Talmud - Bava Kamma 48b בבא קמא מ״ח ב׳

In a case of two people who were both somewhere with permission, or two people who were both somewhere without permission, if they injure each other directly, they are both liable. If they were injured by one another through stumbling over one another, they are exempt. From this statement, it may be inferred that the reason both are liable if either damages the other is specifically that the two of them were both there with permission or the two of them were both there without permission. But if one, i.e., the homeowner, was there with permission, and the other entered without permission, then the one who was there with permission is exempt if he injured the other, but the one who entered without permission is liable if he injured the homeowner, in accordance with the opinion of Rava and Rav Pappa.

§ The mishna teaches: If the ox that he brought into the courtyard without permission fell into the owner’s pit and contaminated its water, the owner of the ox is liable. Rava says: They taught this halakha only in a case where the ox contaminated the water at the time of the fall. But if it contaminated the water after the fall, e.g., the animal died there and the decomposing carcass despoiled the water, he is exempt. What is the reason? The ox, in this case, is considered as a pit, and the water has the status of utensils that fall into a pit, and we have not found a case of damage categorized as Pit that renders one liable for causing damage to utensils. Therefore, he is exempt.

The Gemara asks: This works out well according to the opinion of Shmuel, who says: Any obstruction is categorized as Pit, and the same halakha exempting the one responsible for the pit from damage to utensils applies to them as well. But according to the opinion of Rav, who says that one’s property is not categorized as Pit until he renounces ownership of it, what is there to say? Presumably, the owner did not renounce ownership of the ox or even of the carcass.

Rather, if this statement was stated, it was stated like this: Rava says that they taught this halakha only in the case where the ox contaminated the water with its body, i.e., its carcass. But if it contaminated the water with its stench, the owner is exempt. What is the reason? It is because the damage is caused merely by an indirect action. Although the ox’s owner was initially responsible for his animal falling into the pit, the stench did not result directly from this action. It subsequently occurred on its own, and one is not liable for damage that is caused merely by an indirect action.

§ The mishna teaches: If the homeowner’s father or son were inside the pit at the time the ox fell and the person died as a result, the owner of the ox pays the ransom. The Gemara asks: But why does he pay a ransom? Isn’t the ox innocuous, in which case its owner is not liable to pay a ransom? Rav says: Here we are dealing with an ox that is forewarned for falling on people in pits.

The Gemara asks: If so, the ox is liable to be put to death, because if it is forewarned for this behavior, it is considered to have acted intentionally. Rav Yosef said in response: This is a case where it saw some grass that it intended to eat on the edge of the pit, and fell in the pit instead. Since there was no intention to cause damage by falling, the ox is not liable to be put to death, but since it was forewarned for this behavior, its owner still pays ransom.

Shmuel said: This ox mentioned in the mishna is innocuous, and in accordance with whose opinion is this? It is the opinion of Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, who says: The owner of an innocuous ox that caused damage pays half a ransom. Therefore, when the mishna states that he pays a ransom, it means that he pays half a ransom.

Ulla said: The mishna is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, who maintains that payment of a ransom is applicable even in the case of an innocuous ox, but he states his ruling in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Tarfon, who says: For damage categorized as Goring that is carried out by an innocuous ox in the courtyard of the injured party, the ox’s owner pays the full cost of the damage. So too, he pays a full ransom despite the fact that the ox is innocuous.

The Gemara asks: Granted, according to Ulla, this explanation is consistent with that which the mishna teaches: If his father or his son were inside the pit at the time the ox fell and the person died as a result, the owner of the ox pays the ransom. The mishna thereby provides a case of damage categorized as Goring in the courtyard of the injured party. But according to Shmuel’s explanation, why mention his father or his son specifically? Even if the injured party were another person, not a close relative of the owner of the property, the owner of the animal would be required to pay half a ransom, and even if it was in the public domain.

The Gemara answers: Indeed, that is the case, and the mishna is simply teaching this ruling by means of the typical scenario, that presumably it was someone from the family of the one who owns the property containing the pit that was inside the pit.

§ The mishna teaches: But if he brought the ox into the courtyard with permission, the owner of the courtyard is liable for the damage caused. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: The homeowner is not liable in any of the cases in the mishna, even if he gave his permission for the items to be brought onto his premises, unless he explicitly accepts responsibility upon himself to safeguard them. It was stated that the Sages disagreed with regard to the halakha in this dispute: Rav said that the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of the first tanna, and Shmuel said that the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi.

