1. Individual & the Law Unit IV
Torts
Individual & the Law
Unit IV

2. Torts: a civil wrong
Chapter 17

3. In Civil, when a person commits a wrong, it’s called a TORT
The harmed person is the PLAINTIFF
The Plaintiff seeks judgment against the DEFENDANT (wrongdoer)
A guilty defendant in tort/civil law doesn’t go to jail, they have to pay DAMAGES – money to compensate for the wrong they did

4. The Idea of Liability Tort law deals with basic questions
Who should be responsible or LIABLE for harm caused by human activities
How much should the responsible person have to pay
Almost any activity cam be a source of harm and therefore of tort liability
Driving a car
Operating a business
Speaking
Writing
Using property

5. Failure to exercise reasonable care may result in legal LIABILITY.
Tort law provides the injured party with a REMEDY – something to make up for what was lost
Failure to exercise reasonable care may result in legal LIABILITY.
The person harmed may sue the person who acted unreasonably for damages
Less tangible costs – such as emotional suffering – may also be a cost of an injury

6. Legal responsibility for harm – LIABILITY - is not the same as moral responsibility
A person may be morally at fault for harming someone but not civilly liable for the injuries.
You lie to a friend about the correct time, causing her to miss a job interview and not get a job
The lie is morally wrong and would cause harm, but would not result in civil liability

7. The agreement reached in tort law is called a settlement
Settlements are much more common that trials in tort law
Approximately 90% of tort cases filed in court are settled without a trial

8. The Idea of Torts: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
Tort law is generally based on COMMON LAW
This is law made by judges through court decisions
These decisions become precedents used to decide future cases
Tort law evolved over time, reflecting changes in both technology and social values

9. Tort law continues to balance usefulness against harm
How safe must a drug be before the manufacturer is not considered legally responsible if the drug injures someone?
If a drug is discovered that saves the lives of many cancer patients but causes the deaths of some, should the drug manufacturer be liable for the deaths?
Tort law tries to preserve individual choice
Labels on the dangers of smoking on cigarette packages
Tort cases often involve a clash of values and interests

10. Types of Torts
An INTENTIONAL WRONG occurs when a person acts with the intent of injuring a person, his or her property, or both
The most common tort is NEGLIGENCE – an unintentional tort
Occurs when a person’s failure to use reasonable care causes harm

11. Three groups of people face strict liability
STRICT LIABILITY applies when the defendant is engaged in an activity so dangerous that there is a serious risk of harm even if he or she acts with utmost care
Three groups of people face strict liability
Owners of dangerous animals
People who engage in highly dangerous activities
Manufacturers and sellers of defective consumer products

12. Taking Your Case to Court
Tort law is Civil Law
Who can be sued?
Almost anyone
Individuals
Groups of people
Organizations
Businesses
Government
Plaintiffs typically look for those with “deep pockets” to sue – people who can afford to pay the damages

13. Children commit torts and may be sued for damages
People can sue employers for torts committed by employees in the course of their employment
The reason is that the employer is in a better position than the employee to handle the cost of the suit.
Children commit torts and may be sued for damages
To recover damages from a minor
One has to prove the child acted unreasonable for a person of that age and experience
Because most children do not have very ‘deep pockets’, plaintiffs also sue the child’s parents

14. Certain defendants are immune from some kinds of tort suits
Suits within families and against the government
Parents and children cannot sue each other
The President, Federal Judges, and Members of Congress are totally immune from tort liability for acts carried out within the scope of their duties
Jones v Clinton, 1997 – the Supreme Court ruled a sitting President can be sued for stuff he may have done BEFORE he was president

15. The FEDERAL TORT CLAIMS ACT has made it so the federal gov’t can be held liable in civil actions for negligent acts or omissions by gov’t employees
CLASS ACTION SUIT is where many people have been injured/wronged and they band together to sue the wrongdoer

16. Some attorneys for plaintiffs will work for a CONTINGENCY FEE – meaning they will only be paid fi they win the case – usually 30-40% of the winnings.

