Bell on Negligence and Assumption of Risk

Bernard Bell has posted to SSRN Unnecessary Dangers and Acceptance of Risk.  The abstract provides:

This essay traces the interplay of two critical bases for liability underlying much of the law of unintentional torts. The first, which dominates most discussions, is that actors should not unnecessarily endanger others. The second, and less frequently discussed, is that every person should have the power to voluntarily consent to risk of injury, and thus is entitled to disclosure of his or her risk of potential injury. As a corollary, when a person voluntarily and knowingly confronts a risk, the person should not be entitled to recovery if the risk comes to pass. This essay explores the various ways in which these two bases for liability play out depending on the circumstances, sometimes complementing each other and at other times conflicting. The essay is suitable for pedagogical use in a first-year torts class, and I have used it to good effect in summing up important aspects of the law of unintentional torts.