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VA · jury_instructions

Va. Model Jury Instr. Civ. No. 19.020

Railroad’s Duty: Anticipated Trespassers on Tracks

activein force · 2026-04-01 – presentcompiled-edition

A railroad has a duty to use ordinary care to look for persons whom it might reasonably expect

to be using the [section of tracks; area alongside the tracks] where the accident occurred as a

walkway. If the railroad discovers, or should have discovered, a person in danger, then the railroad

has a duty to use ordinary care to avoid harming him. If the person is in obvious and immediate

danger, then the railroad has a duty to use all available means, consistent with the safety of those

on the train, to avoid harming him.

If the railroad fails to perform one or more of these duties, then it is negligent.

History

Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Civil, Release 26, April 2026. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.

Provenance

Source
vacourts.gov
Retrieved
2026-10-11
Edition
civ-2026-04-01
Content hash
9a39d00183dfb74b9b2f3213552b77c5e7f18c9f4b38e7bb08e1b5bf41f45fff
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