Chapter 12: Torts Flashcards
Laws designed to compensate those who have suffered a loss or injury, due to another person’s wrongful act.
Torts
Damages given to the plaintiff that’s prime goal is to make the plaintiff whole and put her or him in the same position that she or he would have been in had the tort not occurred.
Compensatory damages
Damages to punish the wrongdoer and deter others from similar wrongdoing. These are appropriate only when the defendant’s conduct was particularly egregious.
Punitive damages
The tortfeasor (the one committing the tort) must intend to commit an act, the consequences of which interfere with another’s personal or business interests in a way not permitted by law.
Intentional tort
When a defendant intends to harm one individual, but unintentionally harms a second person.
Transferred intent
Any intentional and unexcused threat of immediate harmful or offensive contact–words or acts that create a reasonably believable threat.
Assault
An unexcused and harmful or offensive physical contact intentionally performed.
Battery
Capable of serving as the ground for a lawsuit. The act must be extreme and outrageous to the point that it exceeds the bounds of decency accepted by society.
Actionable
Wrongfully hurting a person’s good reputation.
Defamation
When someone breaches their duty to refrain from making defamatory statements of fact in writing or permanent form, they are…
Libel
If someone breaches their duty to refrain from making defamatory statements of fact orally, they are considered guilty of…
Slander
The privileges of attorneys and judges in the courtroom during a trial are protected, as are statements made by government officials during legislative debate.
Absolute privelage
Generally, if the statements are made in good faith and the publication is limited to those who have a legitimate interest in the communication, the statements fall within the area of….
Qualified privilege
Politicians, entertainers, professional athletes, and others in the public eye that are considered “fair game” and false and defamatory statements about them won’t constitute defamation unless they are made with actual malice
Public figures
A statement that is made with either knowledge of its falsity or a reckless disregard for the truth.
Actual malice
Involves intentional deceit for personal gain.
Fraudulent misrepresentation
Seller’s talk
Puffery
Occurs when a person, without permission, does any of the following:
- Enters onto, above, or below the surface of land that is owned by another.
- Causes anything to enter onto land owned by another.
- Remains on land owned by another or permits anything to remain on it.
Trespass to land
One who is invited (or allowed to enter) onto the property of another for the licensee’s benefit.
Licensee
Whenever any individual wrongfully takes or harms the personal property of another or otherwise interferes with the lawful owner’s possession and enjoyment of personal property.
Trespass to personal property
Any act that deprives an owner of personal property or of the use of that property without the owner’s permission and without just cause.
Conversion
Occurs when economically injurious falsehoods are made about another’s product or property rather than about another’s reputation.
Disparagement of property
The publication of false information about another’s product, alleging that it is not what its seller claims.
Slander of quality
The plaintiff must prove that the improper publication cause a third person to refrain from dealing with the plaintiff and that the plaintiff sustained economic damages as a result.
Trade libel
