Torts Flashcards

1
Q

Define tort law.

A

2 main kinds of tort law with the purpose of awarding damages.

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2
Q

What are the 2 main kinds of tort law?

A
  1. intentional
  2. unintentional
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3
Q

What are the 2 main changes in tort law over time?

A
  1. Previously: strict liability even if you are not at fault, if you cause harm you have liability.
    Now: if you are not at fault, you do not have to pay damages in a lawsuit. Also, you have strict liability even if you are not at fault, but someone gets hurt from inherently dangerous substances of yours.
  2. A change in awarding damages regarding direct and non-direct harm
    Now: people can be sued for non-direct damages
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4
Q

What is an example of the 1st change in tort law?

A
  • someone carrying explosives
  • WCB (example of strict liability)
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5
Q

What is an example of the 2nd change in tort law?

A
  • Big question is “could a reasonable person be able to prevent such harm”
  • how indirect is too indirect?
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6
Q

Explain intentional torts

A

intentional acts causing proscribed (prohibited) harm. It is common to lead to criminal law. People seek compensation regarding a tort. In the event of criminal law, if the defendant is found not guilty you can still sue.

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7
Q

What are the 3 elements of intentional torts?

A
  1. intent
  2. causation
  3. proscribed/prohibited harm
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8
Q

Explain the intent element of intentional tort.

A
  • act done deliberately/voluntarily
  • intent is the word used to describe the desire to bring about certain consequences (includes battery)
  • there in intent where there is motive
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9
Q

Explain causation in intentional torts.

A
  • intent must be to directly cause harm
  • relatively easy to establish
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10
Q

Explain proscribed/prohibited harm in intentional torts.

A
  • prohibited behaviour
    * laws against the act
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11
Q

What are examples of intentional torts?

A
  1. assault
  2. battery
  3. trespassing
  4. defamation
  5. deceit
  6. inducing breach of contract
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12
Q

Explain assault as an intentional tort.

A
  • threats harm to another
  • threatening to harm someone
  • can include sexual assault, beating them up, etc.
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13
Q

Explain battery as an intentional tort.

A
  • unlawful physical contact upon another person
  • actually harming them (sexual violations fall under battery too)
  • not usual for battery to appear with assault
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14
Q

Explain trespassing as an intentional tort.

A
  • entrance into premises or onto lands, unlawfully
  • make entering land unlawful (fence with a sign saying stay away and you still enter) - owner must indicate they don’t want you to enter their property
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15
Q

Explain defamation as an intentional tort.

A
  • written (libel) and verbal (slander) defamation
  • where someone broadcasts a statement causing the harm to the reputation of another person
  • opinion is not defamation
  • broadcasted statement must be in the form of projecting facts

NOTE: it is not slander if you are telling it to that person

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16
Q

Explain deceit as an intentional tort.

A
  • also called fraudulent misrepresentation
  • where someone makes a false statement, to a 3rd party, knowing it is false (or not believing it is true) with the intention of misleading the 3rd party and causing them a (financial) loss
17
Q

Explain inducing breach of contract as an intentional tort.

A
  • intentionally causing one party to breach their contract with another party
18
Q

What is the defence to defamation?

A

Prove that what was said was true

19
Q

What are defences to battery?

A
  • consent (example: contact sports)
  • self defence (you only used as much force as REASONABLY necessary)
20
Q

Explain tort law.

A

Tort law is compensating for causing harm to someone.

21
Q

Explain unintentional torts.

A
  • aka negligence
  • someone was careless and another suffered bodily harm or damages to property as a result. Either a result of commission or omission.
22
Q

How is the amount of damages decided in tort law?

A
  • how much money needs to be paid to put the person back into the position they were in before the tort happened
23
Q

What kind of law is tort law?

A

mostly judge made, but some is statute law.

24
Q

First main change in tort (negligence) law over time is….

A

in the past basis for liability was called strict liability
now: basis for determining liability is called fault

25
Q

What are the elements of unintentional (negligence) law?

A
  • commission
  • omission
26
Q

Explain commission in unintentional tort law.

A

careless with what they were doing
example: accidentally broke something while being careless doing something else

27
Q

Explain omission in unintentional tort law.

A

careless by FAILING to do something
carelessly does NOT maintain certain safety objects (like railings) - because there is an expectation to properly maintain those railings

28
Q

What are the 3 elements of unintentional (negligence) tort law (that the plaintiff must prove)?

A
  1. duty of care
  2. breach of the duty of care
  3. damage caused
29
Q

Explain duty of care in unintentional (negligence) tort law.

A
  • very first element that must be established
  • carrying on an activity the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care

did I owe any duty to the plaintiff to be careful?
must sue a reasonably foreseeable plaintiff

30
Q

Explain breach of the duty of care in negligence.

A

failed to meet the standard of care.

How careful do I have to be?

example: did a doctor wrong all reasonable tests to meet the standard of care? or did the doctors take all life saving measures before calling time of death

31
Q

Explain damage caused in unintentional tort law.

A
  • only after the other 2 elements have been established
  • legal causation vs causation in fact
  • remoteness of damage
  • think skull rule
32
Q

What is legal causation?

A
  • actual legal cause
  • you were careless and it caused someone to get hurt
33
Q

What is causation in fact?

A
  • weak argument
  • if you did that then this would have happened
34
Q

What is remoteness of damage?

A
  • the type of damage is foreseeable by a reasonable person
  • if you can’t contemplate that it can happen, why would you do something to prevent it?
35
Q

What is the thin skull rule?

A
  • it doesn’t matter if they hurt worse than they normally would, you still have to pay for those damages
  • you caused the damages, pay for how they get damaged
  • even if you can’t foresee the level of damage you inflict, you pay whatever it is