Torts: (Civil Lawsuits)
The Idea of Liability - Under criminal law, wrongs committed are called crimes. Under civil law, wrongs committed are
called torts. In civil cases, the injured party (the plaintiff) can sue the person believed to be legally responsible for the
harm (the defendant). Tort law establishes an expectation that people should act with reasonable care toward other
people and their property. A defendant found responsible for injuring the plaintiff will usually be ordered to pay the
plaintiff money, called damages. Damages are meant to compensate the plaintiff for any financial, physical, or
emotional costs associated with the injury. The plaintiff does not always need to sue in order to receive damages. Often
the two parties can meet and make an agreement, or settlement, on compensation for the injury.
Types of Torts - There are three major types of tort liability: intentional wrongs, acts of negligence, and strict liability.
An intentional wrong occurs when a person purposefully harms another person or his or her property. Negligence, the
most common unintentional tort, occurs when one person unintentionally inflicts injury upon another person. Even
though the injury was not intentional, the person who caused injury can still be held liable for acting carelessly and
causing harm. Strict liability requires people engaged in certain dangerous activities to assume extra responsibility for
the consequences of their actions.
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Intentional Wrongs are actions taken with the intent to harm another person or another's property. The law of
intentional torts requires that the person causing the harm either knew or should have known that his or her
actions would result in harm. A victim of an intentional tort can recover damages. There are three types of
damages: compensatory, nominal, and punitive. Damages that pay, or compensate, an injured person for being
harmed are called compensatory damages. They may include costs that have resulted or are expected to result
from the injury. If a plaintiff is unable to show financial loss, the jury may award nominal damages. Nominal
damages involve a small amount of money that the defendant must pay in order to show that the defendant
was wrong. Punitive damages are awarded to punish a defendant whose actions were malicious, willful, or
outrageous. Juries usually decide how much money is appropriate. There are certain defenses a person may use
to try to prove that he or she should not be found liable for an intentional tort. These reasons include consent,
privilege, self-defense, and defense of property.
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A Negligence Claim - Tort law establishes standards for the care that people must show to one another.
Negligence is the conduct that falls below this standard. Negligence applies to many kinds of wrongful conduct.
Four elements must exist for a plaintiff to win a negligence action: Duty, Breach of Duty, Causation, and
Damages. The plaintiff must prove all of these elements in order to be successful in a negligence claim. Everyone
has a general duty to exercise reasonable care toward other people and their property. If a person acts
unreasonably, he or she has breached the duty of care. In order to prove causation, there must be proof that the
defendant's actions actually led to the harm suffered by the plaintiff. The basic idea behind damages is that the
plaintiff should be restored—in the form of money—to his or her original position before the negligence
occurred. Courts allow plaintiffs to collect for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses. Even
when a plaintiff can prove all of the elements of negligence, the defendant may be able to raise a valid legal
defense. Most states allow a defense called comparative negligence. In comparative negligence the defendant
and the plaintiff split the loss according to how much each person was at fault. For example, if a judge decides
that a plaintiff was 60% responsible for injuries and the defendant only 40% responsible, each would only pay
that particular percentage.
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Strict liability - means that the defendant is liable to the plaintiff regardless of fault. In some situations, even if
the defendant acted in a reasonable manner and took all necessary precautions, he or she may still be liable.
Strict liability is applied when ultra-hazardous activities, dangerous animals, or manufacturers of defective
products cause harm. To win a strict liability case, the plaintiff must prove only causation and damages.
Activities are considered unreasonably dangerous when they involve a risk of harm even when reasonable
precautions are taken. Although these activities may be socially useful or necessary, those who conduct them
may be held strictly liable. Companies conducting dangerous activities know that they are strictly liable for the
harm they cause. Therefore, they build this cost into the price they charge for the work. The law traditionally has
held owners responsible for any harm caused by their animals. The defendant is held strictly liable only if he or
she had reason to believe the pet was dangerous to others. Product liability is the legal responsibility of
manufacturers for injuries caused by defective products. Strict liability for product manufacturers is meant to
encourage manufacturers to design safe products, test them before placing them on the market, and provide
clear directions and warning labels. There are very few defenses in strict liability cases. The defendant's best
strategy may be to argue that he or she should be held to a negligence standard rather than a strict liability
standard.
Taking Your Case to Court - Tort laws deals with disputes between individuals or groups of individuals. Unlike criminal
law, the government is not responsible for bringing the case to court, and defendants never go to prison. While both
criminal law and tort law require substantial evidence to prove the defendant is responsible, criminal cases require more
convincing evidence. Although a tort and a crime are different legal actions, the same harmful activity can sometimes be
both a crime and a tort.
Insurance - Liability insurance is an agreement in which the insured person makes regular payments to an insurance
company. In return, the insurance company agrees to pay for certain damages the insured person might cause. Liability
insurance protects doctors, lawyers, manufacturers, homeowners, and drivers. Few insurance policies would cover a
person who has committed an intentional harm.
Tort Reform - Tort reform is a movement that has developed to address people's concerns about the tort system. Some
efforts at reform target the actual process involved in settling tort claims. One effort is to try to convince the parties to
settle out of court to avoid a lengthy and expensive trial. Other tort reform efforts focus on placing limits on how much a
plaintiff can collect. These may include laws that set a limit for damages awarded for pain and suffering or that make it
more difficult for a plaintiff to collect punitive damages. Punitive damages are meant to punish a defendant rather than
compensate a victim. Medical malpractice is an area of tort reform that is particularly controversial. As tort awards
increase in number and size, insurance premiums paid by doctors and hospitals have increased. Eventually this cost is
passed on to patients, driving up the already-high cost of medical care. Competent doctors sometimes are driven out of
business due to the high cost of their insurance. Some people believe this situation must be addressed, but others argue
that it is important to have a system that allows patients who have suffered harm to recover adequate damages.