Chapter 7 – Torts

What is a Tort

• Harm to a person or a person’s property

Degrees of Fault

• No liability
• Strict Liability
• Negligence
• Intentional Act

Intentional Torts

• When someone intends to harm a person’s body, reputation, or emotional well-being

Assault

• Assault is:
  • 1. An intentional act
  • 2. that creates a reasonable apprehension of
  • 3. an immediate harmful or offensive physical contact.

 Battery

• Battery is:
  • An intentional act
  • that creates a harmful or offensive physical contact.

False Imprisonment

• False imprisonment is:
  • An intentional act
  • that caused confinement or restraint
  • through force or the threat of force.

False Imprisonment

• Shopkeeper can defend by showing:
  • Restraint of shoplifter justified
  • Detained shoplifter for probable cause and for a reasonable time and in a reasonable manner

Defamation

• Defamation is the:
  • Publication
  • of false statements
  • that cause harm to reputation.

Defamation per se

• Defamation per se remarks include:
  • That someone has a loathsome communicable disease,
  • That someone committed business improprieties
  • That someone has been imprisoned for a serious crime
  • That an unmarried woman is unchaste

Defamation of Public Figures

• Under New York Times  Co. v. Sullivan rule public figures must show:
  • 1. Publication
  • 2.  of false statements
  • 3.  that cause harm to reputation and
  • 4. made with actual malice.

Defenses to Defamation

• Defamation defenses include:
  • Truth
  • Privilege

Invasion of Privacy

• Invasion of Privacy includes:
  • Disclosure
  • Intrusion
  • Appropriation
  • False light

  Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

• To prove intentional infliction of emotional distress must show:
  • An intentional act
  • that is extreme and outrageous
  • and causes
  • severe emotional distress.

Harm to Person’s Property

• Harm to person’s property includes:
  • Trespass to land
  • Trespass to personal property and conversion
  • Defenses to torts against property

Other Intentional Torts

• Other intentional torts include:
  • False arrest
  • Malicious prosecution
  • Abuse of process
  • Fraud/Intentional misrepresentation
  • Interference with a contractual relationship

Negligence

• To prove negligence need to show:
  • The defendant owes a duty to the plaintiff to act reasonably, and
  • the defendant must have breached that duty
  • thereby causing
  • the plaintiff harm.

Causation

• “But for” standard
• Actual cause or cause in fact
• Proximate cause
• Intervening cause

 Defenses to Negligence

• Defenses to negligence include:
  • Contributory negligence
  • Assumption of the Risk
  • Comparative negligence
  • Immunities

Reckless Behavior

• Defined as:
  • Gross negligence
  • Willful or wanton behavior
  • Recklessness

Ultrahazardous Activities

• Ultrahazardous six factors are:
  • Existence of a high degree of risk of some harm to person, land or chattels of others;
  • Likelihood that the harm that results will be great;
  • Inability to eliminate risk by reasonable care;
  • Extent activity not a matter of common usage;
  • Inappropriateness of activity to the place carried on; and
  • Extent value to community outweighs dangerous attributes.

Strict Liability

• Liability without having to prove fault.

Products Liability

• Three theories for products liability claim based on negligence are:
  • Defect in product caused by failing to use        reasonable care in manufacturing process
  • Defect in product caused by negligent design
  • Negligent failure to warn

Products Liability

• Where cannot show specific act of negligence but product defective and defect caused an injury plaintiff can rely on:
  • Warranty theory
  • Strict liability theory

Products Liability

• Caveat Emptor
  • No liability
• Contract/Breach of Warranty
  • Liability unless disclaimed or lack of privity of contract
• Negligence
  • Liability if can prove unreasonable behavior
• Strict behavior
  • Liability if sold defective product that was unreasonably dangerous

Remedies

• Injunction
• Compensatory damages (actual damages)
• Punitive damages