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Simple English definitions for legal terms
intervening agency
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A quick definition of intervening agency:
An intervening agency is something that happens in between an initial event and the end result, which can change what would have happened. If the intervening agency is strong enough, it can relieve someone of any responsibility for what happened. There are different types of intervening agencies, such as dependent and independent ones. A dependent intervening agency is not an action and can never relieve someone of responsibility, while an independent one operates on a condition produced by an antecedent cause but did not result from that cause.A more thorough explanation:
An intervening agency is an event that comes between the initial event in a sequence and the end result, thereby altering the natural course of events that might have connected a wrongful act to an injury. It is also known as an intervening cause.
For example, if a person is injured in a car accident and then develops an infection due to medical malpractice, the medical malpractice is considered an intervening agency. It alters the natural course of events that might have connected the car accident to the injury.
If the intervening agency is strong enough to relieve the wrongdoer of any liability, it becomes a superseding cause. A dependent intervening cause is one that is not an act and is never a superseding cause. An independent intervening cause is one that operates on a condition produced by an antecedent cause but in no way resulted from that cause.
Overall, an intervening agency is an event that interrupts the chain of causation between a wrongful act and an injury, and may affect the liability of the wrongdoer.