How does the reasonable person test for negligence interpreted and applied in a multi-cultural society?

Question

Since we know that evryone is equal before the law, then everyone should experience the same protection of the law. Therefore, when the courts applies the reasonable test for negligence, do they interprete it to accomodate every culture, in a diverse and multi-cultural society?

Answer 1

Well, obviously I can not speak for all countries, but I can give you an example of a case in Canada.

In this case a Korean (I think it was Korean, I could be wrong, I apologize if I am wrong on the country of his origin) man killed his live in girlfriend because he claimed that he saw a spirit which told him that his girlfriend was cheating on him. In his culture/religion the appearance of a spirit was incredibly important and demanded to be held in the highest regard. Also, in their culture it was not at all acceptable for a man to be disrespected in such a way.

He was tried for her murder, and he was found guilty. The courts did not even use his reasons as mitigating circumstances in his sentencing because those are not acceptable reasons in the Canadian culture.

So yes, everyone is equal before the law, however that does not mean that the dominant culture is going to change what they believe is acceptable to make allowances for cultural behaviours of other locations. While there is nothing wrong with maintaining your own culture when immigrating to a new country, you must be willing to celebrate and keep to your culture within the letter of law of the country you now live in.

Answer 2

It is generally applied based on the standards of care, knowledge and experience of an average adult member of the community in which the incident occurred.

This standard may be lowered in emergencies, or if the particular person has any physical disabilities (but not mental disabilities), so that it would apply to the average reasonable person with the same physical limitations. The standard is also raised if the particular person holds any specific (expert) knowledge that is relevant.

For cultural differences, unless these reflect any specific expert knowledge or change what would be considered common knowledge in the community, they would likely not be considered.