Beware Of Who You Text!

A New Jersey court of appeal has moved texting liability to uncharted waters after ruling that a person who sends a text-message to a person who is likely to text back while driving, can be held liable for damages caused by that driver. The text-sender must, however, know or have special reason to know that the recipient will view the message while driving and thus be distracted by it. 

In the case at hand, an 18 year-old driver grievously injured two individuals on a motorcycle after crossing the centre-line of the road and hitting them with his pick-up truck. The driver's 17 year-old friend – Shannon Colonna - was texting him much of that day, including immediately before the accident. The plaintiffs' argued that Colonna was "electronically present" in the car and therefore partially responsible for distracting him on the road.