Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
1. Match the following holdings with the cases that they represent:
A. In Re Polemis
1. A person may not recover for damages
caused by another's negligence unless he is a
member of a foreseeable class of victims.
B. Palsgraf
2. A person may recover for unforeseeable
damages as long as the damages are the direct
result of the other's negligent act.
C. Wagon Mound
3. A person may only recover for damages
that are a foreseeable result of another's
negligent act.
2. Jim owns a tuna boat moored in San Diego bay. On a calm day, it comes loose from
it's moorings Assume that the mooring lines were negligently tied, even for good
weather. The tuna boat drifts out into the bay where it crashes violently into the bay
bridge. The collision sparks a fire onboard the tuna boat. Within minutes, the fire
reaches the tuna boat's engine room. The resultant explosion sends tremendous shock
waves across the bay, shattering Annette's bayside condo's windows. The flying glass
cuts her face severely. May Annette recover damages from Jim under the rule in
Polemis? Under Palsgraf? Under Wagon Mound?
3. Same facts as in Question 2, but now Annette is sailing her 40 foot yacht around the
bay bridge area, instead of being at home in her condo. What affect does this have on
the probable outcome under Palsgraf or Wagon Mound?
4. Jim works in a coal mine. To get to and from the depths of the mine, Jim and his
co-workers must take a platform elevator. There is a statute in the Jim's state which
requires the passengers in such elevators to wear a safety harness, and to "clip" that
harness to the rails of the elevator while it is in motion. Jim thinks that "clipping in" is
too much trouble for a hard-workin', budwieser-drinkin', backbone-of-America guy like
himself, so he merely drapes the harness over himself loosely, but does not "clip in".
While riding the elevator one day, Jim's unclipped harness slips off of him and falls
down to the bottom of the elevator shaft where it lands on the head of his co-worker
Annette, injuring her severely. Is Jim liable to Annette for her injuries under a per-se
negligence theory? Why or why not?
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
5. Jim is a forgetful taxi driver with a broken gas gauge. One night, after picking up
Annette at the airport, he runs out of gas in a bad part of town. While Jim and Annette
are walking several blocks away to get to the nearest gas station, local thieves seize the
opportunity to steal Annette's valuable luggage from the locked trunk. Annette sues Jim
for the value of the stolen luggage, claiming that his negligence was a proximate cause
of her loss. Jim admits negligence in running out of gas, but claims that he is not liable
for the luggage because he exercised his duty to lock the trunk, and cannot be held
responsible for the intervening intentional tort of the thieves. Who should win? Why?
6. What is the policy reasoning behind the law refusing to impose a legal duty to rescue
a person even if the rescue can be performed successfully at minimal cost to the
rescuer?
7. Give an argument for the imposition of a legal duty to rescue when the cost to the
rescuer is slight.
8. Match the following duties a landowner owes to the traditional classes of persons:
A. Trespasser
B. Licensee
C. Invitee
harm
1. duty to warn of hidden dangers
2. duty to keep property in reasonably safe condition
3. duty to refrain from willful, wanton or intentional
4. duty to avoid affirmative acts of negligence
9. Ginger is 8 years old. At the end of her block is a vacant lot with an oil derrick on it.
The lot is fenced off, but the neighborhood kids have bent the fence back enough so that
they can slip in and out in order to play on the oil derrick. The owners of the oil derrick
know that kids often play on or around it, and scare them off every time they come to
turn it on. One day, Ginger is playing with some friends on the dormant oil derrick,
when the owners show up. They yell at the kids to get off the derrick, and all but Ginger
scurry away. Ginger is too scared to run, and instead hides in the derrick. The owners
do not check to see if there are any kids hiding on the derrick, and proceed to start it up.
If Ginger is then injured by the motion of the oil derrick, would the owners liable for
damages? Why or why not?
10. What changes to the traditional approach of landowner duties did the case of
Rowland v. Christian make? What was the court’s justification for these changes?
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
11. Jim is a surfer. While surfing on a particularly stormy day at the jetty, he notices that
a lone tourist (Annette) is wandering out too far on the rocks. He says to his buddies
that he bets the woman will get soaked with the next big set. Everyone agrees. On the
next big wave, Annette not only gets soaked, but also gets washed over the rocks into
the pounding surf. Instinctively, Jim begins to paddle over to her. None of the other
surfers take any action to save Annette because they think that Jim is going to save her.
