Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
BELL QUIZ ON CHAPTER 3
1. List two felony crimes.
2. List two misdemeanor crimes.
3. List two of the defenses to crime.
4. What is the difference between battery and
assault? Explain both.
5. List one of the computer-related crimes.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
ANSWERS TO BELL QUIZ CHAPTER 3
1. Murder, manslaughter, burglary, robbery, arson
2. Driving without license, lying about age to buy
alcohol, leaving scene of accident
3. Insanity, entrapment, self-defense, defense of
family members
4. Battery is unlawful touching of another person.
Assault is an attempt to commit battery.
5. (See next slide)
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
5.
theft of computer services
destruction of equipment
misuse of computer information
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The Law of Torts
Chapter
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Section 4.1
Intentional Torts
Section
4.1
Torts
The Law
of Torts
Chapter 4Intentional
Section 4.1
Intentional Torts
Section 4.2
Negligence and Strict Liability
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Why It’s Important
Learning the difference between a tort and
a crime, as well as the types of intentional
torts, will help you understand how the
justice system protects people from injury.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Pre-Learning Question
What is the difference between
criminal law and tort law?
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Difference Between
Criminal Law and Tort Law
A crime is an act against not only a
specific individual, but the general
welfare, as well.
A tort is a private wrong committed
by one person against another.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Difference Between
Criminal Law and Tort Law
A tort will lead the wronged party to try
and recover money as compensation
for the loss or injury suffered.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Difference Between
Criminal Law and Tort Law
A tort does not, however, call upon the
government to punish the wrongdoer.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Concept of Rights
The law of torts is grounded in the
concept of rights.
Under tort law all people are
entitled to certain rights.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Concept of Rights
These include the right to:
be free from bodily harm
enjoy a good reputation
conduct business without
unwarranted interference
right to own property free from
damage or trespass
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
The Concept of Rights
The law imposes a duty on all of us
to respect the rights of others.
Tort law governs this interplay
between rights and duties.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Intentional Torts
Torts can be committed either
intentionally or unintentionally.
An intentional tort occurs when a
person knows and desires the
consequences of his or her act.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Assault and Battery
The tort of assault occurs when one
person deliberately leads another
person to believe that he or she is
about to be harmed.
The tort of battery involves the
unlawful, unprivileged touching of
another person (even if not harmful).
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Assault and Battery
The tort of assault is different from the
crime of assault.
The victim of a tort assault must
know that the tortfeasor meant to
commit harm.
A tortfeasor is the person who
committed the tort.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Trespass
A trespass is the wrongful damage to
or interference with the property of
another.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Nuisance
The tort of nuisance is anything that
interferes with the enjoyment of life or
property.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Raymond slapped his wife Charlotte
while they were arguing about child
support. Which tort did Raymond
commit—assault or battery?
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
ANSWER
Battery
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
False Imprisonment
Law enforcement officers must have
probable cause or a warrant to arrest
someone, or they can be sued for
false imprisonment, or false arrest.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Defamation
Defamation is the wrongful act of
injuring another’s reputation by
making false statements.
Libel is a false statement in written
form.
Slander is a false statement made
orally to a third party.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Invasion of Privacy
Invasion of privacy is interfering with
a person’s right to be left alone, which
includes the right to be free from
unwanted publicity and interference
with private matters.
End of Section 4.1
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The Law of Torts
Chapter
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Section 4.2
Negligence
and Strict
Intentional
TortsLiability
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Why It’s Important
Because any person is a potential victim
and a perpetrator of negligence.
Understanding this vital area of tort law will
help you protect yourself legally.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Unintentional Torts
A person can commit an unintentional
tort, when he or she acts in a careless
manner that results in an injury to a
person, damage to property, or both.
Negligence and strict liability are
unintentional torts.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
4.2
Section
4.1 Intentional Torts
Intentional and Unintentional Torts
Torts
Intentional Torts
Unintentional Torts
When a person commits a
wrong against another and
knows and desires the
consequences of his or her act.
When acting in a careless
manner causes damage or
injury.
Examples
Examples
Assault and Battery
Trespass
False imprisonment
Negligence
Strict liability
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Unintentional Torts
Negligence is an accidental or
unintentional tort resulting because of
the failure to exercise the degree of
care that a reasonable person would
have exercised in the same
circumstances.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Unintentional Torts
Strict liability is the doctrine that
states that people engaged in
ultrahazardous activities will be held
liable, regardless of how careful they
were and regardless of their intent.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Negligence
is an accidental or unintentional tort.
is the tort that most often occurs in
society today.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Elements of Negligence
duty of care
breach of duty
proximate cause
actual harm
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Duty of Care
All of us have a duty not to violate
certain rights of others.
The plaintiff must demonstrate that
the defendant owed him or her duty
of care.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Example of Duty of Care
Julia was injured while diving at a
public pool. The injury could have
been avoided if the diving board had a
guardrail. Julia sued the state’s
Department of Health.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Example of Duty of Care
The court ruled the Department of
Health had a duty to the state’s
sanitary code, not a duty to inspect for
safety problems. The Department of
Health had no duty to Julia.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Breach of Duty
Breach of duty is the failure to use
the degree of care that a reasonable
person would exercise in that same
situation.
The words “reasonable person”
must be used when instructing the
jurors. “What would a reasonable
person do in this situation.”
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Proximate Cause
Proximate cause is the legal
connection between unreasonable
conduct and the resulting harm.
Without proximate cause, the result
would not have occurred.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Proximate Cause
Courts apply the foreseeability test to
determine proximate cause.
“Was the injury to the plaintiff foreseeable
at the time that the defendant engaged in
the unreasonable conduct?”
Example 5: page 90
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Actual Harm
The essence of any tort suit is a
violation of a duty that results in
injury to the plaintiff.
The plaintiff must have actually
suffered physical injury, property
damage, or financial loss.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Defenses to Negligence
contributory negligence
comparative negligence
assumption of risk
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Contributory Negligence
Behavior by the plaintiff that helps
cause his or her injuries may be
considered contributory negligence.
Many states no longer follow this
doctrine – plaintiff may have been only
slightly negligent.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Comparative Negligence
The negligence of each party is
compared under the doctrine of
comparative negligence, and the
amount of the plaintiff’s recovery is
reduced by the percent of his or her
negligence.
Example 7: page 92
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Assumption of Risk
If the defendant can show the plaintiff
knew of the risk involved and still took
the chance of being injured, he or she
may claim assumption of risk.
Baseball clubs…
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Strict Liability
Some activities are so dangerous that
the law will apply neither the principles
of negligence nor the rules of
intentional torts to them.
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Strict Liability
According to strict liability, if these
activities injure someone or damage
property, the people engaged in the
activities will be held liable, regardless
of how careful they were and
regardless of their intent.
Ultrahazardous activities
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts
Section 4.1 Intentional Torts
Ultrahazardous Activities
• Explosives
• Keeping wild animals
• Storing high flammable liquids in
densely populated areas
Defects in products – firm is liable
End of Section
Understanding Business and Personal Law
The Law of Torts