This is a Latin term which means "the thing speaks for itself". It is a legal term for a method of alleging malpractice against a health care provider. Essentially, the allegation goes like this: "the patient was well before and sustained this condition only after having been cared for by you, therefore something must be wrong with your care". There are three conditions which must be met for res ipsa loquitur to be used: in the ordinary course of affairs, the accident would not have occurred if reasonable care had been used the thing that caused the accident was under the exclusive control of the defendant the plaintiff did not contribute to the occurrence of the accident