Smith v. London and South Western Railway (L.R. 6
C.P. 14 (1870)) was one of a number of famous "Fire Cases" from the
1800s. In all of these cases, someone negligently starts a fire and the
courts have to decide what the extent of the damages are. In this case, a
train caused a fire that damaged a building 200 yards away.
In general, the Fire Cases established the doctrine that
when the defendant's conduct otherwise qualifies as proximate cause
of the plaintiff's harm, the defendant does not escape liability merely
because the harm was more extensive than anyone foresaw of could have
foreseen.
In this case, one judge said, "When it has been once
determined that there is evidence of negligence, the person guilty of it
is equally liable for its consequences whether he could have foreseen them
or not."
