Chapter 6

A tort is a wrong There are three categories of torts

Intentional torts Unintentional torts (negligence) Strict liability

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A category of torts that requires that the defendant possessed the intent to do the act that caused the plaintiff’s injuries

Assault: The threat of immediate harm or offensive contact Or any action that arouses reasonable apprehension of

imminent harm Actual physical contact is unnecessary for an action to be

assault

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Unauthorized and harmful or offensive direct or indirect physical contact with another person that causes injury

False imprisonment: The intentional confinement or restraint of another person without authority or justification and without that person’s consent

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Statutes that allow merchants to stop, detain, and investigate suspected shoplifters without being held liable for false imprisonment if There are reasonable grounds for the suspicion Suspects are detained for only a reasonable time Investigations are conducted in a reasonable manner

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An attempt by another person to appropriate a living person’s name or identity for commercial purposes Also called the tort of appropriation

Invasion of the right to privacy: The unwarranted and undesired publicity of a private fact about a person The fact does not have to be untrue

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A false statement made by one person about another In court, the plaintiff must prove that

The defendant made an untrue statement of fact about the plaintiff

The statement was intentionally or accidentally published to a third party

Libel: A false statement that appears in a letter, newspaper, magazine, book, photograph, movie, video, and so on

Slander: Oral defamation of character

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False statements about a competitor’s products, services, property, or business reputation Also called trade libel, product disparagement, and slander

of title Intentional misrepresentation (fraud)

The intentional defrauding of a person out of money, property, or something else of value

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A doctrine that says a person is liable for harm that is the foreseeable consequence of his or her actions

Elements of negligence The defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff The defendant breached this duty of care The plaintiff suffered injury The defendant’s negligent act caused the plaintiff’s injury

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The obligation people owe each other not to cause any unreasonable harm or risk of harm

Standards applied Reasonable person standard Reasonable professional standard

Breach of the duty of care: A failure to exercise care or to act as a reasonable person would act

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A plaintiff’s personal injury or damage to his or her property Enables him or her to recover monetary damages for the

defendant’s negligence Actual cause (causation in fact): The actual cause

of negligence A person who commits a negligent act is not liable unless

actual cause can be proven

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A point along the chain of events caused by a negligent party after which this party is no longer legally responsible for the consequences of his or her actions Also called legal cause

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Professional malpractice: The liability of a professional who breaches his or her duty of ordinary care

Negligent infliction of emotional distress: A tort that permits a person to recover for emotional distress caused by the defendant’s negligent conduct

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Negligence per se: A tort in which the violation of a statute or an ordinance constitutes the breach of the duty of care

Res ipsa loquitur: A tort in which the presumption of negligence arises because The defendant was in exclusive control of the situation The plaintiff would not have suffered injury but for

someone’s negligence▪ The burden is on the defendant to prove that he or she was not

negligent

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A statute that relieves medical professionals from liability for ordinary negligence when they stop and render aid to victims in emergency situations

Assumption of the risk: A defense a defendant can use against a plaintiff who Knowingly and voluntarily enters into or participates in a

risky activity that results in injury

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Contributory negligence: A doctrine that says a plaintiff who is partially at fault for his or her own injury cannot recover against the negligent defendant

Comparative negligence (comparative fault): A doctrine under which damages are apportioned according to fault

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A plaintiff can sue a party for being negligent in producing a defective product that caused the victim’s injuries Usually the manufacturer is liable

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A tort doctrine that makes manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, and others in the chain of distribution of a defective product liable for the damages caused by the defect, irrespective of fault It is liability without fault All in the chain of distribution are liable▪ Privity of contract between plaintiff and defendant is not required

Applies only to products, not services

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Punitive damages: Monetary damages that are awarded to punish a defendant who either intentionally or recklessly injured the plaintiff

The most common types of product defects are Defect in manufacture Defect in design Failure to warn Defect in packaging

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Manufacturer

Distributor

Retailer Consumer

All in the chain of distribution are liable

Negligent party is liable

Negligence lawsuit

Strict liability lawsuit

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A defect that occurs when a manufacturer fails Properly assemble a product Properly test a product Adequately check the quality of the product

Defect in design: A defect that occurs when a product is improperly designed

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A defect that occurs when a manufacturer does not place a warning on the packaging of products that could cause injury if the danger is unknown

Defect in packaging: A defect that occurs when a product has been placed in packaging that is insufficiently tamperproof

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