Negligence without causation is like a biscuit without country ham (or blackberry jam).
Now, I’m not so sure that juries pay as much attention to the concept as lawyers and judges, but causation is an element of every cause of action in the tort world.
This decision out of Michigan reminds us that causation must be proved in a legal malpractice case. The lawyer blew the deadline for filing a notice of appeal – clearly negligence – but was not found liable as a matter of law because the appeal was denied on the merits. Read the decision in McCabe vs. Miller & Associates, LLP, No. 275498 (MI. Ct. App. October 9, 2007) here.