The concept of "reasonable care" on unstable hillsides

The old common-law rules of strict liability with regard to earth movement have given way to the more modern legal doctrine of "reasonable care" in the California court system, which hears the largest number of earth movement-related cases in the United States. Reasonable care doctrine is more case specific, and emanates from the legal definition of "negligence," or the exercise of responsible conduct for which a professional is always held accountable, regardless of liability-limitation agreements. Three landmark California decisions are briefly profiled, including the most recent, in which the California State Supreme Court ruled that it is common knowledge that all fill embankments will settle, just as rotten trees or dilapidated buildings can be expected to collapse. The chapter concludes with the implications for geopractitioners in today"s ever-evolving legal climate.