parent nodes: Breach of Duty | character | custom | Hand Formula | standard of care
custom
The custom of an industry is no defense to a negligence action if the custom does not itself fulfill a reasonable standard of care. [TJ Hooper] (L where pilots of tugboats, like other pilots, failed to carry radios that could have prevented accident); see generally Hand Formula.
However, where plaintiff and defendant are involved in a contractual relationship, the custom of the industry effectively shifts costs to negligent parties through the prices they may charge. Rodi Yachts v National Marine (NL where ship caused damage to the dock where it was moored). In this sense, the market level of care is essentially a reasonable standard of care.
As with the standard of care more generally, custom is less likely negligent the less readily apparent or foreseeable the danger from an activity. [Ellis v Louisville and Nashville Ry] (NL where railroad workman got silicosis from breathing in railroad-caused dust over his career).; cf [MacDougall v Pennsylvania Power] (L for injuries from unguarded fuse box on roof).
Special cases
malpractice