17. Insurance
Liability insurance is purchased by many Americans in various forms all the time
The people pay insurance premiums ‘just in case’ they need the insurance to cover something they’ve done
Malpractice – a form of liability insurance purchased by doctors, lawyers, and other professionals

18. Homeowners and Renters insurance covers loss and damage to property
Manufacturers liability is to cover injuries that may be caused by faulty products
Homeowners and Renters insurance covers loss and damage to property
Auto insurance is the most important liability insurance purchased
Covers damage you do to people and property
Limits on how much a person can collect
A limit on injuries per person
A limit on total injuries to all people involved in the accident
A limit on property damage per accident

19. Medical coverage pays for your own medical expenses resulting from accidents involving your car or the one you’re driving
Also pays for passengers in your car regardless of fault
Collision coverage pays for damage to your own car, even if the accident was your fault
Can lower the payments each month by getting a higher deductible – what you must pay before the insurance money kicks in
Comprehensive coverage protects you against damage or loss to your car from causes other than collisions
Uninsured Motorist coverage protects you from other drivers who do not have insurance or do not have enough insurance
No-Fault insurance pays up to a certain amount for injuries your receive in an accident regardless of who’s fault the accident is

20. Workers’ Compensation
Every state has a workers’ compensation system that automatically compensates employees who are injured on the job
Employers make regular payments to the state or private companies to cover this if it happens
Workers can usually recover for their injuries even if they were negligent
The amount of money awarded for a specific injury is limited according to a schedule set up by the state
Workers cannot usually recover additional damages from the employer
Workers’ compensation is the EXCLUSIVE REMEDY for on- the-job injuries

21. Intentional Torts
Chapter 18

22. Types of Damages Intentionally – on purpose
Compensatory Damages are reward for intentionally harming someone.
These damages include
Lost wages
Pain
Suffering
Medical bills
Nominal Damages are rewarded as a token amount – symbolically
No harm was really caused, but the action was wrong.
Punitive Damages are awarded to punish the defendant for malicious, willful or outrageous acts even if no real harm was done.

23. Torts that Injure Persons
Battery is when a person intentionally causes a harmful or offensive contact with another person.
Assault occurs when a person intentionally puts someone in fear of an immediate harmful or offensive act
Infliction of Mental Distress is kind of a new tort and it’s when someone intentionally uses words or actions that are meant to cause someone fright, extreme anxiety, or mental distress.
Actual physical injury is NOT required
False Imprisonment protects someone from being held against their will.
Does not include arrest and jail

24. Torts Related to Defamation
Two kinds of defamation
Slander is when oral statements harm someone’s reputation
Libel is written defamation

25. Torts that Harm Property
Tort law protects your property in two ways
It protects against interference with the owner’s exclusive use of the property
It protects against the property’s being taken or damaged
Three kinds of property covered by tort law
Real Property – land and the items attached to it
Personal Property – property that can be moved
Intellectual Property – the ownership interest in creations of a person’s mind.
Real Property Offenses include
Trespass
Nuisance
Injunctions can stop the real property offenses

26. Personal Property offenses include
Attractive nuisance – a law that allows for something to get in the way temporarily until the overall problem can be fixed.
Example is fencing in a construction site until the job is completed.
Personal Property offenses include
Conversion – someone exercises control over the personal property of another person
Reasonable Force can be used to protect personal property
What reasonable force is depends on the circumstances surrounding the crime
In general, deadly force cannot be used to protect personal property

27. Intellectual Property is creations of the mind and includes:
Patents which are granted to people who invent things.
The invention must be novel (new) for a patent to be issued
Grants the inventor a monopoly on the product for 20 years
Copyrights which are granted to authors and composers
Works do NOT have to be novel/new to receive a copyright.
Works only need to show some slight spark of creativity
Exceptions to the exclusive rights of a copyright holder are:
First Sale means that once the copyright owner sells a coy of their work, the lawful owner of the particular copy can make further copies and sell them

28. Defenses to Intentional Torts
Consent is the most common defense
The plaintiff consented to the act so they gave up the right to sue later
Privilege justifies conduct that would otherwise be a tort because the defendant’s interests or those of the public require it and because public policy is best served by permitting such behavior
Legal authority is a privilege that can be used to protect property and such
Self-defense is the best known defense. Allows someone to come to the rescue of another person and to use the same amount of force the victim could have used to repel the attacker
Defense of Property
Deadly force is never allowed here

29. Negligence
Chapter 19

30. Elements of Negligence
For a plaintiff to win a negligence action against the defendant, each of the following elements MUST be proven by a preponderance of evidence:
Duty – the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff
Breach of Duty – the duty was breached (violated) by the defendant’s conduct
Causation – the defendant’s conduct caused the plaintiff’s harm
Damages – the plaintiff suffered actual damages

31. Duty and Breach
Negligence law is primarily concerned with compensating victims who are harmed by a wrongdoer’s action or inaction that breaches the standard of reasonable care
The Reasonable Person Standard
Everyone has a duty toward everyone else in society
The duty to act reasonably
The law has developed an imaginary creature to help judge whether conduct is negligent
The reasonable person of ordinary prudence or carefulness
The reasonable person considers
How LIKELY a certain harm is to occur
How SERIOUS the harm would be
The BURDEN involved in avoiding the harm
The likelihood and seriousness of the harm are balanced against the burden of avoiding the harm
The law assumes that reasonable people do not break the law!

