Chapter 3 Notes: Tort Law

3.1 Definition of a Tort

A tort is a private wrong committed by one person against another person or another person’s property.

A person who commits a tort is called a tortfeasor.
In a lawsuit, the tortfeasor is the defendant and the victim is the plaintiff.

An intentional tort is an act that is intended to hurt, embarrass, or scare another person, or to damage another person’s property.

The most common intentional torts against individuals are:
Assault & battery
Defamation
Intentional infliction of emotional distress
False imprisonment
Invasion of privacy

An assault occurs when an individual threatens to harm an innocent person using words, gestures, or both.
Battery occurs when someone deliberately touches another person or that person’s clothing against his or her wishes.
False imprisonment occurs when one person unlawfully restrains another from moving freely. It may involve physical restraint or merely a show of force.
Defamation occurs when one person lies about another in a way that damages his or her reputation.
There are two types of defamation: libel, which is written, and slander, which is oral.
Citizens have the right to live without others intruding on their personal life or private records.
Invasion of privacy occurs when someone violates this right.
Intentional infliction of emotional distress occurs when one person purposely causes another person mental anguish.

3.2 Negligence and liability

Negligence is a tort that occurs due to carelessness. It is an accident. The injury was not intended.

The four elements of negligence are:
The defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care.
The defendant committed a breach of that duty.
The breach of duty was the proximate cause of harm.
The plaintiff suffered actual harm.

Proximate cause is the cause that immediately and directly results in a
specific event.
If a person can eliminate any one of the four elements of negligence, the lawsuit will not be successful.

There are three other defenses against negligence:
Contributory negligence
Comparative negligence
Assumption of risk

Contributory negligence is when the victim did something that helped cause his or her own injury.
Comparative negligence is when the negligence of the victim is compared to that of the defendant. A victim who is partially responsible may collect only partial damages.
Assumption of risk occurs when the victim understood the risk involved in an activity and took the chance of being injured.

Strict liability holds that some activities are so dangerous, no amount of care could eliminate the risk of injury.
Examples of strict liability are:
Storing toxic of flammable materials
Keeping wild animals as pets
Using explosives