The Sages taught a case similar to that of the mishna: If the owner of the courtyard said to the owner of the ox: Bring your ox into my courtyard and safeguard it, then if the ox caused damage to the property of the owner of the courtyard, the animal’s owner is liable. And if the ox was injured, the owner of the courtyard is exempt. If he said to him: Bring your ox in and I will safeguard it, then if the ox was injured, the owner of the courtyard is liable; if the ox caused damage, its owner is exempt.

The Gemara asks: This matter itself is difficult: You said in the first clause that if the courtyard’s owner said to him: Bring your ox into my courtyard and safeguard it, then if the ox caused damage, its owner is liable. And if it was injured, the owner of the courtyard is exempt.

The Gemara infers: The reason that the owner of the ox is liable and the owner of the courtyard is exempt is specifically that the owner of the courtyard said to the owner of the ox: Safeguard it. One can infer that if he granted permission for the ox to enter without specifying that the owner of the animal safeguard it, the owner of the courtyard is liable if the ox was injured, and the owner of the ox is exempt if it caused damage. The reason the owner of the courtyard is liable is that the tanna of this baraita holds that in an unspecified case, where the obligation to safeguard the animal was not mentioned, the owner of the courtyard implicitly accepts upon himself responsibility for safeguarding the ox.

The Gemara continues its analysis of the baraita: Say the latter clause: If he said to him: Bring your ox in and I will safeguard it, then if the ox was injured, the owner of the courtyard is liable; if the ox caused damage, its owner is exempt.

The Gemara infers: The reason that the owner of the courtyard is liable and the owner of the ox is exempt is specifically that the homeowner said to the owner of the ox: And I will safeguard it. One can infer that if the owner of the courtyard granted permission for the ox to enter without specifying that the owner of the animal safeguard it, the owner of the ox is liable if it damages the property of the owner of the courtyard, and the owner of the courtyard is exempt if the ox is damaged. The reason the owner of the courtyard is not liable is that the tanna of this baraita holds that in an unspecified case, where the obligation to safeguard the animal was not mentioned, the owner of the courtyard does not accept upon himself responsibility for safeguarding the ox.

The Gemara concludes its analysis: We come to the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, who says that unless the homeowner explicitly accepts upon himself responsibility for safeguarding, he is not liable. Based on this understanding, the first clause of the baraita is in accordance with the opinion of the Rabbis, and the latter clause is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi.

Rabbi Elazar said: Indeed, the baraita is disjointed, and the one who taught this clause did not teach that clause. Rava said: The entire baraita is in accordance with the opinion of the Rabbis, and no inference should be drawn from the extra words: And I will safeguard it, in the latter clause. Since the first clause mentions that the owner of the courtyard instructed: Safeguard it, the latter clause also teaches that he said: And I will safeguard it, to maintain symmetry. The same halakha applies even when granting permission to enter without specification, since, according to the Rabbis, granting permission to enter includes an implicit acceptance of responsibility for safeguarding.

Rav Pappa said: The entire baraita is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, who holds that if no specification was made, the owner of the courtyard does not accept responsibility, as inferred from the latter clause of the baraita. And as for the inference drawn from the first clause, he holds in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Tarfon, who says: For damage categorized as Goring that is carried out by an innocuous ox in the courtyard of the injured party, the ox’s owner pays the full cost of the damage.

Therefore, if the owner of the courtyard said to the owner of the ox: Safeguard it, he is clearly not transferring the rights to any portion of the courtyard to him, as evident from the fact that the owner of the ox must safeguard it and may not treat the courtyard as if it were his own. Consequently, if the ox gored, it is a case of damage categorized as Goring in the courtyard of the injured party, and one responsible for damage categorized as Goring in the courtyard of the injured party pays the full cost of the damage.

By contrast, if the owner of the courtyard did not say to the owner of the ox: Safeguard it, then by granting him permission to bring the ox onto his courtyard, he effectively transfers rights to an area within the courtyard. Therefore, with regard to damages, it becomes a courtyard of partners, and the one responsible for damage categorized as Goring in the courtyard of partners pays only half the cost of the damage.

MISHNA: In the case of an ox that was intending to gore another ox but struck a pregnant woman, and her offspring, i.e., the fetuses, emerged due to miscarriage, the owner of the ox is exempt from paying compensation for miscarried offspring. But in the case of a person who was intending to injure another but struck a pregnant woman instead, and her offspring emerged due to miscarriage, he pays compensation for miscarried offspring.

How does he pay compensation for miscarried offspring, i.e., how is their value assessed? The court appraises the value of the woman by calculating how much she would be worth if sold as a maidservant before giving birth, and how much she would be worth after giving birth. He then pays the difference in value to the woman’s husband. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said:

Traduction : The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz.

BavaKamma 48b explores liability when trespassers or permitted parties injure one another, plus rules on an ox contaminating a pit’s water.