 Actions
taken to deliberately harm
another person or their property
 Intent, desire
the action
or motive do not count only
 1.
Compensatory damages
 Example: money for hospital bills, lost wages, pain
and suffering. Juries decide what amount
 2.
Nominal Damages
• -an award to show that the claim was justified-
symbolic, usually can’t prove serious injury
 3.
Punitive Damages
• Amounts of $$ awarded to punish the defendant,
warns others not to do the same
 Torts
that injure persons
 Battery and Assault
 Infliction of Emotional Distress
 False Imprisonment
 Torts related defamation
 Torts that harm property
 Real Property
 Personal Property
 Intellectual Property
 Patents & Copyrights
 Obvious-assault
and battery
 Infliction of emotional distress-words or
actions that cause extreme anxiety or
emotional distress. Not often awarded a
lot of money
 False
Imprisonment-right to be free from
unreasonable restraint.
 Issue: Can a shopkeeper use restraint to
detain a shoplifter?
 Defamation
of character
 Libel-false and malicious written words
 Slander-spoken words that are false and
malicious
 Which is more difficult to prove
 Private citizens
 Public citizens who claim defamation
must prove that the action was false and
prove malice
 1. Person’s
use of property can’t be
interfered with
 2. protects person against property
being taken or damaged
 Three types of property that are
protected
 1. Real Property
 2. Personal Property
 3. Intellectual Property
 Can
require you to use reasonable care to
protect other persons from harm while on
your property
 Must
fence in construction sites,
swimming pools
 Taken, damaged
or interfered with
A
burglar breaks into Laura’s house,
steals her computer and the criminal is
caught and convicted
 Burglar
can also be sued by Laura under
conversion-someone unlawfully
exercises control over the personal
property of another person
 Reasonable
force can be used to protect
property
 Deadly force can’t be used to protect
property
 Only
applies to protect from serious
threat of bodily harm
 When
a person has a patent or copyright,
any use by another person without
permission is a tort called infringement
 Patents-rights
to inventions, processes,
new machines, products
 Fair
use-allows limited legal reproduction
of copyrighted works for certain
purposes-scholarship, research, news
 1.
Consent-consent forms for medial
care, emergency not needed. Can be
stated consent or assumed
 2. Privilege-police officers that take the
liberty of a person by arresting them are
not liable for false imprisonment.
 Best known privilege is self defense, not
revenge though
 3. Defense of Property-reasonable not
deadly—see Castle Doctrine