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Reasonably Foreseeable
Involves Remoteness Principles Regarding a View to Risk of Harm
Last Updated: June 11 2026
Question: In an Ontario negligence lawsuit, what does “reasonable foreseeability” mean?
Answer: In Ontario negligence law, “reasonable foreseeability” means an objective check on whether a reasonable person in the defendant’s position would have anticipated a real, not far-fetched risk that their conduct could cause the type of harm that happened, helping courts decide duty, breach, and whether the loss is too remote. For clear, practical guidance on how foreseeability may affect your claim or defence, contact SFG Paralegal Services LLP, a Paralegal serving clients across Ontario, at (888) 398-0121 for a straightforward case review and next steps.
When Foreseeability Is Referred to Within a Negligence Lawsuit, What Does Foreseeability Mean?
Foreseeability Refers to Whether a Harm Resulting From Certain Conduct Could Reasonably Be Foreseen As a Possibility.
Understanding Reasonable Foreseeability Including Remoteness Principles Regarding Risk of Causing Harm
The principle of reasonable foreseeability applies within negligence law. To simplify, reasonable foreseeability involves the awareness of risk of harm that might arise from a specific behavior. As the basics of negligence law involve the question of what a reasonably minded person would do in a given situation, it is necessary to review what a reasonably minded person might foresee as a potential risk arising from the specific behaviour that is being challenged as unreasonable.
The Law
Within the Rankin (Rankin’s Garage & Sales) v. J.J., [2018] 1 S.C.R. 587, and Mustapha v. Culligan of Canada Ltd., [2008] 2 S.C.R. 114, cases, the Supreme Court explained the concept of reasonable foreseeability whereas it was said:
[53] Whether or not something is “reasonably foreseeable” is an objective test. The analysis is focussed on whether someone in the defendant’s position ought reasonably to have foreseen the harm rather than whether the specific defendant did. Courts should be vigilant in ensuring that the analysis is not clouded by the fact that the event in question actually did occur. The question is properly focussed on whether foreseeability was present prior to the incident occurring and not with the aid of 20/20 hindsight: L. N. Klar and C.S.G. Jefferies, Tort Law (6th ed. 2017), at p. 212.
[12] The remoteness inquiry asks whether “the harm [is] too unrelated to the wrongful conduct to hold the defendant fairly liable” (Linden and Feldthusen, at p. 360). Since The Wagon Mound (No. 1), the principle has been that “it is the foresight of the reasonable man which alone can determine responsibility” (Overseas Tankship (U.K.) Ltd. v. Morts Dock & Engineering Co., [1961] A.C. 388 (P.C.), at p. 424).
[13] Much has been written on how probable or likely a harm needs to be in order to be considered reasonably foreseeable. The parties raise the question of whether a reasonably foreseeable harm is one whose occurrence is probable or merely possible. In my view, these terms are misleading. Any harm which has actually occurred is “possible”; it is therefore clear that possibility alone does not provide a meaningful standard for the application of reasonable foreseeability. The degree of probability that would satisfy the reasonable foreseeability requirement was described in The Wagon Mound (No. 2) as a “real risk”, i.e. “one which would occur to the mind of a reasonable man in the position of the defendan[t] . . . and which he would not brush aside as far-fetched” (Overseas Tankship (U.K.) Ltd. v. Miller Steamship Co. Pty., [1967] A.C. 617 (P.C.), at p. 643).
[14] The remoteness inquiry depends not only upon the degree of probability required to meet the reasonable foreseeability requirement, but also upon whether or not the plaintiff is considered objectively or subjectively. One of the questions that arose in this case was whether, in judging whether the personal injury was foreseeable, one looks at a person of “ordinary fortitude” or at a particular plaintiff with his or her particular vulnerabilities. This question may be acute in claims for mental injury, since there is a wide variation in how particular people respond to particular stressors. The law has consistently held — albeit within the duty of care analysis — that the question is what a person of ordinary fortitude would suffer: see White v. Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police, [1998] 3 W.L.R. 1509 (H.L.); Devji v. Burnaby (District) (1999), 180 D.L.R. (4th) 205, 1999 BCCA 599; Vanek. As stated in White, at p. 1512: “The law expects reasonable fortitude and robustness of its citizens and will not impose liability for the exceptional frailty of certain individuals.”
In the Rankin and Mustapha cases, foreseeability is defined as the question of whether a person could rationally predict that certain conduct might bring about harm to another person. Moreover, according to the principles established in Rankin and Mustapha, when evaluating whether harm was foreseeable, a court should approach the situation from the perspective of foresight before the incident occurred rather than in hindsight after the incident occurred.
Summary Comment
Negligence law involves the scrutiny of whether an individual acted without proper care and should be held accountable for the harm caused to another person. A component of the scrutiny into whether actions were without proper care involves the inquiry into whether the harm caused could be rationally seen as a possibility. If the harm was rationally unforeseeable, then negligence failed to occur.
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