created by one s behavior occurring as a result fault Chapter 6 Intentional Torts 1 A tort is a civil wrong that is not a breach of contract Tort cases and treaties identify different types of wrongfulness culpability or fault and define them in varying ways Intent is the desire to cause certain consequences or the certainty that those consequences will result from one s behavior 2 Recklessness is the conscious indifference to a known and substantial risk of harm 3 Negligence is a failure to use reasonable care with harm to another party 4 Strict liability is liability without fault or more precisely liability irrespective of A plaintiff who wins a tort case usually recovers compensatory damages for the harm she suffered as a result of the defendant s wrongdoing If the defendant s actions were particularly bad injured victims may also be able to recover punitive damages o These damages are reserved for the worst wrongdoers and are designed to punish flagrant wrongdoers and deter them from committing such crimes in the future Mathias v Accor Economy Lodging Inc 7th Circuit 2003 The Mathias couple were bitten by bedbugs while staying at a Motel 6 They sued the Motel 6 corporation and wanted compensatory and punitive damages on the fact that the defendant engaged in willful and wanton conduct DECISION Initially the jury awarded the plaintiff with 186 000 in punitive damages and an extra 5K in compensatory damages The defendant argued that exceeding a single digit ratio between punitive and compensatory damages might be close to unconstitutional so the court agreed with a proposed ceiling of 20K Interference with Personal Rights This section talks about two categories of intentional torts o o those involving interference with personal rights those involving interference with property rights Battery his consent Battery is the intentional and harmful or offensive touching of another without o Contact is included as well nonharmful contact that is offensive or offends a reasonable sense of personal dignity The intent required for battery is o o the intent to cause harmful or offensive contact the intent to cause apprehension that such contact is imminent Transferred intent is also punishable which is injuring another person while actually trying to injure another person There is no liability for battery however if the plaintiff consented to the touching Assault occurs when there is an intentional attempt or offer to cause a harmful or offensive contact with another person o the intent is the same as intent required for battery Assault the plaintiff s apprehension must pertain to an anticipated battery that would be imminent or immediate Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress Courts today allow recovery for severe emotional injuries under appropriate circumstances regardless of whether the elements of any other tort is proven o One rule states that the defendant must have intentionally or recklessly inflicted the distress in order to be liable the courts allow recovery for witnessing outrageous behavior and suffering from emotional distress False Imprisonment False imprisonment is the intentional confinement of another person for an appreciable time without his consent it may result from physical barriers like locking someone in a room or from the use of threat or physical force against a victim Partial confinement of another by blocking a path when there are other means of escaping is not false imprisonment Defamation Defamation is defined as the underprivileged publication of false and defamatory statements concerning another The Libel Slander Distinction o Libel refers to written or printed defamation or to other defamation having a physical form such as a defamatory picture sign or statue o Slander refers all other defamatory statements mainly oral defamation The common law has allowed plaintiffs to recover for libel without proof of special damages actual reputational injury and other actual harm Slander on the other hand is generally not actionable without proof of special damages unless the nature of the statement is so serious it can be classified as slander per se slander per se includes false statements False and Defamatory Statement Included among the elements of defamation are the separate requirements that the defendant s statements by both false and defamatory Of and Concerning the Plaintiff An essential element of the tort is that the alleged defamatory statement must be of and concerning the plaintiff the statement must be about the party who brought on the case Statements of pure opinion do not amount to defamation because they are not statements of fact concerning the plaintiff statements that mix both opinion and facts are actionable o o o o o o Publication Defense and Privileges Liability for defamation requires publication of the defamatory statement the publication does not take place when the plaintiff herself communicates the offensive statement to another A party other than the person who initially made a defamatory statement may be liable along with the original speaker or writer if that other party served as a publisher of the defamatory falsehood but not if the other party was a distributor ex A company that publishes books are liable while libraries that distribute the books are not liable Defense are available in certain defamation cases the truth is a complete defense Privileges to defamation liability recognize that in some circumstances other social interests are more important than an individual s right to reputation Privileges can be absolute or conditional An absolute privilege protects the author of a defamatory statement regardless of her knowledge motive or intent Conditional privileges gives the defendant a defense unless the privilege is abused abused the statement is made with knowledge of it being false when the statement does not advance the purposes supporting the privilege There are various forms of conditional privileges statements made to protect or further the legitimate interests of another ex Someone tells an employer about a person s scandal and this is protected because it helps the employer make the right hiring choice statements made to promote a common interest fair comment protects fair and accurate media reports of defamatory matter that appears in proceedings of official government action or originates from public meetings Defamation and the Constitution The Court reasoned that judicial enforcement of the legal rules of