1. Intentional Torts
Purpose was to cause harm to person, property, and/or economic rights Negligence and strict liability do not require intent
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2. WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON INTENTIONAL TORTS?
Assault
Trespass to land
Battery
Conversion
False imprisonment
Interference with contractual relations
Defamation
Fraud
Invasion of privacy
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3. The threat must be believable.
Assault
Put another in reasonable fear of an offensive or harmful bodily contact
NOT ACTUALLY TOUCHING.
Words
Gestures
Must include a display of force indicating a present ability to carry it out.
The threat must be believable.
From the point of view of the VICTIM
What would be OFFENSIVE contact?
Would you feel afraid if (student name) told you to move out of your seat or s/he is going to smash your face in? What if a very agitated (student) did the same thing?
What words might be said? What gestures?
Assault: reasonable person would feel the IMMEDIATE THREAT.
Why is it important to take it from the point of view of the VICTIM?
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4. Assault or Not Assault?
Dr. Bruce Banner, known for his temper is walking toward your car. Seeing how close you parked to his car, he mouths the words, “I’m going to rip you apart”. While paintballing, your best friend raises and aims her gun at you…… Leaning in to tell you a secret, your locker mate can’t resist giving you a kiss – you feel very uncomfortable While working at your part-time job, a regular customer comes in with an AirSoft gun and tells you to empty the register. Jostling to get on the train to Chicago, another commuter touches you in an uncomfortable manner
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5. Battery
Harmful or offensive touching of another. An assault frequently precedes a battery. When the victim is hit without warning from behind, there is a battery without an assault.
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6. Battery or Not Battery?
While enjoying the recent CLS Theater production, the person seated behind you sneezes into your hair. As a World-Class Frolf champion, your rival throws a disc at your face when you are not looking. As a World-Class Frolf champion, your greatest fan is disappointed in your recent performance and spits in your face. As a MMA competitor, you enter the ring and lose…..while receiving a broken nose and split lip You play hockey. Your rival high-sticks you and breaks your arm. You catch a person breaking into your garage and taking your golf clubs. You chase them down, tackle them, and break their ankle.
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7. False Imprisonment
Intentional confinement against a persons' will/without lawful privilege Denied Liberty by threat by consent
Intentional confinement of a person against the person’s will and without lawful privilege.
Handcuffed
Locked in a room
Locked in a car
Locked in jail (without being arrested)
Told in a threatening way to stay in one place (grounding?)
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8. False Imprisonment
Police – Probable Cause? Not False Imprisonment Agree to be detained Shopkeeper’s Privilege
A security guard in a store suspected me of shoplifting and detained me. I have heard about something called false imprisonment. Do I have an action for that?
If the security guard was acting in good faith, most courts will allow the guard to detain you briefly on the store premises. A number of states by law have given shopkeepers a limited privilege to stop suspected shoplifters for a reasonable amount of time to investigate. Nonetheless, you may be able to recover damages for false imprisonment. Suppose the security guard genuinely restrained you against your will, intending to confine you. Damages for such an action generally include compensation for loss of time and any inconvenience, physical discomfort, or injuries. If the guard acted maliciously, you also may be able to receive punitive damages.
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9. False Imprisonment or Not?
A burglar suspect sits voluntarily in a police car to describe his actions over the last hour. Elizabeth Smart, kidnap victim, believes if she tries to escape while at a restaurant, harm will come to her family. Merchants in many states have a privilege to detain a person if they have a reasonable basis for believing the person was shoplifting. Rod Blagojevich, sits in a Colorado prison for his conviction in Illinois.
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10. Defamation Slander spoken. Libel printed.
Statements about people can injure them. If a false statement injures a person’s reputation or good name, it may constitute the tort of defamation.
Slander
spoken.
Libel
printed.
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11. To be legally defamed: The statement must be false.
The statement must be communicated to a third person
The statement must bring the victim into dispute, contempt, or ridicule by others.
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Generally speaking, defamation is the issuance of a false statement about another person, which causes that person to suffer harm. Slander involves the making of defamatory statements by a transitory (non-fixed) representation, usually an oral (spoken) representation. Libel involves the making of defamatory statements in a printed or fixed medium, such as a magazine or newspaper.
Typically, the elements of a cause of action for defamation include:
A false and defamatory statement concerning another;
The unprivileged publication of the statement to a third party (that is, somebody other than the person defamed by the statement);
If the defamatory matter is of public concern, fault amounting at least to negligence on the part of the publisher; and
Damage to the plaintiff.
In the context of defamation law, a statement is "published" when it is made to the third party. That term does not mean that the statement has to be in print.
Damages are typically to the reputation of the plaintiff, but depending upon the laws of the jurisdiction it may be enough to establish mental anguish.
ur reputation is not harmed if no other person hears or reads the lie).
