Legal Definitions - intervening act

An intervening act is an event that comes between the initial event in a sequence and the end result, thereby altering the natural course of events that might have connected a wrongful act to an injury. It can be a factor that plays a part in producing a result, but not the primary cause.

For example, if a person is driving recklessly and hits another car, causing injuries, but then a third car crashes into the second car, causing more severe injuries, the third car is considered an intervening act. It alters the natural course of events that might have connected the reckless driving to the injuries.

If the intervening act is strong enough to relieve the wrongdoer of any liability, it becomes a superseding cause. An independentintervening cause is one that operates on a condition produced by an antecedent cause but in no way resulted from that cause.

Overall, an intervening act is an event that comes between the initial event and the end result, altering the natural course of events that might have connected a wrongful act to an injury.