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Torts > Intentional Torts > Flashcards

Intentional Torts Flashcards

0
Q

Who lacks capacity for intentional torts?

A

Nobody. Children, incompetents, etc. are liable for intentional torts. There is no lack of capacity for intent.

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1
Q

When are plaintiff’s super-sensitivities taken into account?

A

Only when the defendant knew of them in advance.

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2
Q

When does a person intend a consequence?

A

When either:

(1) it is the person’s purpose was to bring about the consequence, or
(2) the person knows the consequence will happen to a degree of substantial certainty

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3
Q

What are the two ways intent can be transferred?

A

(1) Intent can transfer from intended to actual victim.

(2) intent can transfer from intended to actual tort.

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4
Q

What are the elements of a prima facie case of battery?

A
  • intent
  • harmful or offensive conduct…
  • …with the plaintiff’s person
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5
Q

For battery, what is considered offensive conduct?

A

Any un-permitted conduct. But not plaintiff’s super-sensitivities unless defendant knows about them.

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6
Q

For battery, what is considered the plaintiff’s person?

A

Anything connected with the plaintiff will suffice. (Liberally construed: e.g., plate in one’s hand, car one is inside)

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7
Q

What are the elements of a prima facie case for assault?

A
  • intent
  • plaintiff’s reasonable apprehension…
  • …of an immediate contact
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8
Q

For assault, what are the characteristics of apprehension?

A
  • it must be reasonable
  • plaintiff need not feel fear
  • apparent ability to harm sufficient (e.g., unloaded gun)
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9
Q

For assault, what are the characteristics of immediacy?

A
  • words alone are not enough
  • words coupled with conduct can be enough
  • words coupled with conduct can also undo the conduct and any reasonable apprehension
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10
Q

When battery and assault both apply to a fact pattern, which law should be applied?

A

Battery, because it is the ultimate consequence

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11
Q

What are the elements of false imprisonment?

A
  • intent
  • a sufficient act of restraint…
  • …to a bounded area
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12
Q

Are threats enough to create a sufficient act of restraint for false imprisonment?

A

Yes

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13
Q

Is inaction enough to be a sufficient act of restraint for false imprisonment?

A

Only if there was an understanding that defendant would act for plaintiff’s benefit. (hypo: No boat to shore after completing promised trip across ocean.)

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14
Q

Must a false imprisonment plaintiff be aware of the confinement?

A

Yes, at the time the confinement takes place. (Exception: when confinement harmed plaintiff.)

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15
Q

When is the length of time relevant to false imprisonment?

A

Never

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16
Q

For false imprisonment, is mere inconvenience sufficient to create a bounded area?

A

No

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17
Q

For false imprisonment, when does a means of escape defeat the bounded area requirement?

A

When there is both:
• a reasonable means of escape…
• …of which the plaintiff is aware

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18
Q

When is intentional infliction of emotional distress most commonly applied?

A

As a fallback to another tort theory that isn’t working.

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19
Q

What are the prima facie elements for intentional infliction of emotional distress?

A
  • intent
  • outrageous conduct
  • damage
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20
Q

For intentional infliction of emotional distress, what are the 3 factors that can transform an ordinary insult into outrageous conduct?

A

(1) Continuous conduct
(2) Type of plaintiff (young child, elderly, pregnant women)
(3) Type of defendant (common carriers, innkeepers)

21
Q

For intentional infliction of emotional distress, are the super-sensitivities of a young child, elderly person, or pregnant woman taken into account?

A

Only if the defendant knew of them in advance.

22
Q

For intentional infliction of emotional distress, who must a common carrier or an innkeeper insult for an ordinary insult to rise to outrageous conduct?

A

A passenger or a guest

23
Q

What damage must be proven for intentional infliction of emotional distress?

A

Severe emotional distress (severe, substantial emotional harm)

24
Q

What intent is required for intentional infliction of emotional distress?

A

Recklessness is sufficient, and transferred intent is normally unavailable

25
Q

What are the prima facie elements for trespass to land?

A
  • intent
  • act of physical invasion…
  • …to land
26
Q

What constitutes the act of physical invasion for trespass to land?

A
  • Entering the land, regardless of whether the defendant knows he is crossing a property line
  • propelling a physical object onto the property (but not intangibles like lights and sounds, etc.)
27
Q

For trespass to land, the land includes…

A

…the airspace above and the subsurface below, as long as it is a distance where the landowner can make reasonable use of the space.

28
Q

What are the prima facie elements of trespass to chattels and conversion?

A
  • intent
  • act of invasion…
  • to personal property
29
Q

When is a defendant’s action trespass to chattels, and when is it conversion?

A

When there is some damage, it is trespass to chattels.

When there is a lot of damage, it is conversion.

30
Q

For conversion, what is a damage to a chattel other than physical destruction?

A

Serious interference with possessory rights (e.g., an item stolen for an extended period)

31
Q

Consent is a defense to what torts?

A

Battery, assault, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, trespass to land, trespass to chattels, conversion, defamation, and invasion of privacy.

32
Q

What are the elements of the affirmative defense of consent?

A
  • capacity

* express or implied consent

33
Q

Who lacks capacity to consent to a tort?

A

(1) children
(2) mentally incapacitated
(3) coercion/force
(4) fraud/mistake

34
Q

How can implied consent to a tort arise?

A
  • custom and usage

* a plaintiff’s own conduct

35
Q

Absent incapacity, when can an affirmative defense of consent fail?

A

When the defendant exceeds the bounds of his privilege. (hypo: Football players consent to tackles, but not to being kicked in the groin after a tackle)

36
Q

What is the rule for the affirmative defense of self defense?

A

A person may use reasonable force to prevent what she reasonably believes to be an imminent threat of force against her.

37
Q

What kind of a test applies to the reasonable belief requirement for self defense?

A

A subjective and objective test.

38
Q

For self defense, how is reasonable force measured?

A

The amount of force reasonably necessary to avoid the threatened harm.

39
Q

For self-defense, when is deadly force reasonable?

A

When the defender reasonably believes that she is facing a threat of deadly force herself.

40
Q

For self defense, must a person retreat before deadly force may be used?

A

The modern trend requires a retreat before using deadly force, unless one is in his home.

41
Q

For self defense, what is the rule for defense of others?

A

A person may defend another person in the same manner and under the same conditions as the person attacked would be entitled to defend himself.

42
Q

For defense of others, what is the effect of a mistaken belief that the other person was in danger?

A

A defender is not liable if he reasonably believed that the other person was endangered.

43
Q

For defense of property, what kind of force is allowed?

A

Reasonable force. Deadly force may never be used to protect property alone.

44
Q

When is it permissible to use force to recapture property?

A

Only when the re-capturer both:
• uses reasonable force, and
• is in hot pursuit of it

45
Q

To what kinds of torts does the defense of necessity apply?

A

Only intentional torts to property.

46
Q

If a person is about to be attacked, and preemptively hits his attacker, does he have a defense of necessity?

A

No, necessity only applies to intentional torts to property. In this case, the defense is self defense.

47
Q

Describe the defense of public necessity

A

An unlimited privilege to protect a lot of people (against an imminent public disaster).

48
Q

Describe the defense of private necessity

A

A qualified privilege to protect a limited number of people. Defendant must still pay damages. (e.g. private airplane makes emergency landing in soybean field; pilot must pay farmer for lost crops)

49
Q

Describe the affirmative defense of discipline.

A

A parent or teacher using reasonable force to discipline children. Factors are the child’s age and the nature of his activity.

Torts (9 decks)

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