Torts

Question 1

Battery

Answer 1

Harmful or offensive contact with the person of another. Contact must be intended.

Majority - D need not intend that the contact be harmful or offensive (single intent)

Minority - D intends to bring about the contact and that its harmful or offensive (dual intent)

Question 2

Assault

Answer 2

Reasonable apprehension of imminent harmful or offensive contact. D must intend the contact or the apprehension.

Question 3

IIED

Answer 3

D intentionally or recklessly engages in extreme and outrageous conduct that causes P severe emotional distress. Distress that no reasonable person could be expected to endure.

Question 4

False Imprisonment

Answer 4

D intends to confine or restrain another within fixed boundaries, the actions directly or indirectly result in confinement, and P is conscious of the confinement or harmed by it.

Question 5

Trespass to Chattels

Answer 5

An intentional interference with P’s right to possess personal property either by dispossession or use/intermeddling or damage.

Question 6

Conversion

Answer 6

Intentionally commit an act depriving the P of possession of their chattel or interfering with the P’s chattel in a manner so serious as to deprive the P of the use of the chattel.

Question 7

Trespass to Land

Answer 7

D intentionally causes a physical invasion of someone’s land.Nominal damages if no real harm.

Question 8

Nuisance

Answer 8

Thing or activity (offensive, annoying, inconvenient) that substantially and unreasonably interferes with another’s use and enjoyment of land. Can recover if reasonable person would be offended.

Question 9

Negligence

Answer 9

Duty, Breach, Causation, and Damages.

Duty: Legal obligation to protect another against an unreasonable risk of injury.
Breach: Failure to meet that obligation. Causation: “But for” and Proximate (foreseeability)
Damages: Loss suffered.

Question 10

Invitee (land open to public/business purpose)

Answer 10

Inspect for unknown dangers, make safe or warn, and prevent harm from active operations.

Question 11

Licensees (social guests)

Answer 11

Warn of known latent defects and use reasonable care in active operations.

Question 12

Known or Anticipated Trespasser

Answer 12

Warn of known artificial dangers and use reasonable care in active operations.

Question 13

Unknown or Unanticipated Trespassers

Answer 13

No duty.

Question 14

Modern Trend for LP Standard of Care

Answer 14

Standard of reasonable care applies to all land entrants except trespassers.

RS3 applies to all land entrants except flagrant trespassers.

Question 15

Attractive Nuisance

Answer 15

An artificial condition exists in a place where LP knows or has reason to know children are likely to trespass, LP knows or reason to know the condition poses an unreasonable risk of serious bodily injury to children, children (because of their youth) do not discover or cannot appreciate the risk of the danger, utility of maintaining the condition and burden of eliminating are slight compared to risk of harm, LP fails to exercise reasonable care to protect children from harm.

Question 16

Negligence Per Se

Answer 16

Regulatory statute that imposes a specific duty, D violates the statute by failing to perform that duty, person harmed is in class of people intended to be protected by statute, and the harm that occurred is the harm meant to be prevented by statute.

Question 17

Res Ipsa Loquitor

Answer 17

Accident was of a kind that ordinarily does not occur absent negligence, it was caused by an agent or instrumentality within exclusive control of D, it was not due to any action on the part of P.

Question 18

NIED

Answer 18

A P’s negligence causes emotional distress.
1. Zone of danger
2. Bystander recovery
3. Special relationship

Majority requires a physical manifestation of some sort.

Question 19

Pure Comparative

Answer 19

Recovery is reduced by P;s percentage of fault

Question 20

Modified Comparative Fault

Answer 20

Recovery reduced by P’s percentage of fault, but recovery barred if P’s fault exceeds 50%

Question 21

Contributory Negligence

Answer 21

Common law - P’s contributory negligence is complete bar to recovery.

Question 22

Strict Liability

Answer 22

“DAD”

Dangerous Activities
Animals
Defective or Dangerous products

Question 23

Claims in Products Liability

Answer 23

Negligence
Strict Products Liability
Breach of Warranty

Question 24

Strict Products Liabilty

Answer 24

Breach: Failure to exercise reasonable care in the inspection or sale of a product.Must show (1) product was defective, (2) defect existed at time product left D’s control, and (3) defect caused P’s injuries when product used as intended or foreseeable way.

No economic recovery, just personal injury or property damage.

Question 25

Design Defect - Consumer Expectation (condition) Test

Answer 25

Does the product include a condition not expected by the ordinary consumer that is unreasonably dangerous?

Question 26

Design Defect - Risk Utility Test

Answer 26

Do the risks posed by the product outweigh its benefits? P must prove reasonable alternative design and failure to use that design rendered product not reasonably safe. Must be economically feasible.

Question 27

Failure to Warn

Answer 27

Foreseeable risks of harm, not obvious to ordinary consumer, which could have been reduced or avoided by providing reasonable instructions or warnings.

Question 28

Warranty - Merchantability

Answer 28

Warrants product being sold is generally acceptable and reasonably fit for ordinary purposes. Must be merchant of the kind of goods.

Recovery: personal injury, property damage, economic damages.

Question 29

Warranty - Fitness for Particular Purpose

Answer 29

Seller knows the particular purpose for which the product is being purchased and buyer relies on seller’s skill or judgement.

Recovery: Personal injury, property damage, economic damages.

Question 30

Defamation

Answer 30

D’s defamatory language, is of and concerning P, is published to a third party who understands its defamatory nature, and it damages the P’s reputation.

Question 31

Invasion of Privacy (IFLAP)

Answer 31

Intrusion
False Light
Appropriation
Private Facts

Question 32

Appropriation

Answer 32

D’s unauthorized use of P’s name, likeness, or identity, for D’s advantage, lack of consent, resulting injury.

Question 33

Intrusion

Answer 33

D’s intentional intrusion, physically or otherwise, into P’s private affairs, solitude, or seclusion, if highly offense to RP.

Question 34

False Light

Answer 34

Made public facts about the P that placed P in a false light, which would be highly offensive to RP.

Question 35

Public Disclosure of Private Facts

Answer 35

D gave publicity to a matter concerning the private life of another, and the matter publicized is of the kind that would be highly offensive to RP and not legitimate public concern.

Question 36

Theft of Trade Secrets

Answer 36

P must own valid trade secret, owner took reasonable precautions to protect secret, and D took secret by improper means.

Question 37

Intentional Tort Elements

Answer 37

Act, Intent, Causation (“but for” and proximate – foreseeable).