Also known as: doctrine of deviation · deviation doctrines · deviation
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
3 senses
A standard of culpability under which a person's conscious disregard or failure to perceive a substantial and unjustifiable risk constitutes recklessness or negligence when the disregard or failure involves a gross deviation from the standard of conduct a reasonable person would observe in the actor's situation.
An equitable principle that permits a court to modify administrative or dispositive provisions of a trust when circumstances not anticipated by the settlor would defeat or substantially impair the accomplishment of the trust's purposes.
A rule drawn from admiralty practice that treats a carrier's unjustified departure from the usual or agreed route as a material breach that deprives the carrier of contractual limitations and exemptions.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
A standard of culpability under which a person's conscious disregard or failure to perceive a substantial and unjustifiable risk constitutes recklessness or negligence when the disregard or failure involves a gross deviation from the standard of conduct a reasonable person would observe in the actor's situation.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Quentin approved a live stunt in which contestants ran through a warehouse while forklifts operated at high speed without barriers or spotters. A forklift struck and killed a contestant. The production had received an explicit safety warning that the setup created an obvious probability of death. Quentin's approval despite that warning supplied the gross deviation required for criminal negligence.
A warehouse manager ordered workers to continue operating a defective conveyor despite daily reports that the machine could eject heavy materials without warning. When a worker was struck and killed, the manager's decision to proceed after receiving those reports demonstrated conscious disregard of a substantial risk that a law-abiding person would not have ignored.
A site supervisor directed an unlicensed operator to move a loaded skid-steer loader across a public street at night to assist a relative. The loader struck a parked car and killed its occupant. The supervisor's choice to use unlicensed personnel for a dangerous task created a substantially greater deviation from reasonable conduct than ordinary civil negligence.
Criminal negligence requires a substantially greater deviation from the conduct of a reasonable person than the level of negligence that suffices for civil liability. The deviation must create a high risk of death or serious bodily harm.
Supporting sources
The risk disregarded must be of such a nature and degree that its disregard involves a gross deviation from the standard of conduct a law-abiding person would observe in the actor's situation, considering the nature and purpose of the conduct and the circumstances known to the actor.
Supporting sources
An equitable principle that permits a court to modify administrative or dispositive provisions of a trust when circumstances not anticipated by the settlor would defeat or substantially impair the accomplishment of the trust's purposes.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A settlor created a trust that directed outright distribution of the remainder to a disabled beneficiary upon the life tenant's death. After the settlor died, the beneficiary's medical expenses threatened to consume the entire corpus. A court authorized conversion of the outright remainder into a special needs trust because the change preserved assets and fulfilled the settlor's intent under unanticipated circumstances.
A court may modify dispositive provisions when circumstances not anticipated by the settlor would defeat the trust's purposes, as when conversion to a special needs trust preserves assets for a disabled beneficiary and better fulfills the settlor's intent.
Supporting sources
Traditional doctrine permitted deviation from administrative terms but not dispositive terms. The Uniform Trust Code expands the doctrine to allow modification of either when unanticipated circumstances would impair the trust's purposes.
Supporting sources
A rule drawn from admiralty practice that treats a carrier's unjustified departure from the usual or agreed route as a material breach that deprives the carrier of contractual limitations and exemptions.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A carrier contracted to transport goods from New York to Lisbon but diverted to a port in Brazil to pick up additional cargo for its own account. The diversion extended the voyage and exposed the goods to new perils. The carrier thereby lost the benefit of contractual limitations that would otherwise have applied to the loss.
An unreasonable deviation cancels insurance coverage and causes the carrier to forfeit the protection of contractual exceptions that would otherwise limit liability.
Supporting sources
…the benefit of its members.[^maj-22] Cf. Gibson v. Berryhill , 411 U. S. 564, 578-579 (1973). The State Bar, by providing that deviation from County Bar minimum fees may lead to disciplinary action, has voluntarily joined in what is essentially a private anticompetitive activity, and in that posture cannot claim it is beyond…
…charter was a contract for a voyage from a Gulf port to Iran. Admiralty principles and practices, especially stemming from the doctrine of deviation
…TRIAL COURT DID NOT CONSIDER ALL OF THE STATUTORY FACTORS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO OHIO REVISED CODE SECTION 3119.23 FOR GRANTING A DEVIATION
…determine the status of a posthumously conceived child. The SSA’s interpretation of the relevant provisions, adhered to without deviation
…substantial performance was in good faith and in compliance with the contract, except for some minor and relatively unimportant deviation
A producer scheduled a high-speed forklift stunt without barriers after receiving a written report that the layout created an obvious probability of death. The producer should have been aware of the risk yet approved the event anyway. That failure to perceive the danger constituted a gross deviation from the care a reasonable person would have exercised.