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12. Legal Defamatory
In slander suits, you must show that you have suffered an actual physical loss, or damages, as a result of the slanderous remark. In libel suits you are presumed to have suffered a loss, and so these damages do not have to be shown to the court.
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13. Exceptions to the law of defamation
Legislators statements, even those made with malice, are immune from liability if made during legislative meetings.
Judges, lawyers, jurors, witnesses, and other parties in judicial proceedings are also immune from liability for statements made during the actual trial or hearing.
Statements about public officials or prominent personalities does not exist unless the statements were made with malice. (The statement was known to be false or was made with a reckless disregard for its probable falsehood.)
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14. Invasion of Privacy
A tort defined as the uninvited intrusion into an individual’s personal relationships and activities in a way likely to cause shame or mental suffering in an ordinary person.
Unnecessary publicity regarding personal matters (true or false).
Two-way mirrors in the women’s restroom of a gas station.
Commercial exploitation of one’s name, picture, or endorsement without permission.
Eavesdropping
Unauthorized opening of letters and telegrams.
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15. Not an Invasion of Privacy
Police can tap telephone lines secretly if they have a warrant. Public figures, such as politicians, actors, and people in the news give up much of their right to privacy when they step into the public domain.
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16. Trespass to Land
Entry onto the property of another without the owner’s consent.
Dumping garbage on the land of another.
Breaking the windows of a neighbors house.
Intent is required to commit the tort of trespass.
Cutting across a neighbor’s yard
Hunting on another’s land
Definition
Illinois defines levels of trespassing as illegally entering and staying inside a building, entering land despite posted warnings, staying on the land after being asked to leave, and a person misrepresenting himself to enter a building or land.
Vehicles
Driving onto property in any type of vehicle where a "no trespassing" sign is posted will also result in a Class A misdemeanor, with penalties of up to one year in jail, up to two years probation and up to $2,500 in fines, as of November 2010.
Penalties
Entering a residence without permission results in a Class A misdemeanor, which results in the same penalty as does driving on another person's property without permission. If a person is in the residence when the trespassing occurs, the penalty increases to a Class 4 felony. Penalties for a Class 4 felony can include one to six years in prison, 2 1/2 years probation and $25,000 in fines, as of November 2010.
Express and Implied Invitations
If you order a pizza, you cannot sue the driver for trespassing when he enters your property because he is responding to an invitation. Invitations need not be express, they can be implied. That is why your mail carrier is not trespassing when she enters your yard without your specific permission.
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17. Trespass to Land
If a person thought they were walking on their own property but they were mistaken, there would be a trespass because they intended to be there.
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18. Conversion
Intentional interference with another’s property A thief is always a converter. The innocent buyer of stolen goods is a converter.
People who own personal property have the right to control their possession and their use.
This right is violated if the property is stolen, destroyed, or used in a manner inconsistent with the owner’s rights.
Pawn shops?
Wayne Sabaj, who discovered the cash in his McHenry County broccoli garden last year, said the cash would have become his if no one had claimed it by Oct. 1, but authorities said a Naperville liquor store robbed of about $150,000 in 2010 filed a petition to claim the money, as did Sabaj's 87-year-old neighbor, WGN-TV, Chicago, reported Wednesday.
Both claims were filed two days before the deadline, authorities said.
Lawyers for Sabaj's neighbor, Dolores Johnson, said the woman suffers from memory problems and does not remember what happened to the money she has been collecting for several years. Johnson's daughter said she believes her mother threw the cash into Sabaj's yard.
Read more: (
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19. Interference with Contractual Relations
Competition is good, but you have to play fair!
If a third party encourages the breaching party in any way, that third party may be liable in tort to the non-breaching party.
Celebrity appearance contracts
Sale of property
False advertising
Not a breach of contract – but meddling in a contract
The claim of interference with contractual relations allows a plaintiff to recover damages when a party interferes with the contractual rights of another. To have an intentional interference with contractual relations claim you must prove:
(1) the existence of a valid contract between the plaintiff and a third party; (2) defendant's knowledge of this contract; (3) defendant's intentional acts designed to induce the third party to breach its contract with you; (4) actual breach or disruption of the contractual relationship; and (5) resulting damage.
For example, Company A, has an exclusive contract to sell widgets for Company B in Georgia for 5 years. Company C knows about Company A's exclusive contract to sell widgets in Georgia for Company B. Despite this knowledge, Company C solicits Company B to breach its contract with Company A and enter a contract with them. Here, Company A could sue Company B for breach of Contract and Company C for Interference with Contractual Relations. (Note: If Company C solicited the business after the termination of the 5 year contract there would be no claim.)
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20. What are the Elements required to Prove Contractual Interference?
A valid contract or contractual relationships exists between the two parties.
