Agenda Intro to Tort Law (aka, Civil Law) Students will be able to: explain the differences between tort law and criminal law Intro to Tort Law (aka, Civil Law) HW: Exit ticket (if you don’t finish in class) **Extra credit is coming Drop your lowest homework grade OR 10 points on a quiz

A quick overview of tort law TORTS!!!!! A quick overview of tort law

Quick recap: There are two types of law: criminal law and civil law (tort law). With a partner, recap the definition of each.

Warm up Why sue people? Why not always seek jail time as punishment?

WRONGS FOR WHICH THE WRONGDOER CAN BE SUED TORTS

CRIMINAL LAW V. CIVIL LAW (AKA, TORT LAW) Paying your debt to society “Crime” Jail time or a fine Paying your debt to a person “Tort” Money only – not time behind bars Generic examples, not specific ones - yet Examples?

Tort examples Malpractice Wrongful death Nuisance Defamation False imprisonment Battery

Tort examples Malpractice Wrongful death Nuisance Doctor accidentally amputates the wrong leg Wrongful death Company makes its employees work in unsafe conditions Nuisance Unreasonable interference with your ability to use and enjoy your property - Someone leaves their garbage out for too long that the neighborhood becomes overrun with rats Nuisnace: Someone leaves their garbage out for too long that the neighborhood becomes overrun with rats

Tort examples Defamation False imprisonment Battery Spreading vicious lies through media outlets False imprisonment Someone locks another in a closet and doesn’t let them out Battery Someone has sustained injuries due to another’s aggression

QUICK DISCUSSION Is suing people better or worse than putting people in jail?

Wait, battery AS A TORT? CRIMINAL CIVIL Jail or a fine Battery: Uncontested physical contact with another human (remember – assault is threats; battery is contact) CRIMINAL CIVIL Jail or a fine Beyond a reasonable doubt Sued for damages Based on a preponderance of evidence More likely than not Is it better to let one guilty man go free than put an innocent man behind bars? Our justice system suggests that

WAIT, HOW IS THAT FAIR? Yes. Say (pick on someone) gets his ass kicked all over the street. And has a criminal record. And a bad relationship with the police. Probably, no charges will get pressed. It also depends on the offender. If it’s a homeless man beating meup, I’m nto going to sue; if it’s Bill Gates, heck yes I will sue.

OJ Simpson Criminally tried for first degree murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman -- Acquitted Sued in a civil case for wrongful death -- Awarded the families $33.5 million

Erin Andrews (Michael Barrett) Will she ever see that money? Probably not from Barrett, and probably only a portion from the hotel. So then, why sue? Erin Andrews (Michael Barrett) Criminally tried and convicted of stalking – 30 months in prison Sued both the hotel and Michael Barrett for intentional emotional distress and invasion of privacy – awarded $55 million (51% paid by Barrett, 49% paid by the hotel)

WAIT, WHY DID THE DAMAGES GET SHARED? Comparative negligence: dividing the loss according to the degree to which each person is at fault In many cases, there can be comparative negligence – jumping on a trampoline and you were jumping wearing golf shoes and as a result you went through the trampoline. Whose fault is that? You were negligent, but maybe there was oemting negligent in the manufacturer – so… you with the golf sheos were 75% negligent and the trampoline company was 25% negligent. That’s the problem with tort law: you can be an idiot and still make some money.

Most famous tort lawsuit Has America taken the accountability out of the people? Netflix and chill – she tried to sue Netflix for her getting pregnant. A guy

LIEBECK V. MCDONALDS What do you know?

LIEBECK V. MCDONALDS As you watch the video, take down key facts that will support Liebeck’s case against McDonalds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA zMMKIspPQ

What you might not know 1992 Third-degree burns in three seconds over 16% of her body Skin burned away to the layers of muscle and fatty tissue Hospitalized for eight days Needed skin grafts Recovery took two years

“Liebeck offered to settle the case for $20,000, but the company refused. McDonald’s offered Liebeck only $800—which did not even cover her medical expenses. When the case went to trial, the jurors saw graphic photos of Liebeck’s burns. They heard experts testify about how hot coffee should be and that McDonald’s coffee was 30 to 40 degrees hotter than coffee served by other companies. The jury learned that 700 other people—including children—had been burned before, yet the company did not change its policy of keeping coffee at between 180 and 190 degrees. The company knew its coffee was causing serious burns, but it decided that, with billions of cups served annually, this number of burns was not significant.”

DECISION Liebeck was 20% negligible and McDonald’s was 80% negligible McDonald’s appealed $640,000 for Liebeck in the appellate court Both appealed again Settled for less than $600,000 outside of court

CLOSURE: EXIT TICKET ABC news called the case the “poster child of excessive lawsuits,” while legal scholar Jonathan Turley argued that the claim was “a meaningful and worthy lawsuit.” Which do you agree with, and why?