-old child is conclusively presumed incapable of negligence, and the negligence of one adult is not generally imputed to another adult.
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