The third party tortfeasor had knowledge of the contract or contractual relationship.
The third party intended to convince or induce one of the parties to the contract to commit a breach.
The third party was not privileged or authorized in any way to induce the breach
The contract was in fact breached.
The non-breaching party suffered some sort of measurable damages
Let’s say I get paid by the number of students in my class.
Assume signing up for classes is a contract. 24 students are $1000 each!!
Mr. Altmann only has 13…..class does not run…..does not get paid.
He offers you $100 plus an A+ if you take his class
You drop my class. I lose $1000 per student
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21. Fraud
Intentional or recklessly made misrepresentation of an existing important fact.
Purchasing a car with “low miles”, when the odometer was changed.
Purchasing a home after being told that the finished basement has never flooded.
5 things must be proven for fraud!
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22. 5 Elements of Fraud
(1) a false statement of a material fact (2) knowledge on the part of the defendant that the statement is untrue (3) intent on the part of the defendant to deceive the alleged victim (4) justifiable reliance by the alleged victim on the statement (5) injury to the alleged victim as a result.
5 things must be proven for fraud!
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23. Elements of a Tort What is different?
Duty
To do or not do a certain action
Breach
Failure to show proper care
Injury
Must be proved
Causation
The breach caused the injury
What is different?
Did intent need to be proved in criminal? Why would we need to prove it in civil?
Why is causation important?
Mrs. Sigsworth did not take accept late work in Intro to Business and that is why I did not get in to college.
Did McDonald’s really make your kid fat?
Like criminal law, tort law is a broad legal category. Just as there are many specific crimes, there also are many specific torts. Certain elements are common to most torts. In a trial, these elements must be proved to establish liability (legal responsibility).

24. Violation of Duty (Breach) Question of FACT for the jury/judge
Must be proven to collect damages
Intentional Tort – Actual intent to cause harm
Negligence – Carelessness, no intent
Strict Liability – no intent or carelessness needed
More later…….
What are examples of intentional torts? Assault, battery, false imprisonment, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress (bullying)
The most common tort (wrongdoing) — and the one most difficult to define — is negligence.
Negligence is defined as the failure to use reasonable due care to avoid a foreseeable harm to a person, place or thing.
What are examples of Negligence? Operating on the wrong foot, distracted driving (lighting cigarette, phone use, eating), Slip & Fall
Strict Liability will be discussed later in chapter…… but some examples are – owner of a pet tiger, defective products (Toyota – unintended acceleration)

25. Elements of a NEGLIGENCE
Duty
Reasonable Person Test
Professionals are held to a higher degree
Breach
Person’s actual conduct compared to a Reasonable Person
Injury
Were damages (costs) actually incurred?
Causation
Is it reasonable logic that breach caused injuries?
Slip & Fall – sidewalks, grocery stores, elevators (misaligned), stairs
Williamsburg, VA: A woman who slipped and fell while entering a corner gas and convenience store was awarded more than $12.2 million in damages for negligence by a jury in Hampton last month...her world changed forever. In 2003, Annette Ritzmann, a master cosmetologist, was running European Beauty Concepts, a spa with more than 25 employees. Her world changed forever when one day in August, she stopped to get gas and a paper at the corner store. As she walked into the Miller Mart, she slipped on a small puddle created by a leaky awning, fell forward onto her chest and chin, and lost consciousness. A witness said the impact sent her head snapping back. Miller Mart's owners, Miller Oil Co., admitted they had known the outside curb was dangerous. Ritzmann returned to her job some days later, but found herself unable to concentrate or do many things at once. She began to suffer seizures. Where previously she had run the business, and also worked at the spa as a stylist, after the accident she found she was no longer able to do her job. Her doctors said she was suffering from "post-concussion" symptoms. At the urging of friends, Ritzmann consulted a lawyer, Stephen Smith, who, with attorney Edward Scher, took the case to trial.
Medical malpractice –A jury has awarded a Seattle family $5.39 million, finding an emergency-room physician working at Swedish Medical Center guilty of medical negligence after a patient died four days after visiting the hospital's emergency room.
Tri Hoang, 30, died Aug. 21, 2004, of an aortic rupture -- a tear in the major artery coming from the heart -- four days after visiting the hospital's emergency room, the family's attorney, Felix Luna of the Peterson, Young, Putra law firm, told the Seattle P-I Thursday.
Luna said Hoang visited the emergency room with pain and was seen by Dr. Grace Dy, who prescribed heartburn medication and sent him home. Two days later, Hoang went to the University of Washington Medicine-Belltown Clinic, where he was diagnosed with a heart infection.

