Legal Analysis Paper.

Dick Dastardly recently finished rebuilding his car (a 1964 Ford Mustang). Dick, who was not a professional mechanic, considered himself “fairly handy with tools”. Dick repaired or replaced every part of the car’s drive train. Unfortunately, he was unable to locate a new master cylinder (the master cylinder provides the pressure necessary to engage a car’s brakes). After examining the master cylinder that was in his car, Dick concluded that “it may not be new, but it looks pretty good”. Dick had the car towed to a vacant lot. He test drove the car several times. Everything seemed to work “just fine”. The next day (July 15), Dick decided to drive from his home in Gig Harbor, WA, to his friend’s home in Tacoma, WA. It was a beautiful sunny day. Dick enjoyed the drive even more when he retracted the convertible top. Dick wished the sun was a little less glaring. “If only I had remembered to bring my sunglasses” thought Dick. When he was only a few block from his friend’s house, Dick’s dog (Muttley) barked loudly, jumped out of the car and landed on Main Street. In order to avoid hitting his beloved pet, Dick slammed on his brakes and swerved hard to the right. Unfortunately, Dick struck a telephone pole, which fell onto a fire hydrant causing water to gush. The gushing water caused a mailbox to fall over, which then struck Penelope Pitstop. Just prior to the accident Penelope had been enjoying the day, laughing and randomly throwing rocks at the mail box that later fell on her. Penelope, who suffered from hemophilia, a rare bleeding disorder in which blood doesn’t clot normally, was rushed to the hospital. Because of her hemophilia, Penelope nearly died and had to spend an extra two weeks of recovery in the intensive care unit. Three months later Penelope (who received some pretty bad care while she was in recovery), was released from the hospital. After consulting with her attorney, Penelope sues Dick in negligence. As part of this analysis, you must use the following rule of law: Rule: A defendant is liable for negligence if the following elements can be proven: The defendant owes a duty of care to the plaintiff; The defendant committed a breach of this duty; The breach was the actual and proximate cause of injury; The plaintiff was harmed. NOTE: Make sure your analysis includes a discussion of the “eggshell rule”. What is the likely result? Your analysis should explore, in detail, the arguments each party will make. Your analysis must be in the form of an IRAC (i.e., Issue; Rule; Application; Conclusion). If you are unfamiliar with the IRAC method, please review the sample essays posted in this week’s module, as well as the following IRAC sources: (1) IRAC ANALYSIS FORMAT.pdf (2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47W2gqqM54U; (3) http://youveenteredlawland.com/irac-for-law-school-essays-and-exams/ (Links to an external site.) Relevant Statutes: 1. Contributory Fault: https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=4.22 (Links to an external site.) Relevant Cases: 1. Hickley v. Bare: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/wa-court-of-appeals/1469046.html (Links to an external site.) 2. Gleason v. Cohen: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/wa-court-of-appeals/1727577.html (Links to an external site.) 3. Klein v. Werner: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/1370092/klein-v-rd-werner-co/ (Links to an external site.) Secondary Sources: 1. Washington Jury Instructions (Eggshell Plaintiff): https://govt.westlaw.com/wciji/Document/I2c8acfb0e10d11dab058a118868d70a9?contextData=%28sc.Default%29&transitionType=Default (Links to an external site.) 2. Eggshell Plaintiff: https://definitions.uslegal.com/e/eggshell-skull/ (Links to an external site.) 3. Negligence in Washington: https://statelaws.findlaw.com/washington-law/washington-negligence-laws.html (Links to an external site.) 4. Washington State Car Accident Compensation Laws: https://statelaws.findlaw.com/washington-law/washington-car-accident-compensation-laws.html (Links to an external site.) 5. Washington Jury Instructions (Negligence—Risk—Misconduct—Proximate Cause): https://govt.westlaw.com/wciji/Browse/Home/Washington/WashingtonPatternJuryInstructionsCivilCriminal/WashingtonPatternJuryInstructionsCivil?guid=Iae971960a96511da8de7aa0ea4dc7e9b&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default)&bhcp=1 (Links to an external site.) Nonacademic Sources: 1. Comparative Negligence: https://www.rhhk.com/aop/washington-negligence-laws/pure-comparative-negligence/ (Links to an external site.) Nonacademic Sources (NOTE: These sources are not to be cited to or quoted from, but provide helpful general information information that may lead you to useful academic sources): Your textbook is also a good source for general information, but is not designed to provide an in depth analysis of Washington law. Please let me know if you have any questions or need further assistance.