32. Causation
When considering the element of causation, two separate issues are looked at
CAUSE IN FACT – if the harm would not have occurred without the wrongful act, the act is the cause in fact
PROXIMATE CAUSE – there must be a close connection between the wrongful act and the harm caused
The harm caused must have been a foreseeable result of the act or acts

33. Damages
The plaintiff should be restored to his or her pre-injury condition
The court allows for the recovery of
Hospital bills
Lost wages
Damage to property
Reduced future earnings
Other economic harm
The court may allow for the recovery of
Pain and suffering
Mental distress
Permanent physical losses

34. Defenses To Negligence Suits
Contributory Negligence is a traditional legal defense
If it can be proven that the plaintiff contributed toward the harm suffered, then the defendant does not have to pay damages.
Usually used when both parties are at fault
Some states no longer consider contributory negligence
Comparative Negligence divides the loss according to the degree to which each person is at fault.
This sometimes involves counterclaims – both parties filing suits against each other
Assumption of the Risk is when a person voluntarily encounters a known danger and decides to accept the risk of that danger

35. Strict Liability
Chapter 20

36. Dangerous Activities
Strict Liability means that the defendant is liable to the plaintiff regardless of fault.
Strict liability applied to activities that are unreasonable dangerous.
Activities are considered unreasonably dangerous when they involve a risk of harm that cannot be eliminated even by reasonable care
They may be socially useful or necessary – like demolition work
Companies conducting dangerous activities know that they are strictly liable so they build the cost into the price they charge for the work.
Toxic Torts have been developed to address harm resulting from the use of toxic chemicals and other hazardous materials

37. Animals
The traditionally holds owners responsible for any harm caused by their untamed animals.
The situation is different for household pets
The owner of the pet is strictly liable only if he knew or should have known that the pet was dangerous or destructive
“Every dog is entitled to one free bite” but the owner may be liable for that first bite!
Leash laws also make the owner responsible for the pet’s behavior.

38. Defective Products
Some attorneys specialize in product liability law – representing consumers who have suffered from product- related injuries.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission was created in 1972 to deal with the issue of product safety.
Strict liability on companies is meant to ‘force’ them to develop safe products
Courts have been reluctant to apply strict liability to unavoidably unsafe products whose benefits outweigh the dangers
vaccines

39. Defenses to Strict Liability
The best defense is to argue that the plaintiff should have to prove negligence in a particular case and that sound public policy does not require the use of a strict liability standard.
It’s harder for a plaintiff to win a negligence suit because there must be proof of the defendant’s fault
Strict Liability Plaintiffs have to prove BOTH
Causation
Damages
So, the defense can show that there is no causation or there are not damages
Another defense for product manufacturers is that the
Consumer misused the product
Consumer ignored clear safety warnings.

40. Torts and Public Policy
Chapter 21

41. Critics of our current tort law claim
As a matter of public policy (laws) the tort law system should serve to
Compensate harmed people in a prompt and efficient way
Fairly allocate benefits to victims and costs to wrongdoers
Deter risky conduct
Critics of our current tort law claim
The amount of money awarded to plaintiffs is sometimes unreasonably high
Going to court has become much too expensive with lawyers getting too much of the money awarded
Civil courts take too long to resolve disputes
Tort law is so complicated that it can be difficult to determine who is at fault
The injured party should sometimes receive compensation for a loss, regardless of whether the other party was at fault

42. Tort Reform
The main goal of tort reform is to change the process of settling claims
No-Fault insurance laws were developed to eliminate the need for law suits after auto accidents
Mediation programs may allow parties to resolve conflicts without going to court
Medical Malpractice
As the size of awards increased the insurance premiums paid by doctors rose.
Part of this increase is passed along to patients
This means higher payments for care
Some people cannot afford to pay for the more expensive care
Sometimes this means higher health insurance premiums
Some people cannot afford health insurance
As the price of medical malpractice insurance rose, some doctors have had to quit practicing because they can’t afford the insurance

43. The Cost of Safety
Either by preventing injuries by paying safety costs, or by treating injuries by paying for damages, costs are spread to consumers through higher prices at the cash register.
Tort law generally requires that a reasonable amount of money be spent on safety
If the benefits of adding the safety precaution outweigh they it would be reasonable to require this safety precaution and vice versa