reckless
Reckless behavior is conduct that creates a substantial and unjustifiable risk of harm to others and involves a conscious disregard of, or indifference to, that risk. Reckless conduct is greater in severity than negligence, but represents a lesser degree of fault than intentional wrongdoing, and it constitutes an extreme departure from the care a reasonable person would exercise in similar circumstances. Recklessness is the state of mind associated with this behavior. In simple terms, recklessness is a state of mind where a person is aware of, but does not care about the consequences of their actions.
In criminal law recklessness is a mental state that applies to both attendant circumstances and result elements. With respect to attendant circumstances, recklessness can be understood as when a defendant believes (but is not certain) that the circumstance exists, and consciously disregards that risk. For example, if the attendant circumstance in a crime of serving alcohol to a minor is that the person is under 21, a reckless mental state would mean that the defendant suspected the person was under 21 and served them alcohol anyway.
For result elements, recklessness occurs when the defendant is aware of a substantial risk that the prohibited result will occur, and consciously disregarding that risk, where such disregard is unjustifiable.
Recklessness as a standard appears in other areas of the law as well. For example, the intent element of the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) may be satisfied by reckless conduct. In addition, reckless conduct may constitute a breach of a director’s duty of care under business organizations law, and recklessness may also serve as a basis for establishing liability in some private nuisance claims under property law.
[Last reviewed in March of 2026 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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