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Torts > Intentional Torts > Flashcards

Intentional Torts Flashcards

1
Q

What are the general principles of all intentional torts?

A
  1. Don’t count plaintiff’s extreme or hypersensitivity in intentional torts. Assume you’re dealing with person of ordinary sensitivity
  2. No incapacity defenses in intentional torts
    1. i.e. kids, ppl with mental/physical disorders/disabilities, ppl who are drunk/high, etc… can be liable for Its
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2
Q

What is transferred intent?

A

If the defendant indents to commit tort against one specific victim, and a different tort/victim is committed, the defendant is liable for tort committed.

Not technically “intentional” but an intentional tort nonetheless—watch out for this.

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3
Q

What are the elements of Battery?

A
  1. Defendant must commit a harmful or offensive contact
  2. Contact must be with plaintiff’s person
    1. Can also be anything p is touching/connected to
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4
Q

What is offensive contact?

A
  1. Think of offensive as “unpermitted”
  2. Offensive if it would not be permitted by a person of ordinary sensitivity.
    1. e.g. teacher greeting each student by petting their hair
  3. Doesn’t have to be contact with the plaintiff’s person either, e.g. poisioning food.
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5
Q

Does the contact have to be instantaneous?

A

No, it can be but it doesn’t have to be.

e.g. harmful pranks, poisoning food

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6
Q

What are the elements of assault?

A
  1. The plainftiff puts the defendant in reasonable apprehension
  2. of an immediate battery
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7
Q

What does apprehension mean?

A
  1. knowledge
    1. p has to see it coming
    2. No need to be scared
  2. Idle threats, e.g. pulling an unloaded gun on someone, bluffing, still assault (apparent ability creates reasonable apprehension)
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8
Q

What does an immediate battery mean?

A
  1. Cannot be words alone. Must be conduct.
  2. Menacing gesture with conditional words
    1. E.g. raising hand to slap and saying “if you weren’t my best friend i’d slap you silly”
    2. Words indicate no intention to actually commit battery, so no immediacy and no assault
    3. Or raising and telling someone you’re gonna hurt them tomorrow—no apprehension
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9
Q

What are the elements of false imprisonment?

A
  1. Defenfant must commit act of restraint
  2. Plaintiff must be confined in a bounded area
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10
Q

To commit an act of restraint on the plaintiff, may the defendant make only threats?

A

Yes.

e.g. threaten to shoot someone if they don’t leave

remember no hypersensitivity

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11
Q

Omission can be an act of restraint if…

A

Defendant owed a pre-existing duty to the plaintiff

e.g. cabin crew does not help physically disabled woman leave plane; paramedic fails to unlock ambulance

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12
Q

An act of restraint only counts if…

A

The plantiff is aware of it or is harmed by it.

e.g. If defendant lock the plaintiff in a room and unlocks the room before plaintiff realizes she was locked in the room, there is no valid false imprisonment claim.

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13
Q

In order to be confined in a bounded area, there must be NO..

A

Reasonable means of escape that p can reasonably discover.

If only way out is dangerous, disgusting, humiliating, or hidden, FI.

e.g. leaving locked basement by crawling through sewer pipe

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14
Q

In an intentional infliction of emotional distress claim, this type of conduct is also counted as intentional.

A

Reckless conduct.

Exact language: utter and total disregard of plaintiff’s mental peace and stability.

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15
Q

What are the elements of Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress?

A
  1. Defendant must engage in outrageous conduct
  2. Plaintiff must suffer severe emotional distress
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16
Q

What is outrageous conduct?

A

Conduct that exceeds all bounds of decency tolerated in a civilized society

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17
Q

Are insults considered outrageous conduct?

A

No. Mere insults are never outrageous conduct.

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18
Q

Courts look for certain hallmarks of outrageousness. They are:

A
  1. Conduct is continuous/repetitive/happens frequently
    1. e.g. continued harassment, debt collectors making abusive threats
    2. Most comonly tested
  2. Common carriers/innkeepers as defendants- much more likely to treat conduct as outrageous (e.g. airlines & hotels)
    1. They have duties to be kind towards customers. Intentional distress is outrageous
    2. e.g. motel keeper telling person too ugly for vacant room
  3. Plaintiff is a member of a fragile class of persons
    1. 3 fragile classes:
      1. Children
      2. Elderly people
      3. Pregnant women- D must know woman is pregnant
    2. D’s decision to target fragile classes is outrageous
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19
Q

It is always outrageous to target behavior that is…

A

a known emotional sensitivity the plaintiff suffers from

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20
Q

To prove he suffered from severe emotional distress, must the plaintiff offer any particular evidence?

A

No.

The plaintiff need not offer any particular ev of severe distress

No need to prove lost wages, physical impact, psychiatrist, etc… all valid but not required

Could just testify in a conclusory fashion “I was severely distressed”

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21
Q

On the exam, the severe emotional distress element is often…

A

negated in the fact pattern.

e.g. “p was mildly annoyed by course of conduct so they sued for intentional infliction of emotional distress”.

