Opinion ID: 2636747
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Common-law negligence cause of action

Text: The majority concludes that no special relationship exists to extend a duty of care from the pharmacies to the third-party appellants. I disagree with this conclusion. This court has recognized a special relationship between an innkeeper-guest, teacher-student, and employer-employee. See Lee v. GNLV Corp., 117 Nev. 291, 295, 22 P.3d 209, 212 (2001). The relationship between a pharmacy and pharmacy customer should also be considered a special relationship. Thus, in my opinion, appellants' allegations in their complaint are legally sufficient to constitute a common-law negligence cause of action. Generally, a defendant does not have a duty to control another's dangerous conduct or to warn others when dangerous conduct arises. Mangeris v. Gordon, 94 Nev. 400, 402, 580 P.2d 481, 483 (1978). But an exception to this general rule occurs when a special relationship exists between the defendant and the actor who allegedly caused the injury. Id. If a special relationship exists, the defendant has a duty to take measures to protect foreseeable victims from foreseeable harm. See Elko Enterprises v. Broyles, 105 Nev. 562, 565-66, 779 P.2d 961, 964 (1989); El Dorado Hotel v. Brown, 100 Nev. 622, 627, 691 P.2d 436, 440 (1984), overruled on other grounds by Vinci v. Las Vegas Sands, 115 Nev. 243, 984 P.2d 750 (1999). Here, contrary to the majority's position, I determine that the pharmacies owed appellants a duty of care to, among other things, investigate the validity of Copening's prescriptions or to refuse to fill her prescriptions, if warranted, based on the special relationship that exists between a pharmacist and pharmacy customer, together with the information distributed by the Task Force. While I conclude that sufficient information exists to reverse the district court's dismissal of appellants' common-law negligence claim, because the underlying proceedings are at an early stage of the litigation, there also remain unanswered questions relating to foreseeability that justify remanding this appeal to the district court for further proceedings.