Which of the following is NOT an element of medical malpractice under common law?

• A. Duty
• B. Breach
• C. Causation
• D. Res ipsa loquitur

Answer: (D)

Understanding negligence elements vs. proof rules is key. In medical malpractice under common law, you must show four things: there was a doctor-patient relationship creating a duty, the standard of care was breached, that breach caused the injury (causation), and there were actual damages. Res ipsa loquitur isn’t an element you must prove. It’s a doctrine used to infer breach from the nature of the injury when direct proof is hard to obtain—for example, when the injury wouldn’t ordinarily occur without negligence and the instrumentality was under the defendant’s control. It helps establish breach, but it doesn’t by itself establish duty, causation, or damages. So the option describing res ipsa loquitur is not an element of medical malpractice under common law.