Friday, January 23, 2009

Bava Kamma 26 - A Man Is Always Warned for Damages (Torts)

A man is never innocent regarding damages in that he always pays in full for whatever he damages, whether he did the damage unintentionally or intentionally while awake or asleep. If he blinded the eye of his fellow or he broke utensils, he pays full damages.

By grouping the “blinding” and “breaking utensils,” this ruling teaches that just as in the case of utensils, he pays for the actual damage but not the  “four things” - pain, healing, unemployment, and humiliation - so too if he blinded the eye of his fellow unintentionally, he pays for the actual damages but not the “four things.”

Art: Blind Beggar And His Boy by Jusepe de Ribera

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