Intervening Cause Law and Legal Definition
Intervening cause is a defense that is raised by a defendant seeking relief from liability based upon the interruption of a link between the defendant's wrongful act claimed and the harm suffered by the plaintiff. When an intervening cause exists that breaks the natural chain of events due to the subsequent act of another, the initial wrongdoer may be relieved of the responsibility for an injury that occurs. The intervening cause then assumes responsibility for the resulting injury. An intervening cause is an independent, foreseeable cause that is occurs after another cause in time in producing the result but does not interrupt the chain of causation. It is also called a supervening cause.
