When immunities are doled out by the General Assembly, they usually will make an exception for “willful or wanton misconduct.”  For example, emergency medical personnel are immune in Ohio under RC 4765.49, but an injured plaintiff can get around the immunity if the conduct of the EMT is deemed “willful or wanton misconduct.”  So what is “willful” misconduct?  And what is “wanton” misconduct?

Wanton

In Hawkins v. Ivy (1977), 50 Ohio St.2d 114, the Ohio Supreme Court held:

Where the driver of an automobile fails to exercise any care whatsoever toward those to whom he owes a duty of care, and his failure occurs under circumstances in which there is a great probability that harm will result, such failure constitutes wanton misconduct.”