Intentional torts

Question 1

What are 3 reqs of intentional tort? (prima facie case)

Answer 1

1. act by D - volitional movement
2. intent by D - i.e. intent to bring about the forbidden result at issue (not necessarily specific injury)
3. causation between D’s act and P’s injury, i.e. D’s actions were substantial factor in bringing about injury

Question 2

What is the doctrine of transferred intent? What are the limitations on the doctrine?

Answer 2

When D intends to commit tort against one actor but either

• commits different tort against that same person
• commits same tort against different person, OR
• commits a different tort against a different person

Here, we allow for element of intent to be satisfied in making prima facie case of intentional tort via doctrine of transferred intent. (Wrt person injured).

For doctrine to apply, tort intended AND tort resulted needs to be one of following:

• assault
• battery
• false imprisonment
• trespass to land
• trespass to chattels

Question 3

What are the 4 intentional torts to person?

Answer 3

• battery
• assault
• intentional infliction of emotional distress
• false imprisonment

Question 4

What are elements of tort of battery?

Answer 4

(1) harmful or offensive contact
(a) harmful = causes actual injury, pain, disfigurement
(b) offensive = offensive to reasonable person (+ has not been permitted, consented to)
* note* may be direct or indirect contact (e.g. setting trap to fall into)
(2) contact must be with P’s person = anything connected w/ P e.g. purse, clothing, pet nearby

[+ intent and causation]

Question 5

What damages can P get for battery if not damages are proven? Can be ever get punitives? what about assault? false imprisonment?

Answer 5

Nominal if nothing proven, punitives if malicious conduct. same for assault, false imprisonment

Question 6

What are the elements of assault?

Answer 6

(a) act by D creating a reasonable apprehension in the P (b) of an immediate battery (harmful or offense contact to P person)

[+ intent + causation]

(a) apprehension must be reasonable (but apprehension does NOT = fear necessarily); apparent ability to commit battery sufficient to create apprehension ; words alone NOT enough - need conduct too
(b) note: IMMEDIATE battery

Question 7

What are elements of false imprisonment? What counts as sufficient vs. insufficient act on part of D?

Answer 7

Elements of false imprisonment are (a) an act or omission on the part of the D that confines or restrains the P and (b) the P must be confined to a bounded area

[intent, causation]

(a) sufficient acts include physical barriers, physical force directed at P/fam/property, direct threats of force, indirect or implied threats of force, failure to release P when under a legal duty to do so, invalid use of legal authority (e.g. false arrest)
- insufficient acts = moral pressure, future threats
(b) time of confinement irrelevant, P must know of confinement, bounded = freedom of movement limited in all directions, no reasonable means of escape known to P

Question 8

What are the elements of intentional infliction of emotional distress?

Answer 8

(a) act by D amounting to extreme and outrageous conduct (b) P suffers severe emotional distress as a result
intent: here, recklessness satisfies intent (don’t need to show intentional act)
(a) extreme outrageous conduct = transcends bounds of decency, may become outrageous if not normally so due to continuity, certain type of D, certain type of P,

Question 9

What damages are req’d in IIED case?

Answer 9

Actual damages are req’d - severe emotional distress. Nominal not allowed. Proof of physical injury not required.

Question 10

Can P recover for IIED if they suffer emotional distress based on D conduct directed towards third person?

Answer 10

Yes, if they can show either regular prima facie IIED case OR (1) they were present when injury occurred, (2) distress resulted in bodily harm or the P is a close relative of the third person and (3) D knew these facts

Question 11

What are the 3 intentional torts to property?

Answer 11

• trespass to land
• trespass to chattels
• conversion

Question 12

What are the elements of trespass to land?

Answer 12

(1) physical invasion (2) of P’s real property

(1) person or object, (intangible = maybe nuisance claim)
(2) includes surface, airspace, subground

Note: person w/ trespass claim = person with right of possession (so tenant NOT landlord)

Intent: D needs to intend to walk on land, NOT know that it belonged to someone else

Question 13

What damages does P need to show for trespass to land claim?

Answer 13

does NOT need to show actual damages/injury

Question 14

What are the elements of trespass to chattels?

