Negligence is best defined as what?

Negligence is best defined as carelessness that leads to harm. This concept revolves around the idea that an individual or entity fails to take reasonable care in their actions or decisions, which results in unintended injury or damage to another person or property. The key component of negligence is that it involves a lack of intention to cause harm, distinguishing it from intentional wrongdoing. In legal terms, to prove negligence, one typically must demonstrate that the party had a duty of care, breached that duty through careless actions, and that the breach directly caused an injury or harm. This understanding is critical in many fields, including fire investigation, where identifying the cause of negligence can be essential in case assessments and legal proceedings.