Chapter 12 Tort wrong tort law designed to compensate those who have suffered a loss or injury due to another person s wrongful act o Two notions wrong and compensation Compensatory Damages Compensate the plaintiff for actual losses o Special damages compensation for quantifiable monetary losses Medical expenses lost wages loss of irreplaceable items o General Damages compensate individuals not companies for nonmonetary losses Emotional pain linked to losing a family member Punitive Damages Punishing the wrongdoer and keeping others from similar wrongdoing o Subject to limitations under due process clause in the Constitution o Typically only available in intentional tort actions and not in negligence lawsuits with the exception of gross negligence Steps Toward Tort Reform awarded 1 Limiting the amount of punitive damages and general damages that can be 2 Capping the amount that attorneys can collect in fees 3 Requiring the losing party to pay both plaintiff and defendant expenses Class Action Fairness Act CAFA Shifted jurisdiction of large interstate tort and class action lawsuits from the state courts to the federal courts o Class action lawsuit large numbers of plaintiffs bring on a suit as a group o Prevents plaintiffs attorneys from forum shopping or looking for a state court known to be sympathetic for their client s cause Defenses Reasons why the plaintiff should not receive compensation brought on by the defendant o When a person gives consent to the act that harms her or him there is generally no liability Intentional Tort Fault plus intent o Intent Person knew of the consequences with substantial certainty o Transferred intent Person intends to harm someone but unintentionally harms another during the act Assault Intentional threat of immediate harm or offensive contact no contact needed Battery Completing the assault and physically harming someone False Imprisonment Restraint without consent o Businesses can t hold someone that s suspected of shoplifting unless the state laws permit Tort of Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress intentional act that amounts to extreme and outrageous conduct resulting in severe emotional distress to another o Must be extreme and outrageous to the point that it exceeds the bounds of decency accepted by society o Public figures don t count unless actual malice is proven because of freedom of speech including opinions Defamation Wrongfully hurting a person s good reputation to a third party Not o Libel Defamation in writing or in another permanent form digital recording Must prove general damages o Slander Defamation in the form of speaking Must prove special damages Slander per se 4 types Special damages don t need to be proven 1 Statement that another has a particular disease 2 Statement that another has committed improprieties while engaging in a profession or trade 3 Statement claiming that a person has committed a crime 4 A statement that a person is unchaste or has engaged in sexual misconduct 4 points to prove defamation 1 Defendant made a false statement of fact 2 Statement was understood as being about the plaintiff and tended to harm plaintiff s reputation 3 Statement was published to at least one person other than plaintiff 4 If the plaintiff is a public figure actual malice must be proven 4 Acts that qualify as invasion of privacy 1 Intrusion into an individual s affairs or seclusion Eavesdropping by wiretap unauthorized scanning of bank account window peeping 2 False Light Publication of information that places a person in a false light 3 Public disclosure of private facts Someone publicly discloses private facts about an individual that an ordinary person would find embarrassing 4 Appropriation of Identity Using a person s name picture likeness or other identifiable characteristic for commercial purposes without permission Fraudulent Misrepresentation Intentional deceit for personal gain o A person represents as a fact something he or she knows is untrue Wrongful interference with a contractual relationship 1 A valid enforceable contract must exist 2 A third party must know about the contract 3 Third party must intentionally induce a party to the contract Wrongful interference with a business relationship using predatory behavior by specifically targeting the customers of a competitor to gain a greater share in the market Intentional torts against property o Trespass to land Enters onto land that is owned by another or causes anything o Trespass to personal property Individual wrongfully takes or harms the to enter onto land personal property of another o Conversion Any act that deprives an owner of personal property or the use of that property without owner s permission o Disparagement of property Economically injurious falsehoods are made about another s product or property Slander of quality trade libel alleging someone s product is not what they claim Slander of Title publication that falsely denies another s legal ownership of property Unintentional torts Neglegence Someone suffers an injury because of another s failure to live up to a required duty of care Plaintiff must prove 1 Duty Defendant owed a duty of care 2 Breach Juan bumps into Mary 3 Causation Mary falls and breaks her arm 4 Damages Mary suffered a legally recognizable injury Good Samaritan Act Protects a Good Samaritan for helping someone in need Dram Shop Act Liability is on the bar owners if a customer gets too drunk Landowners are expected to exercise reasonable care to protect individuals coming onto their property from harm Businesses must exercise reasonable care to protect their business invitees wet floor signs etc obvious risks provide an exception Professionals are held to a different standard than normal people doctors engineers etc Causation The breach had to cause the injury 2 questions 1 Causation in fact Did the injury occur because of the defendant s act or would it have occurred anyway 2 Was the act the proximate or legal cause of the injury Connection between an act and an injury is strong enough to justify imposing liability Assumption of risk if you enter into a risky situation you can t sue Getting hit by a foul ball at a baseball game assumed the risk Chapter 13 Prima Facie accepted as correct until proven otherwise Strict Liability Occurs in tort situations that are particularly dangerous in nature coal mining and determines the defendant to be liable Product Liability Manufacturers can be liable if their products become
View Full Document
Unlocking...