Answer 14

(a) act by the D that interferes with (b) P’s right of possession in chattel
(a) act = intermeddling, i.e. directly damaging OR dispossession, i.e. depriving P of right of possession
(b) chattel = any property other than real estate

intent = intent to do that act, NOT intent to trespass (mistaken belief that they own chattel is no defense)

damages: actual damages to possessory right are req’d (not necessarily to chattel tho)

Question 15

What are the elements of conversion?

Answer 15

(a) act by D that interferes with the P’s right of possession in chattel,
(b) interference is serious enough in nature or consequences to warrant that the D pay the chattel’s full value

Acts include theft, wrongful transfer, wrongful detention, substantially changing, severely damaging, misusing chattel

intent: intent to do act NOT intent to wrongfully take

chattel = ONLY tangibles or intangibles reduced to tangible form (e.g. promissory note)

Question 16

What are the remedies for conversion action?

Answer 16

(1) damages - FMV at time of conversion

(2) possession - replevin

Question 17

What are the 3 possible defenses to intentional torts?

Answer 17

• consent
• protective privileges (self-defense, defense of others, defense of property, etc)
• necessity

Question 18

When is consent a defense to an intentional tort?

Answer 18

When (a) consent was valid and (b) D stayed within boundaries of consent

• generally cannot consent to criminal act
  (a) valid if person had capacity to consent - generally anyone as long as its within scope of understanding (ask q. re this is child, mental incapacity, drunk, etc)

Can be express or implied (as long as reasonable to imply from situation/conduct

Question 19

What are the exceptions to express consent - i.e. consent is expressly given but can NOT stand as defense to intentional tort?

Answer 19

1. P made mistake that consent was based on + D knew of and took advantage of mistake
2. consent induced by fraud IF re essential matter
3. consent obtained by duress (but has to be threat of immediate action)

Question 20

When will protective privileges apply? (e.g. self defense)

Answer 20

When (1) used in prevention of the commission of the tort, NOT already committed torts, and (2) proper amount of force was used.

Question 21

What may self-defense be defense to intentional tort?

Answer 21

When a person reasonable believes that they are being or are about to be attacked, they must use such force that is reasonably necessary to protect against injury.

• no duty to retreat (modern: duty to retreat before using deadly force UNLESS person in own home)
• not available to initial aggressor unless other party responds with deadly force to initial aggressor’s nondeadly force

Note: someone could be liable to third party if accidentally injured them in trying to defend themselves, - self defense applies here

Question 22

When can D use defense of others defense?

Answer 22

One may use force to defend another when they reasonably believe that the other person could have used force to defend themselves.

Same rules as self-defense wrt reasonable force, reasonable fear.

Question 23

When can D use defense of property as defense?

Answer 23

One may use reasonable force to prevent the commission of a tort against their real or personal property.

• must first make request to stop/leave unless clearly dangerous or futile
• may use defense in hot pursuit of another who has taken property
• reasonable mistake wrt tort is allowed, but this is NOT enough to override privilege to be on property
• can NOT use force causing death or GBH (unless similar threat present)

Note: doesn’t apply when person has privilege to enter land/chattel

Question 24

When is shopkeeper allowed to detain suspected shoplifter?

Answer 24

• must be reasonable belief as to fact of theft
• detention must be conducted in reasonable manner (only nondeadly force can be used)
• detention only for reasonable period of time and only for purposes of making an investigation

Question 25

Can ppl use force to reenter own land or recapture chattel?

Answer 25

At c/l, could use force to reenter land, but now under modern law self help not allowed.

chattel - at c/l can only use peaceful means to repossess, but could use reasonable force in hot pursuit

Question 26

When may necessity be used as a defense to an intentional tort? What are the two types?

Answer 26

A person may interfere with real or personal property of another when it is reasonably necessary in an emergency to avoid injury from a natural or other force and when the threatened injury is substantially more serious than the invasion that is undertaken to avoid it.

2 types:

(1) public necessity = acted to avoid an imminent public disaster
(2) private necessity = action taken to prevent serious harm to limited number of people (still must pay for any injury caused)

*Only a defense to property torts