TORT LIABILITY AND RISK
MANAGEMENT
Chapter 9
The central principles of tort law are not
controversial or even in dispute.
When a person injures another, the injured
person should be compensated. When
someone damages the property of another, the
owner should be compensated.
Case Study page 209
Purpose of policy – to produce benefit, good, or
happiness and to prevent evil, mischief, or
unhappiness to the individuals whose interest is
being considered.
Utility – greatest happiness principle.
Utility depends on security and equity.
The purpose of all school district policy is to
promote the utility or the greater good of the
school community.
TORT
• A civil wrong that results in personal injury or
property damage.
• Generally court-made law(statutory law being
bills passed by the legislature).
• No system of pre-written rules can address every
situation.
• More common for educators and education
institutions to be defendants(the party accused
of committing the tort).
The most common tort is:
negligence.
Five elements of a tort
1. Duty
2. Breach of the duty
3. Cause-in-fact causation
4. Proximate causation
5. Damages
See Table 9-1 on page 220
Defenses to Negligence
• Contributory negligence If a plaintiff is at all negligent, the plaintiff will take
nothing.
• Comparative negligence –
Seeks to proportion financial responsibility based
on the percentage of damages attributable to each
party’s negligence.
• Assumption of risk
- The plaintiff assumes the risk.
- Liability waivers
• Sovereign Immunity
• Statutory Immunity
How do you manage the risk of tort liability?
• Insurance
• Behavior regulation
• Facility inspection and maintenance
Student on student violence