Chapter 5: Torts and Product Liability Flashcards
Tort
Harmful act causes injury to another.
Leads to civil liability.
Tort Law is designed to ______________ those who have suffered a _________ or _______________ due to another person’s wrongful acts, through _________________ ________________.
compensate; loss; injury; compensatory damages.
Damages
Monetary compensation for harm / injury.
Compensatory Damages
awarded to compensate / reimburse injured party for loss / harm.
Returns injured party to state they would’ve been in had tort not occured.
Types of Compensatory Damages
Special Damages
General Damages
Special Damages
awarded to plaintiff for quantifiable monetary losses.
(i.e. loss of wages, benefits, irreplaceable items)
General Damages
awared to plaintiff for nonmonetary damages
(i.e. tarnished reputation, broken relationships, disfigurement)
Punitive Damages
awarded to plaintiff to punish defendant & deter future criminal behavior.
Punitive Damages can ONLY be awared in _____________ ___________.
Intentional Torts
Many states place statutory limits on _______________ damages ranging from __________________ - _________________. ______________ damages are also limited, and in some states outright _____________.
general; 250,000; 750,000; Punitive; banned
2 Classifications of Torts
Intentional Torts
Unintentional Torts
Intentional Torts
Harm done to persons / property with intent.
Unintentional Torts
Harm due to breach of duty (Negligence) to act reasonably.
Defense
Reason(s) why the Plaintiff should not recieve damages.
Consent (defense)
When plaintiff consents/agrees to act that led to tort.
Tortfeasor
person committing tort / tortorious act
In tort law, _______________ requires that the person intended for a certain ________________ to happen, and knew the ___________ of that ________________.
intent; outcome; consequences; outcome
Transferred Intent
Ensures intent remains when torfeasor meant to harm one person but unintentionally harms another.
Assault
threat of harm or imminent physical contact.
defendant can be held liable for this, even if no physical contact is made.
the plaintiff simply has to feel fear of imminent harm.
Battery
Physical contact completed, causing harm / injury to plaintiff
Physical injury need __________ occur for an act to be considered _____________ (i.e an unwelcome kiss).
not; battery
False Imprisonment
intentional restraint / confinement of a person without justification.
Actionable
Capable of serving as the grounds for a lawsuit.
Defamation
Hurting a person’s good reputation.
Libel
Breach in duty to not defame in writing.
Libel Per se
Comments in writing that are auotmatically defamatory, regardless of the circumstance.
In cases of Libel, the comment made has to be a _____________ ______ __________. The plaintiff can only recover _____________ ______________.
statement of fact; general damages
Slander
Breach in duty to not defame orally.
Slander per se
Oral comments that are automatically defamatory regardless of circumstance
In cases of slander, the plaintiff can only recover _____________ ________________. Meaning, the plaintiff has to prove the oral comments made caused him / her ________________ or ______________ loss.
special damages; economic; monetary
_______________ is more damaging than _______________ because it’s more _______________.
Libel; damaging; slander
Truth (Defense)
If what the defendant said was true, then he can’t be held liable.
Privilege
Immunity from liability for defamatory statements.
Types of Privileged Communications
Absolute Privilege
Qualified Privilege
Absolute Privilege
granted in judicial proceedings / govt. proceedings
(i.e. attorney’s, legsilator’s defamatory comments are protected)
Qualified Privilege
Not held liable for defamatory comments because qualified, conditional, position.
Actual Malice
Defamatory statements made with knoweldge of its falsity, or reckless disregard for the truth.
Appropriation
Imitating under another persons’ name, likeness, and characteristics without permmission.
for personal gain.
Fraudulent Misrepresentation
False statement (mistatement or ommissions) w/ intent to deceive others for personal gain.
Types of Intentional Torts against Property
1) Trespass to Land
2) Trespass to Personal Property
3) Conversion
Real Property
property permanently attached to land.
Personal Property
all other items that are moveable (belongings, possessions etc.)
Tresspass to Land
1) Entering above, onto, below land owned by another.
2) Causing anything else to enter land.
3) Remaining on the land; permitting anything to remain on land.
Tresspass to Personal Property
- Taking / harming someone else’s personal property.
- Interfering w/ owners lawful possession of property.
In the case of Tresspass to Personal Property, it doesn’t just refer to the __________________ of personal property, but anything that ______________ it’s __________, condition, or quality.
destruction; dimishes; value
Conversion
Depriving owner of personal property or Use of personal property w/o permision.
Even if the conversion of property was not theft, such that the original owner allowed someone to borrow their property, ____________ to ____________ the property to the owner does constititute as conversion.
failure; return
Someone who buys _____________ goods, who don’t know it was _____________, may still face a suit under a claim of ______________, because they aren’t entitled to the property; the owner is.
stolen; stolen; conversion
Negligence
Failure to fulfill duty of care; leads to injury of another
The Duty of Care is the ______________ amount of _________ exercised in dealings with others. Failure to exercise this _________ could result in a tort of negligence.
reasonable; care; care
Reasonable Person Standard
Standard of what the “reasonable/rational” person SHOULD do in a given circumstance.
Determines whether action can be considered liable for negligence.
Malpratice
Level of negligence of by a professional held to a higher standard.
Causation in Fact
Injury would not have occured if not for the defendant’s actions.
Proximate Cause
Connection between an act & injury are strong enough to impose liability.
Good Samaritan Statutes
Someone being aided voluntarily cannot turn around and sue the “Good Samaritan” for negligence.
Affirmative Defenses for Negligence
- Assumption of Risk
- Comparative / Contributory Negligence
Assumption of Risk
Plaintiff who voluntarily participates in risky situation, and knows risk invovled, can’t recover damages.
Contributory Negligence
A plaintiff, who was negligent, cannot recover anything from the defendant.
(this is no matter how insignificant the plaintiff’s negligence was)
Comparative Negligence
Negligence exercised by Plaintiff AND Defendant is computed, and damages are distributed accordingly.
Strict Liability
Liability without (being at) fault / criminal intent
Product Liability
Liability of Manufacturers and sellers of defective or harmful product.