WATCH OUT FOR THIS

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22
Q

What are the elements of trespass to land?

A
  1. Defendant must commit a physical invasion
  2. The Invasion must be on the plaintiff’s land
23
Q

To prove the defendant committed a physical invasion, you must show he…

A

physically entered the plaintiff’s property on foot or in a vehicle

24
Q

To be liable for trespass to land the defendant does not need to know…

A

he entered someone else’s land. Must intend only to enter the land.

25
Q

What if the defendant accidentally fell into the land/sleepwalked on the land/his horse freaks out and goes onto the land?

A

No trespass to land because the act was not intentional.

26
Q

To commit trespass to land, the defendant can also…

A

throw something on the land.

27
Q

sight/smell/sound (is/is not) a trespass.

A

is not.

e.g. loud music, boiling cabbage.

28
Q

What land of plaintiff’s can the defendant trespass?

A
  1. ​Surface of prop, air above, and soil below, out to a reasonable distance
    1. Airplane flying not enough, but ball crossing across yard is.
29
Q

In order for the defendant to invade the plaintiff’s land, the paintiff must..

A

request the defendant to desist.

30
Q

Under the personal property torts, you cannot do this to get your property back.

A

Force

31
Q

What are the two personal property torts?

A
  1. Trespass to chattels
    1. Only slight damage or temporary deprivation of property
  2. Conversion
    1. Amount of interference is significant
32
Q

It’s hard to determine between trespass to chattels and conversion, but…

A

the exam will make distinction extreme/obvious—e.g. scratching car vs. wrecking it.

33
Q

What’s the difference in damages between the two personal property torts?

A

Conversion plaintiff gets full market value of the item. Trespass plaintiff gets cost of repair or replacement.

34
Q

Mistake as to ownership of an item (is/is not) a valid defense to personal property torts.

A

Is not

35
Q

This is a defense to all intentional torts.

A

Consent

36
Q

To determine consent, you first must determine…

A

Whether the plaintiff had legal capacity to consent.

e.g. mentally disabled people, children, drunk/high people.

37
Q

Capacity is a _______ ______, not all or nothing.

A

Sliding scale. Scope of capacity dependent on person’s level of cognizance

38
Q

What are the two types of consent?

A

Express and implied consent.

39
Q

What is express consent?

A

An explicit statement orally or in writing. Outright statement granting the defendant permission.

40
Q

What are the types of implied consent?

A
  1. Implied from custom and usage
    1. p goes somewhere or does something where relatively minor invasions of person/property is normal/expected
    2. e.g. team sports. Not just contact laid out in the game, but contact that happens as a result, like fouls.
  2. Implied consent that results from D’s reasonable interpretation of p’s objective conduct (body language consent)
    1. Judgement of reasonableness is in hands of jury
41
Q

What is the exception to the consent defense?

A

Consent obtained through fraud or duress is not valid.

Usually comes up in express consent defenses.

42
Q

All consent has this. If the defendant exceeds it, he is liable.

A

Scope.

e.g. playing basketball and physically assaulted by player.

43
Q

These defenses apply to all intentional torts.

A

Protective privileges

44
Q

What are the three protective privileges?

A

Self defense, defense of others, or defense of property.

45
Q

You cannot use deadly forces to defend..

A

property

46
Q

For the protective privileges to apply, there must be an…

A

imminent or in progress threat.

47
Q

What is an imminent or in progress threat?

A
  1. Can’t hit someone for telling you they’re gonna hit you tomorrow
  2. If someone hits you and turns away, you can’t go after them and hit them back.
  3. But if someone hits you, tells you they’re done, and hits you again, reasonable to assume threat imminent. Hitter must have disengaged
48
Q

To successfully assert a protective privilege, you need a reasonable belief that…

A

the threat is genuine

49
Q

If you are wrong, and the threat was not genuine…

A

You can still assert a protective privilege defense, so long as your belief was reasonable.

50
Q

The force you use against someone you’re asserting a protective privelege for must be..

A

equal to the force asserted against you. You can’t shoot someone for slapping you.

51
Q

The necessity defenses only apply to…

A

trespass to land, chattels, and conversion.

52
Q

What circumstances trigger the public necessity doctrine?

A
  1. Defendant commits a property tort in an emergency to protect community as a whole or a significant group of people.
  2. Emergency is going to usually be a big emergency/catastrophe
  3. e.g. fire spreading towards gasoline factory, guy breaks into fire extinguisher company to steal fire extinguishers and stop fire.
53
Q

What circumstances trigger the private necessity defense?

A
  1. D commits prop tort to protect an interest of their own
  2. Confronted with danger to personal safety or property, and commit prop tort to mitigate that danger
54
Q

Private necessity is only a partial defense. What are the three consequences?

A
  1. Defendant remains liable for actual damages caused to plaintiff’s property
  2. Defendant is not liable for nominal or punitive damages
  3. You have a privilege of entry onto someone else’s land and a right to remain (take shelter) as long as the emergency persists.
  4. Property owner must allow you to remain as long as the emergency persists

Torts (6 decks)

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