The Law of Torts
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Jamila
Trai
Daniel
Peggy
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Have you ever been accused of an activity or
behavior that was damaging to your
reputation?
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Have you ever felt your personal privacy was
invaded?
crime (p. 80)
tort (p. 80)
intentional tort (p. 81)
tortfeasor (p. 82)
trespass (p. 82)
nuisance (p. 83)
false imprisonment (p. 83)
defamation (p. 84)
invasion of privacy (p. 86)
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What is the difference between criminal
law and tort law?
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.
▪ Offense against society… Punishable by Government
 A tort is a private wrong committed by one
person against another.
▪ Person injured as a result can sue and obtain a
judgment
 One act can be both a tort and a crime.
The law of torts is grounded in the
concept of rights.
Under tort law all people are entitled to
certain rights.
These include the right to:
be free from bodily harm.
enjoy a good reputation
conduct business without unwarranted
interference
The law imposes a duty on all of us to
respect the rights of others.
Tort law governs this interplay between
rights and duties.
What is an intentional tort?
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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.
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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.
 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.
Raymond slapped his wife Charlotte while
they were arguing about child support. Which
tort did Raymond commit—assault or
battery?
Battery
Problem 17.12
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
Who is responsible for Dale’s injury? For Mrs.
Martinez’s injury?
From whom will Dale recover damages?
Is there a limit to the amount that Dale can
recover?
From whom will Mrs. Martinez recover
damages? How will she recover those damages?
Is there a limit to the amount Mrs. Martinez can
recover?
Why does the law treat these two injured people
differently? Is this fair/ Explain.
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Trespass
 A trespass is the wrongful damage to or
interference with the property of another.
 Example 2, pg. 82 Sorensen and some
friends went hunting on Lashutka’s private
ranch w/o her permission.
▪ The landowner could bring a lawsuit for the tort of
trespass.
▪ Notice that Sorenson and Friends did not actual
harm property.
▪ Law of trespass presumes injury from mere
unwelcome presence on property by another
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Nuisance
 The tort of nuisance is anything
that interferes with the enjoyment
of life or property.
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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.
 Example 3, pg. 84 Betty Brandon, a store detective
for Brennan’s Department Store, thought she saw a
customer Gwen Forsythe place lipstick in her purse.
 Detective apprehended woman and lock her in store
room for questioning.
 Betty and store owner became satisfied that Gwen
was innocent and released her.
 Gwen sued for false imprisonment and court ruled in
favor of Gwen. Huge sum of money for her
humiliation and emotional suffering.
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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.
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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.
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Was there ever a time when you may have
unintentionally caused an accident or an
injury to another person or property.
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If criminal law is responsible for
dealing with individuals who commit
wrongful acts, what purpose does tort
law serve? Why do you need to
understand the different intentional
torts?
Tort law compensates victims, and
in order to properly represent his or
her client as a tortfeasor or a victim,
an attorney must have a proper
understanding of the different
intentional torts.
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negligence (p. 88)
strict liability (p. 88)
breach of duty (p. 88)
proximate cause (p. 90)
contributory negligence (p. 91)
comparative negligence (p. 92)
assumption of risk (p. 92)
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
Assault and Battery
Trespass
False imprisonment
Examples
Negligence
Strict liability
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Negligence – mere carelessness
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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.
▪
▪
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Duty
Breach of duty
Actual or Proximate Cause
Injury
Some activities are so dangerous that the law will apply neither
the principles of negligence nor the rules of intentional torts to
them.
 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.
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Ultra Hazardous Activities
 Explosives
 Keeping wild animals
 Storing highly flammable liquids
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Product Liability
 Exceptions
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Vicarious liability is a form of
strict, or secondary liability that
arises under the common law
doctrine of agency
 The responsibility of the superior
for the acts of their subordinate,
or, in a broader sense, the
responsibility of any third party
that had the "right, ability or duty
to control" the activities of a
violator.
 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.
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Duty of Care
 Example 4, pg. 89 While using a diving
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board at public pool, Julia fell and was
injured.
The injury could have been avoided if the
diving board had a guard rail.
Julia sued the Health Department,
arguing that the department had
inspected the pool but did not do
anything about the missing guardrail.
State Supreme Court ruled against Julia
saying the State’s sanitary code required
inspections only for health problems, not
safety problems.
NO DUTY to Julia.
 Breach of Duty
 “Reasonable person” test
 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.
Proximate Cause
 Proximate cause is the legal
connection between
unreasonable conduct and the
resulting harm.
 Without proximate cause, the
result would not have occurred.
Proximate Cause
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Example 5, pg. 90 Mrs. Palsgraf was waiting for a
train on the platform of the Long Island Railroad
Company.
 As another train was pulling out of the station, a man
carrying a package ran to catch it.
 A railroad attendant on the train pulled the man
upward, while another attendant push him forward.
 The man’s package fell to the ground, which
contained fireworks and the resulting explosion
shook the platform and knocked over some scales,
which hit Mrs. Palsgraf.
 Mrs. Palsgraf sued for negligence. Court ruled
attendants could not reasonably foresee that
pushing and pulling a man onto a train would injure a
woman standing near.
Actual Harm or Injury
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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.
Example 6, pg. 90: Opening Scene: Jamila
says that Trai’s foolish driving amounts to
negligence.
 Peggy reminds her that actual harm
must result before Trai’s conduct would
be negligent
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Contributory Negligence
 Behavior by the plaintiff that helps
cause his or her injuries may be
considered contributory
negligence.
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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.
 Percentage Rule of
Responsibility
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Comparative Negligence
 Example 7, pg. 92: Jason
cohen sued Mark Goodhue
for damages suffered in an
automobile accident. The
jury found the damages to
$100,000, and also found
that Jason was 10 percent
negligent and Mark was 90
percent negligent.
 As a result, Jason could only
recover $90,000 instead of
the full amount.
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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.
 Example – ballparks: Read the
back of your ticket
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Mediation: parties agree
to have a third-party
mediator hear the case
facts and rule.
 Binding on the parties
 Cheaper compared to Court
 Faster and more timely
 Usually more desirable for
less serious cases
Problem 17.6
a) Whom should Mrs. Hightower sue for
damages? Why?
b) Who, if anyone, was at fault in this
case? Give your reasons.
c) What methods other than a civil trial
could the plaintiff use to deal with this
situation?
d) How could these methods work?
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What is the difference
between intentional
and unintentional
torts?
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What does the Federal
privacy Act of 1974
require federal
agencies do?
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Under today’s law, to
what extent do
property owners own
the airspace above
their land?
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What defenses can you
use if you are faced
with a negligence suit?
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Explain the
difference between
contributory
negligence and
comparative
negligence
Explain how the tort
of assault differs
from the crime of
assault
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What types of people have a
difficult time proving
damage to their reputation
as part of defamation
lawsuits?
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Under what circumstances
may a defendant to a
negligence suit claim the
assumption of risk defense?
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