Jim actually does intend to rescue Annette, but stops short once he realizes that there is
a very large probability that he will get smashed onto the rocks if he gets any closer.
While he hesitates, Annette drowns. Is Jim liable for Annette’s death? Why or why not?
12. Annette takes a trip to Tuscon, AZ. She decides to stay at the Motel 6. At about
midnight, she hears a knocking at her door. She asks, "Who is it?" The voice on the other
side says, "It's me. Let me in." Thinking the voice to be that of her friend, Jim, she opens
the door. Tragically, it was a stranger who robs her and leaves. Annette brings an action
against the Motel 6 alleging that a special relationship was created when she rented the
room, and that the Motel had breached a duty of care under that relationship to provide
for her safety. Should Motel 6 be liable for Annette's damages? Why or why not?
13. What reasoning did the court in Tarasoff use to find a special relationship was
created between the psychiatrist and the intended murder victim of one of his patients
once he knew of the patients intent to kill her?
14. Jim owns a pit bull which is known to be ferocious. It has gotten loose and bitten
other dogs before. Yesterday, it got loose and came into my yard, where it urinated in
my flower garden and trampled my prize petunias. Jim is strictly liable to me for the
damages because his dog was known to be ferocious. True or False?
15. True or False: Fletcher v. Rylands is one of the earliest cases involving strict liability
for abnormally dangerous activities.
16. In determining whether an activity is "abnormally dangerous", the jury should take
into account what factors?
17. Jim has a problem with gophers in his yard. He has tried everything to get rid of
them, yet they still remain. He vows to get rid of them once and for all by blasting them
out of their little holes. So he places plastic explosives shaped like little furry woodland
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creatures into their holes and blows his backyard to bits. The resulting explosion send
rocks and debris flying into his neighbor Annette's yard, breaking several of her
windows. Is Jim liable for Annette's damages under a strict liability theory for
abnormally dangerous activities?
18. When conflicting property usage rights arise between the owners of adjoining
property, the general rule has been not to provide an action for recovery of damages for
one owner because it necessarily involves limiting the other owner's lawful use of his
own land (remember the flax stacks and well managed train case). Why should an
exception be made in the case where one of the owners is performing a necessary but
abnormally dangerous blasting activity on his property?
19. Jim is driving his gasoline truck down a two-lane road when an illegal alien runs out
in front of him in an effort to cross the highway and evade the INS. Jim is forced to
swerve onto the shoulder where he loses control. The truck plunges down a steep bank
into Annette's backyard, crashing through her house. The house is completely
destroyed by the impact, but fortunately the gas tanks do not explode. Annette sues Jim
and his company, claiming that even though he was not negligent in swerving, he is
nonetheless strictly liable for the damages to her house because the transportation of
gasoline in large commercial quantities has been defined as an abnormally dangerous
activity in Siegler v. Kuhlman. Should Annette recover under this theory? Why or why
not?
20. True or False: Under the theory of strict liability for abnormally dangerous activities,
an actor is liable for all damages that are a direct result of his abnormally dangerous act.
21. To get some extra money around the holidays, Annette makes walnut brittle and
sells it at work. One year, the walnuts that she used had small bits of nutshell mixed in.
One of her co-workers bought some from her, and broke a tooth on the walnut shell.
The co-worker brought suit claiming strict products liability under §402A of the
Restatement (Second). Is the co-worker's claim valid? Why or why not?
22. Acme makes a paper cutter, the big kind with a large blade that can cut your finger
clean off. Unfortunately it did cut Jim's finger clean off. Jim brings a suit under §402A
for strict products liability, alleging that the paper cutter is defective and unreasonably
dangerous due to its extremely sharp blade and lack of a guard to prevent the user's
fingers from coming into contact with the blade. Should Jim be successful under this
theory? Why or why not?
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
23. True or False: Assumption of Risk is a valid defense to a strict products liability
action?
24. Jim operates a used car lot. He buys vehicles from private citizens and resells them
to private citizens. Annette buys a car from him that turns out to have a latent defect in
the master cylinder which causes the brakes to fail an inopportune time. Annette brings
an action against Jim claiming strict products liability for the damages? Is Annette's
claim valid? Why or why not?
