California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from Lipson v. Superior Court, 182 Cal.Rptr. 629, 31 Cal.3d 362, 644 P.2d 822 (Cal. 1982):
In addition, it has long been established in California that all persons owe a duty of care to avoid injury to others unless public policy clearly requires that an exception be made. (See Civ.Code, 1714, subd. (a); 5 [31 Cal.3d 373] Rowland v. Christian (1968) 69 Cal.2d 108, 112, 70 Cal.Rptr. 97, 443 P.2d 561.) This court can conceive of no policy reason to shield from liability a landowner or occupier whose negligent or intentional misrepresentation of the nature of a hazard proximately causes injury to a firefighter. Indeed, firefighters may often have to rely on information provided by the owner or occupier of the premises to determine how most effectively and safely to combat a fire. If this information is misleading, the result may well be the tragic loss of not only the fireman's life but also the lives of members of the public. Public policy dictates that recovery for injuries or for loss of life should be compensated and the fireman's rule should not be used to shield property owners or occupiers from liability for such tortious acts.
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