Editing Man on the Clapham omnibus (section)

{{Short description|Hypothetical reasonable person in law}}
{{use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
[[File:Clapham Omnibus - geograph.org.uk - 3049778.jpg|300px|thumb|A historical Brixton to Clapham horse-drawn bus on display at [[London Bus Museum]].]]
[[File:E136 a (15337559191).jpg|300px|thumb|A modern route 88 bus heading to Clapham Common]]
The '''man on the Clapham omnibus''' is a hypothetical ordinary and [[reasonable person]], used by the courts in [[English law]] where it is necessary to decide whether a party has acted as a reasonable person would – for example, in a [[tort|civil action]] for negligence. The character is a reasonably educated, intelligent but nondescript person, against whom the defendant's conduct can be measured.

The term was introduced into English law during the [[Victorian era]], and is still an important concept in British law<!--British not English because in 2014 the UK supreme court used it in ruling on a Scottish case-->. It is also used in other [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] common law jurisdictions, sometimes with suitable modifications to the phrase as an aid to local comprehension. The route of the original "[[Clapham]] [[Horsebus|omnibus]]" is unknown but [[London Buses route 88]], which terminates at [[Omnibus Theatre]], was briefly branded as "the Clapham Omnibus" in the 1990s and is sometimes associated with the term.<ref name="hBvzH">{{cite book | title=Time out London guide | publisher=Penguin Books | year=1995 | pages=103 | quote=The 88 bus, recently and rather self-consciously styled "The Clapham Omnibus", starts its pleasantly circuitous route from here, to points north of the River.}}</ref><ref name="OklRN">{{cite journal | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JtpUAAAAMAAJ | title=Paul Rainford on bus branding | author=Rainford, Paul | journal=Design | year=1993 | issue=533 | pages=43 | quote=The Clapham Omnibus is the shape of things to come. Run by London General (an LT company) on route 88 between Clapham Common and Oxford Circus, this single- decker, Wigan- built Volvo B10B model sports its own jaunty graphics, designed by the Best Impressions consultancy}}</ref><ref name="4mgvS">{{cite book | url=http://www.civitas.org.uk/pdf/cs37.pdf | title=A Cost Too Far? | publisher=Civitas | author=Milne, Ian | year=2004 | pages=24 | isbn=9781903386378 | quote=bus seats on the number 88 London bus — the Clapham omnibus — are made in Australia}}</ref>