Tort Liability Flashcards
Define Tort
civil (private) wrong for which a remedy (i.e. damages) may be obtained. NOT A CRIME.
What are the types of tort liability?
- Negligence
- Intentional
- Constitutional
Define Negligence
(majority of cases) failure to exercise a standard of care that a reasonable prudent person would have exercised.
**State Law applies to negligence cases.*
What are the 4 prongs to find negligence?
- ) Duty of Care (school campus)
- ) Breach of Duty (failure to act as a reasonable person.)
- ) Proximate cause - connection/nexus - must exist between action/lack of action and injury
- ) Actual Loss/injury - damages
Daily v. LAUSD (1970) (Daily slapping)
Two 16 year olds are slap boxing in unsupervised gym - one falls and dies - teachers were playing cards
Ruling: Negligence - District responsible
Peter W. v. San Francisco (1976) (Peter couldn’t even read Peter Cottontail)
Graduate did not read at 8th grade level/ couldn’t get job/ sued for negligence
Ruling: Did not meet four pronged test
What are the three intentional torts? (a,b, skip c, and d)
- ) assault
- ) battery
- ) defamation
Define Assault
non-physical act that puts another person in fear of immediate bodily harm
- ) non-physical
- ) Act: swings and miss/words or both
- ) Ability to carry it out (fear must be real)
- ) Harm immediate (not a week later)
Define Battery
intentional and not permitted physical contact that causes bodily harm
- ) physical contact
- ) not permitted
- ) actual hitting
- ) Dual application (hand in hand with assault)
Define Constitutional Torts
Liable: Color of the Law - teachers/district/administration:
- ) deprived someone of civil rights ( 1st - 14th Amendments or other Federal Laws)
- ) Constitutional Tort Lawsuit: 42 U.S.C. 1983 - due process/equal protection
Bartell v. Palos Verdes Peninsula School District (1978) (Bart fell)
12 year old boy fatally injured while skateboarding after school after hours
2 Rulings:
1.) Round the clock supervision or prison-tight security - too much financial burden on district.
2.) Assumption of Risk
What are the three general rules of supervision?
Districts are responsible and liable for student supervision when student is:
- ) attending school
- ) at any school sponsored activity on or off campus
- ) traveling to and from school using district transportation
What are the exceptions of duty of care before and after school?
The Education Code provides that no district shall be responsible or liable for any pupil when a student is not on school property except:
- District provides transportation before and after school.
- Duty of supervision may extend to times before and after school with the principal’s “consent” - notice of student utilizing school grounds during those times.
Hoyem v. Manhattan Beach City School District (1978) (ran to the beach)
10 year old boy left school in the middle of the day without parent or school permission and was hit by a motorcycle off campus.
Ruling: district has a duty of care when the pupil is or should have been under the immediate and direct supervision of the district. (if properly supervised (i.e. breach) pupil would not have been allowed to leave.
What is the best protection/defense against negligence?
Satisfy the duty of care, which includes meeting the appropriate standard of care and proper supervision requirements: ACT LIKE A REASONABLE PERSON