Lesson 2: Tort Flashcards
define tort
a wrongful act causing harm to the property or person of another
explain assault
threat of violence to the person
explain battery
unlawful physical contact with a person
tort law vs contract law
tort law does not require there to have been a relationship between the parties
actionable by law or recognized by court
if this does not happen, the person cannot maintain an action
examples of wrongful acts not actionable by law/recognized by courts
discrimination, adultery
key elements of tort of intrusion upon seclusion
defendant’s conduct must be intentional; defendant must have invaded privacy of plaintiff without lawful justification; reasonable person would regard the invasion as highly offensive causing distress, humiliation
who can create a tort
courts, provincial, federal gov
province that passed a tort
intimate images and cyber protection act passed by nova scotia
fault definition
unjustifiable injurious conduct that intentionally or carelessly disregards the interest of others
what do most torts require?
finding of fault, not strict liability
what do the courts define fault as
not in relation to the personal intentions of the specific defendant (subjective) but in relation to an external standard of the responsible conduct in society (objective criteria)
what 2 principles do most torts involve
fault of defendant (whether behaviour was improper) and causation of harm (whether injury was caused by plaintiff actions)
example of a tort with strict liability
owner of a dog is liable for damages regardless of fault; person who collect dangerous substances which accidentally escape is liable regardless of fault
strict liability definition
liability imposed based on causation regardless of fault
whether liability is based on fault, strict liability etc is a matter of what?
public policy
public policy definition
economic, social and political considerations or objectives that are believed to be beneficial to society as a whole
liability not on fault or strict liability examples
elimination of lawsuits for personal injuries and people are compensation through gov run compensation schemes (no fault insurance, workers compensation)
vicarious liability
employer may be liable for tortious acts of its employee if the tortius act occurred during course of employee’s employment; strict liability
will just an employer be liable for employee actions?
they both may be held liable
why do we have vicarious liability?
employees often have limited assets to pay compensation and the person that profits from the activity should be liable for loss
define intentional torts
activity or conduct done deliberately, not by accident
define unintentional torts
behaviour was accidental
what does intention relate to?
only to behaviour, not damags
what is required for a tort to be actionable?
harm or damage
7 examples of intentional torts
assault and battery, nuisance (public and private), defamation (libel and slander); trespass, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution; false arrest
explain public nuisance
unreasonable interference with lawful use of public amenities; most of the time brought as a gov agency on behalf of public but if individual suffered substantial injury they may sue
explain private nuisance
unreasonable interference with the occupier’s use and enjoyment of land
define defamation
making untrue statements that cause injury to reputation of another
explain libel
written defamation
explain slander
spoken defamation
what is not included in defamation
overexaggerations, generalizations; they would not discredit reputation in an ordinary person’s mind
elements of defamation
(1) publication - communication of the statement to someone other than defamed
(2) plaintiff must prove remarks taken as a whole would discredit plaintiff’s reputaiton in mind of ordinary person
defence to defamation
defendant must prove statement is true
absolute privilege
complete immunity from liability for defamation ex. words spoken in parliamentary debate
qualified privilege
immunity from liability for defamation provided a statement was made in good faith