26. Defenses to Negligence
Contributory
Comparative
Assumption of Risk
Old Common Law
If Plaintiff contributed in any amount – NO Recovery
Awarded damages in proportion to their fault
Plaintiff, aware of risk, takes on risk voluntarily
Alabama
District of Columbia
Maryland
North Carolina
Virginia

27. STRICT LIABILITY
A party is liable far all damages as a result of their dangerous actions or products Foreseeable harm Products that come with warning stickers about obvious hazards are labeled like that for a good reason; it protects the manufacturer from lawsuits.
Strict liability is a tort law and means a party is liable for all damages as a result of their dangerous actions or products.
“The most common strict liability claims arise from injuries caused by dangerous products. Basically, when a product causes a foreseeable harm to a consumer, the maker of the product and the distributor may be liable to pay damages. There is an exception, and that is if the product did have a warning about the possibility of an injury, the maker of that product/item isn’t always held liable
Even though products may be labeled, this does not necessarily mean that the warning sticker is adequate. The best example of that is the latest rash of children’s toys being recalled or otherwise avoided. While a piece of children’s jewelry may be labeled with a warning sticker that indicates a choking hazard, it may not contain a warning about high levels of lead.
Any child that suffers injuries from being exposed to lead paint may sue the toy maker for compensation. The number of product recalls these days is overwhelming and certainly makes people in general leery of buying things and parents, in specific, jumpy about what they buy for their children.
“There are so many things to watch out for, you almost need to make a list that includes watching for fall hazards, fire risks, burn perils, laceration and puncture dangers, explosion and projectile hazards and so on. And, since some of the products on the market are ultimately dangerous for more than one reason, but this is not caught before they are sold, chances are they may get approved and put on the market. If your child has been harmed by a product like this, you’re welcome to call my office to find out what your rights are,” Schuelke said.
The second category of strict liability claims involves dangerous pets. “A pet owner or keeper may be liable for injuries caused by a pet if the owner knows that the pet has some type of dangerous propensities that aren’t typical for the type of pet,” Schuelke said.
The most obvious examples of these cases are dog bite cases. But these kind of strict liability cases apply in other situations. For example, when a pet owner knows a dog has a tendency to jump up on visitors, the owner may be liable for any injuries the dog causes when it jumps up and knocks someone down. Similarly, a horse owner might be liable for damages if the owner lets a person ride a horse known to have dangerous propensities.
“It’s not only important for victims of animal attacks to know about strict liability, but also for pet owners to know their obligations,” Schuelke said.

28. STRICT LIABILITY
The differences are as follows: In regards to negligence, the defendant has a duty to conform to a specific standard of conduct, thereby protecting the plaintiff against an unreasonable risk of injury. This is sometimes referred to as the “reasonable person” standard.
In regards to strict liability, however, the duty is not that one is required to act as a reasonable person would have acted under similar circumstances, but instead, Defendant has an absolute duty to make safe that which is the subject of the lawsuit.
Strict liability is a tort law and means a party is liable for all damages as a result of their dangerous actions or products.
“The most common strict liability claims arise from injuries caused by dangerous products. Basically, when a product causes a foreseeable harm to a consumer, the maker of the product and the distributor may be liable to pay damages. There is an exception, and that is if the product did have a warning about the possibility of an injury, the maker of that product/item isn’t always held liable
Even though products may be labeled, this does not necessarily mean that the warning sticker is adequate. The best example of that is the latest rash of children’s toys being recalled or otherwise avoided. While a piece of children’s jewelry may be labeled with a warning sticker that indicates a choking hazard, it may not contain a warning about high levels of lead.
Any child that suffers injuries from being exposed to lead paint may sue the toy maker for compensation. The number of product recalls these days is overwhelming and certainly makes people in general leery of buying things and parents, in specific, jumpy about what they buy for their children.
products liability
ultrahazardous activities
care of animals
certain statutory offenses
“There are so many things to watch out for, you almost need to make a list that includes watching for fall hazards, fire risks, burn perils, laceration and puncture dangers, explosion and projectile hazards and so on. And, since some of the products on the market are ultimately dangerous for more than one reason, but this is not caught before they are sold, chances are they may get approved and put on the market. If your child has been harmed by a product like this, you’re welcome to call my office to find out what your rights are,” Schuelke said.
The second category of strict liability claims involves dangerous pets. “A pet owner or keeper may be liable for injuries caused by a pet if the owner knows that the pet has some type of dangerous propensities that aren’t typical for the type of pet,” Schuelke said.
The most obvious examples of these cases are dog bite cases. But these kind of strict liability cases apply in other situations. For example, when a pet owner knows a dog has a tendency to jump up on visitors, the owner may be liable for any injuries the dog causes when it jumps up and knocks someone down. Similarly, a horse owner might be liable for damages if the owner lets a person ride a horse known to have dangerous propensities.
“It’s not only important for victims of animal attacks to know about strict liability, but also for pet owners to know their obligations,” Schuelke said.