Also known as:special reasons to know · reason to know
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A heightened form of constructive knowledge that requires a defendant to anticipate a particular type of injury to a specific plaintiff or identifiable class when ordinary foreseeability analysis is insufficient because the nature or extent of the risk is difficult to ascertain.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
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Intoxicated Party Signs Margin Agreement
Solomon Silver consumed several cocktails at a reception and displayed slurred speech while negotiating a margin trading agreement with Spectrum Financial. The representative had received prior emails about Silver's recent hospitalization and observed his erratic behavior yet proceeded without further inquiry. Silver later sought to avoid the contract on incapacity grounds. The court held that Spectrum had special reason to know of Silver's condition and could not enforce the agreement.
Landlord Fails to Disclose Structural Defect
Steven Silva leased a warehouse from Sterling Manufacturing without being told of a hidden foundation crack that posed collapse risk. Sterling knew the defect existed at the time of possession and realized Silva would not discover it during a standard inspection. After the roof partially collapsed and injured Silva's employees, the court found Sterling had special reason to know of the danger to the tenant class and imposed liability.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Statutes
Uniform Acts
Restatements
Casebooks
Revoked Consent to Enter Property
Simon Stern granted Sierra Santos permission to inspect equipment on his land but later sent a written revocation that Santos received yet ignored. Santos returned with a crew the next day. When Stern sued for trespass, the court ruled that Santos had special reason to know consent had ended and therefore lacked any privilege to remain on the property.
Merchant Confirmation Without Objection
Samuel Soto, a fabric wholesaler, sent Sterling Dynamics a signed confirmation of an oral order for $600 worth of specialty cloth. Sterling received the document, knew its contents described the exact transaction, and failed to object within ten days. When Sterling later denied any contract, the court held that the confirmation satisfied the statute because Sterling had special reason to know its terms bound the recipient.
Divergent Meanings in Service Contract
Sarah Sullivan and Starlight Media executed a video-production agreement using the term intensive without defining it. Internal emails showed each side knew the other attached a materially different meaning regarding crew size and daily hours. When performance disputes arose, the court found neither party had special reason to know the other's interpretation and therefore no mutual assent existed on that essential term.
Landlord Liability for Tenant Activities
Spectrum Financial leased a warehouse to a tenant known to conduct high-risk chemical testing. The landlord had inspected the premises and learned that no safety protocols would be followed. After an explosion injured a neighboring business, the court held the landlord had special reason to know the activity would create an unreasonable risk outside the property and therefore remained liable.
Common questions
Frequently Asked
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When does ordinary foreseeability become insufficient and require special reason to know?+
Ordinary foreseeability analysis is insufficient when the nature of the risk or the extent of harm is difficult to ascertain. In those situations the defendant must have special reason to know that a particular plaintiff or identifiable class would likely suffer a particular type of injury.
Supporting sources
How does special reason to know differ from actual knowledge in tort duty analysis?+
Special reason to know is a form of constructive knowledge based on information that would lead a reasonable person to infer the existence of a heightened risk to a specific plaintiff or class. It does not require the defendant to have actually realized the risk.
Supporting sources
What must a plaintiff prove to establish that a defendant had special reason to know of third-party conduct?+
The plaintiff must show that the defendant was in a position to know or have reason to know from past experience that there was a likelihood of conduct by third persons likely to endanger the safety of another.
Supporting sources
416 A.2d 862Property
…fairness and justice mandated that the statute of limitations should not have commenced running until the plaintiff knew or had reason to know of the presence of the foreign object in her body. The discovery rule has since been extended to other areas of medical malpractice. See, e.g., Lopez, supra (alleged negligent radiation…