25. What are the arguments for and against holding a blood bank strictly liable for
damages arising from a transfusion recipient developing AIDS in 1995, after having a
blood transfusion in 1982?
26. The Bijou Cinema sells various flavors of cotton candy at a concession stand in one
of their theaters. The Bijou is famous in the city for this delicious cotton candy. In fact,
the theater makes about as much money from the cotton candy as it does from the
discount movies it shows. One day, Jim goes to the theater to see a movie, and buys
some jalepeño flavored cotton candy. He eats it while he watches the movie, and then
goes home. Weeks later, he notices that he is losing weight and so he goes to the doctor.
He is diagnosed with Hepatitis, and it is traced back to the person who prepared the
cotton candy that he ate. In gathering data for his pending lawsuit, Jim discovers that
the Bijou theater has changed hands. The theater is now owned by Edward's Cinemas,
who bought it from Bijou Enterprises, Inc., a corporation which has since dissolved. The
theater doesn't seem to have changed much, and Edward's still makes quite a bit of
money off of the cotton candy stand. Can Jim sue Edward's under §402A? Why or why
not?
27. True or False: Strict liability for defective design is based on applying the
reasonableness standard to the product and not to the product's designer.
28. What inherent danger lies in holding design defects up to a reasonableness
standard, while holding manufacturing defects up to a strict liability standard?
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
29. For what reasons should a birth control pill manufacturer have a duty to warn the
consumer directly of any potential dangers involved with using their product? What
other prescription medications might the same reasoning apply to?
30. True or False: In a products liability case for the injuries from prescription drugs,
even if the π can establish that the duty to warn was breached because the warning
given was inadequate, the π still must prove causation by showing that she would not
have used the drug had she known of the risk of injury.
31. Why should design defects in prescription drugs be subjected to the
quasi-negligence standard of §402A comment k (which states that the manufacturer is
required to warn of dangers that he knows or should know of at the time of
distribution), instead of a strict liability standard?
32. Jim built an amphitheater at the outskirts of a rural community in Valley Center. The
first Saturday of each month, he books rock and roll bands to play at the amphitheater
until midnight. Hundreds of kids from the surrounding area go to these concerts,
driving their cars through the otherwise peaceful neighborhoods. The concerts are very
loud, keeping the neighbors up well past midnight, and when the concert-goers
eventually go home, they leave lots of trash and tire marks behind on the dirt roads.
Can the neighbors successfully bring an action against Jim for private nuisance? What
remedies might they go after?
34. What is the policy behind requiring intentional nuisances to be subject to a
"reasonableness" standard instead of straight strict liability as in other intentional torts?
35. Why is an extra-sensitive plaintiff, such as the sick man in Rodgers, unable to
recover damages against the church bell-ringer, even though the bell-ringer knew with
substantial certainty that ringing the bell would injure the sick man? Isn't this in direct
conflict with the "eggshell skull" doctrine of Vosberg v. Putney?
36. Give a reason for disallowing immunity under each of the following relationships:
A. Husband and Wife
B. Parent and Child
C. Charitable Organizations
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
37. Jim is a automobile crash tester for the federal government. He evaluates the safety
of new car designs by subjecting them to crash-dummy simulation tests. Kia, a new car
manufacturer, convinces Jim that their miniature sport-utility vehicle needs no actual
crash testing because they are essentially the same design as the Suzuki Samurai, which
Jim's testing showed was acceptable. To save time and reduce backlog, Jim approves the
Kia car without testing. Some time later, Annette crashes her new Kia, and is severely
injured when the frame collapses on her. In addition to suing Kia under a design defect
theory, Annette wishes to sue the federal government and Jim personally for Jim's
actions. As Annette's counsel, what should concern you about suing Jim and the federal
government in this case?
38. Match the following actions with their respective definitions:
A. Wrongful Death Act
B. Survival Act
1. Living person recovers for the
torts that accrued to the deceased
while the deceased was still alive.
2. Living person recovers their own
losses due to the death of another.
