Olivia is a single mother. She takes her daughter Stella (two years old) to a local playground. Olivia starts talking with another young parent, Ryan. Olivia is distracted by Ryan's good looks.

Meanwhile, Stella starts to wander over to the road. Ryan notices a possible catastrophe and rushes out after Stella. Ryan just manages to save Stella from being run over by Bob, who is driving an unregistered van with very dark tinted windows within the speed limit. However, Ryan has too much forward momentum and collides with Bob's van. Ryan is seriously injured. Bob skids off the road and crashes into some playground equipment that is within feet of the roadway. A young boy is knocked off the equipment but not seriously injured. His mother, on the other hand, is so traumatized by the accident that she faints and is knocked unconscious after hitting her head on a rock. Laura, driving behind Bob a bit too close sees the above-related events at the last moment because she is checking a text message. Laura puts her foot down hard on the brakes. Laura's car skids and she loses control after her front wheel hits a very deep pothole in the road. She is killed instantly.

First, describe in detail what it means when a person "breaches" a duty of care. What standard does a court hold a person to? Then, for each person mentioned in the facts (or anyone you can think of that is not specifically mentioned), tell me if they breached a duty of care to anyone else andwhy.

First, describe in detail what "proximate cause" is. What are the major defenses to proximate cause? Then, for each person mentioned in the facts (or anyone you can think of that is not specifically mentioned), tell me if they are the proximate cause of an injury to another.

One potentially unnamed entity would be the government agency (city, town, etc.) that is responsible for the playground and its equipment as well as the condition of the road. Tell me what duties that government agency might owe to each of the persons mentioned in the facts. Was there any breach of duty? What issues might exist with respect to proximate cause?

If this case was submitted to you as a judge, what questions might you have before you issued a ruling? Who do you think is entitled to damages? Who do you think is liable for damages, if anyone? Are there any facts you need before ruling?