Legal Definitions - casus

Definition: Casus (kay-suhss) is a Latin term that has two meanings:

1. An event that happens by chance, without any human intervention or fault. This is different from culpa, which refers to events caused by human error or fault, and dolus, which refers to events caused by intentional wrongdoing.
2. A situation that was actually considered by lawmakers when they created a law that applies to that situation. This is the opposite of casus omissus, which refers to a situation that was not considered by lawmakers when they created a law.

Examples:

• Example 1: A tree falls on a car during a storm, causing damage. This is an example of casus because it was an accident that happened without any human intervention or fault.
• Example 2: A law that prohibits smoking in public places is a casus law because lawmakers considered the situation of people smoking in public places when they created the law.

These examples illustrate the two meanings of casus. In the first example, the event was an accident that happened without any human intervention or fault, which is the first meaning of casus. In the second example, lawmakers considered the situation of people smoking in public places when they created the law, which is the second meaning of casus.