C. Loss of Consortium
39. Jim is a successful lawyer. One day while crossing the street on his way to lunch, he
is hit by the Dummy-Knows Pizza delivery driver who ran the red light. Jim was
severely injured and remained in the hospital in constant agony until he died from his
injuries 3 days later. What actions can Jim's wife Annette bring against Dummy-Knows
Pizza? What sorts of damages might she recover?
40. How might the damages award be affected in Question 39 above if Jim were a
Purple Heart recipient and thus entitled to free medical treatment at the VA hospital
where he was treated? What if Jim was not a veteran but had private medical insurance
which covered the cost of his medical bills?
41. Jim is a sales rep for a radio station. Part of his job includes calling on potential
advertisers all across the county to sell airtime for commercials. While driving back to
the radio station after calling on a customer, Jim decides to stop off at Les Girls Nude
Dance Review for the lunch matinee. As he leans back to watch one of the girls
performing a table dance for him, he loses his balance and tips over backward in his
chair, striking his head and fracturing his skull. What remedy might Jim have to recover
for his injuries?
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Roger's Torts Quiz Spring 95
42. Jim works as an operator for MCI. Because he has such a loud personality, his office
mates in the other cubicles hate him. Even his boss doesn't like him. One day, to get
back at him for his obnoxiousness, his officemates and his boss saw through the legs of
his chair while he is at lunch. When he returns and sits on the chair, it collapses under
him and causes injury to his vertebrae. During Jim's ensuing tort action against MCI
(under respondeat superior), MCI demurs claiming that Jim has no cause of action in
tort because his only remedy against his employer is in workman's compensation. As
Jim's council, how do you counter this defense? How would the possible remedy
change if you were successful?
43. Jim is secretly in love with Annette, but Annette despises Jim. While Annette is
sleeping, Jim kisses her lightly on the cheek. The kiss does not awaken Annette, nor
does it harm her physically. Is Jim subject to Annette for offensive battery even though
she was not aware of the kiss?
44. Jim is a drunk baseball fan who is also quite rude. All the beer he has drunk this
afternoon is catching up with his bladder. Because he doesn't want to miss any of the
game, Jim decides that he could save some time if he just whipped it out and urinated
in the stands where he sits. With total reckless disregard for the fans in the seats in front
of him, he relieves himself onto the concrete at his feet. Annette who is sitting barefoot
in front of him, feels the urine pooling at her feet and is understandably disgusted. She
quickly leaves and washes her feet off, and incurs no physical damages. Can Annette
recover from Jim for offensive battery?
45. Before Jim kissed Annette in question 43, he locked her door and kept the key.
However, thinking that might not be a good strategy to get her to like him, he decided
unlock the door again before morning. When Annette awoke, she had no knowledge
that she had been confined during her sleep until Jim told her. Can Annette recover
against Jim for false imprisonment? What if Jim had only accidentally locked the door,
and she had awoken to find herself trapped?
46. Every time I shop at the Price Club, I, like all other customers, am met at the exit by
an employee who will not let me leave until he or she checks my cart against my
receipt. I don't dare try to run by them because I am afraid that they will come after me.
Besides, I wouldn't want the public embarrassment of appearing to be guilty of
shoplifting. Can I bring an successful action against Price Club for false imprisonment?
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47. True or False: A cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress for
threatening language can exist even if the threats themselves would not constitute
technical assault.
48. What is the policy behind requiring the defendant's conduct to be "extreme and
outrageous" and requiring the plaintiff's emotional harm to be "severe" before allowing
an plaintiff to recover for intentional infliction of emotional distress?
49. Same facts as in Question 44 (drunk baseball fan with reckless disregard for
urinating in the stands). If Annette feels "extremely humiliated" by the experience, can
Annette recover against Jim under §46 of the Restatement (Second) for severe emotional
distress?
50. Ginger is a 19 year old college student, away at college in Berkeley. While crossing
the street on her way to the laundromat, she is run down by Jim the drunk driver, and
is killed. Back home in San Diego, Ginger's mother Annette learns of her daughter's
death by phone within an hour after the accident. Can Annette bring an action against
Jim for negligent infliction of emotional distress?
51. What are some problems involved with creating an action for predatory pricing?
52. What did Justice Hand hold in Eli Norris v. Mosler? Why did Holmes reverse in
Mosler v. Eli Norris? Are the two opinions reconcilable?
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