April 20, 2026 · 5:56
The Laws of Torts Week 1Questions? Comments? We love feedback! Email us at [email protected] Rav Aryeh FinkelTEXT VERSION:Question: Reuven’s neighbor went away for Shabbos. Before he left, he forgot to shut the hose that was running in his backyard. Over Shabbos, the water flowed into Reuven’s property and flooded his basement. Is the neighbor liable as an odom hamazik? Answer: He definitely could be chayav because of the rule of garmi, which is a form of direct causation of damage; however, there are some limitations to the halachos of garmi. For example, there is the opinion of the Shach who says that garmi is only a chiyuv d’rabanan, which allows for leniency in some cases.Odom hamazik, however, is a chiyuv d’oharaysa. A person is biblically liable for damages that he does through his actions. In this case, the neighbor just turned on the water. He did not actually cause the flooding by pouring water into Reuven’s basement. Is what he did enough of an action to hold him liable as an odom hamazik?The Gemara in Bava Kama speaks about a case where someone releases water out of a pipe, which flows out and causes damage. It says that if the water strikes something in the first burst as it is running out of the pipe, it is called “kocho” – a damaging force caused by the person. Although he didn’t touch the water and merely allowed it to come out of the pipe, it is considered as if he did the damage and he is liable as an odom hamazik. The Gemara in Sanhedrin discusses a simila