In a California personal injury case, determining whether the defendant’s actions were the proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injury involves evaluating whether the defendant’s negligent conduct directly led to the injury in a foreseeable manner. Proximate cause requires a clear link between the defendant’s actions and the plaintiff’s harm. The defendant’s conduct must have been a substantial factor in bringing about the injury, meaning the injury would not have occurred but for the defendant’s actions. For example, if a driver runs a red light and causes a collision, the driver’s failure to stop would likely be the proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injuries.
Additionally, the harm must be of a type that a reasonable person could foresee as a consequence of the defendant’s actions. California courts often assess whether the injury was a natural and probable outcome of the defendant’s conduct. If the injury was too remote or unrelated to the defendant’s actions, then proximate cause may not be established. In some cases, intervening causes or actions by third parties may break the chain of causation, but if the defendant’s conduct set into motion a foreseeable series of events leading to the injury, proximate cause will generally be found.
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