Torts

Question 1

Defamation (general)

Answer 1

There is a publication to a third person of a statement understood as defamatory of the plaintiff that causes damage to the plaintiff’s reputation.

Original defamer is liable for republication by another party as long as it was reasonably foreseeable.

Question 2

Libel

Answer 2

WRITTEN or PRINTED publication of defamatory language wherein the plaintiff does not need to prove special damages and general damages are presumed.

Question 3

Slander

Answer 3

SPOKEN defamation wherein the plaintiff must prove special (pecuniary) damages unless the defamation falls within a slander per se category.

Question 4

Defamation (Public Figure)

Answer 4

Plaintiff must prove, in addition to the common law elements, the falsity of the statements as well as actual malice (knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard for the truth) on the part of the defendant.

Question 5

Battery

Answer 5

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) causes harmful or offensive contract (3) with plaintiff’s person.

Question 6

Assault

Answer 6

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) places plaintiff in reasonable apprehension (3) of imminent battery.

Question 7

False Imprisonment

Answer 7

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) commits an act of restraint (3) to confine plaintiff to bounded area.

Question 8

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED)

Answer 8

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) engages in extreme and outrageous conduct which (3) causes plaintiff to suffer severe distress.

Question 9

Trespass to Land

Answer 9

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) commits an act of physical invasion (3) of land.

Question 10

Trespass to Chattels

Answer 10

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) interferes with plaintiff’s right of possession in a chattel (3) resulting in damages

Question 11

Conversion

Answer 11

(1) Defendant intentionally (2) causes a serious interference (3) with plaintiff’s right of possession in a chattel.

Question 12

Undiscovered Trespassers

Answer 12

Landowner owes no duty

Question 13

Discovered and Anticipated Trespassers

Answer 13

Landowner owes a duty to warn or of make safe known highly dangerous artificial conditions if not obvious to the trespasser

Question 14

Licensees

Answer 14

Those who come onto the land with express or implied permission but for their own purpose.

Includes social guests.

Landowner has a duty to warn of all dangerous artificial and natural conditions.

Question 15

Invitees

Answer 15

Those entering as members of the public or for a purpose connected to the business of the landowner.

Landowner has duty to warn of all dangerous artificial and natural conditions, as well as reasonably inspect for dangerous conditions.

Question 16

Attractive Nuisance

Answer 16

Landowner owes a duty to a child trespasser to warn of (or make safe) artificial conditions on the land, provided that:

(1) The artificial condition exists in a place where the landowner knows or has reason to know that children are likely to trespass;
(2) The landowner knows or has reason to know that the artificial condition poses an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily harm;
(3) The children do not appreciate the danger involved; and
(4) The risk of harm outweighs the expense of making the condition safe.

Question 17

NIED (Zone of Danger)

Answer 17

(1) Defendant negligently caused a threat of physical impact; (2) the plaintiff was within the “zone of danger” of the threatened physical impact; and (3) the threat of physical impact caused emotional distress.

Question 18

NIED (Bystander Recovery)

Answer 18

(1) Defendant negligently inflicted bodily injury to another; (2) the plaintiff is closely related to the person injured by the defendant; (3) the plaintiff was present at the scene of the injury; and (4) plaintiff personally observed the injury.

Question 19

NIED (Special Relationship)

Answer 19

Commonly: Defendant negligently mishandles a corpse or defendant negligently provides false medical information.

Question 20

Contributory Negligence Jurisdiction

Answer 20

Plaintiff cannot recover damages if his own negligence contributed to his injury in any way, unless defendant: (1) was engaged in wanton and willful misconduct; or (2) had the last clear chance to avoid injuring the plaintiff, but failed to do so.

Question 21

Pure Comparative Negligence

Answer 21

Plaintiff’s recovery is limited by the percentage of fault the jury attributes to the plaintiff’s own negligence.

Question 22

Modified Comparative Negligence

Answer 22

Plaintiff’s recovery is limited by the percentage of fault the jury attributes to the plaintiff’s own negligence. However, if the plaintiff is more at fault than the defendant, plaintiff’s recovery is completely barred.

Question 23

Abnormally Dangerous Activity

Answer 23

(1) Inherently dangerous; (2) Inappropriate for the location chosen; (3) Virtually impossible to make safe; and (4) Of little value to the community.

Question 24

Strict Products Liability

Answer 24

(1) Product was defective in manufacture, design, or failure to warn;
(2) The defect existed when the product left the defendant’s control; and
(3) The defect caused the plaintiff’s injury when the product was used in a foreseeable way.

Question 25

Manufacture Defects

Answer 25

(1) Product deviated from its intended design; and (2) fails to conform to the manufacturer’s own design.

Question 26

Consumer Expectation Test (Design Defects)

Answer 26

Plaintiff must show that the product is less safe than the ordinary customer would expect.

Question 27

Risk Utility Test (Design Defects)

Answer 27

Plaintiff must show that the product’s risks outweigh its benefits and that there is a reasonable alternative design.

Question 28

Failure to Warn

Answer 28

(1) Plaintiff was not warned of the risks regarding the use of the product; (2) The risks are not obvious to an ordinary user; and (3) The designer/manufacturer was in fact aware of such risks.

Question 29

Appropriation of the Plaintiff’s Picture or Name (Invasion of Privacy)

Answer 29

Unauthorized use of the plaintiff’s picture of name for the defendant’s commercial advantage.

Question 30

Intrusion on the Plaintiff’s Affairs or Seclusion (Invasion of Privacy)

Answer 30

An act of prying or intruding on the plaintiff’s private affairs or seclusion that would be highly offensive to a reasonable person.

Must have a reasonable expectation of privacy to invoke claim.

Question 31

Publication of Facts Placing the Plaintiff in a False Light (Invasion of Privacy)

Answer 31

The publication of facts about the plaintiff putting her in a false light in the public eye in a way that would be highly offensive to a reasonable person.

Question 32

Public Disclosure of Private Facts About the Plaintiff (Invasion of Privacy)

Answer 32

The public disclosure of private information about the plaintiff such that the disclosure would be highly offensive to a reasonable person.

Question 33

Intentional Misrepresentation (Fraud)

Answer 33

Misrepresentation by the defendant with knowledge of falsity/reckless disregard as to truth and intent to induce reliance, causation, justifiable reliance, and damages.

Question 34

Negligent Misrepresentation

Answer 34

Misrepresentation by the defendant in a business or professional capacity, breach of duty to the plaintiff, causation, justifiable reliance, and damages.

Question 35

Interference with Business Relations

Answer 35

A valid contractual relationship or business expectancy of the plaintiff and a third party, the defendant’s knowledge of the relationship, intentional interference by the defendant inducing a breach or termination of the relationship, and damages.

Question 36

Malicious Prosecution

Answer 36

Initiating a criminal proceeding against the plaintiff ending in plaintiff’s favor, absence of probable cause for the prosecution, improper purpose, and damages.