Cengage Advantage Books: Law for Business 19th Edition by John Ashcroft,Katherine Ashcroft,Martha Patterson

Exercise 19

When the concluding question in a case problem can be answered simply yes or no, state the legal principle or rule of law that supports your answer.
W hile they were dating, Heather Borrack and her boyfriend, Charles Reed, spent a day with his family on a lake swimming. Reed led Borrack up a steep path to a cliff above the lake. Once at the top of the cliff, Borrack told Reed that she wanted to return to the lake, but he refused to go back down the path with her and she was too frightened to return on the steep path by herself. Reed then tricked Borrack into jumping off the cliff by jumping himself and leaving her alone at the top. Borrack jumped off the cliff and was severely injured when she hit the water. She sued Reed for negligence, arguing that his conduct created a significant risk for her due to the terrain and that he had a duty to lessen the risk or take precautions so that Borrack did not harm herself. Did Reed's actions create a duty to Borrack?