Chapter 4 – Tort Law: Foundations and Damages
Chapter 4 – Negligence, Strict Liability, and Products
Chapter 5 – Intellectual Property: Trademarks and Patents
Chapter 5 – Intellectual Property: Copyrights, Trade Secrets, and Global Protection
Chapter 6 – Internet Law: Spam, Domains, and Digital Copyright
Chapter 6 – Social Media, Online Defamation, and Privacy
100
Failure to exercise the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise in similar circumstances.
100: What does negligence mean?
100
A distinctive word, symbol, sound, or design that identifies the source of goods and distinguishes them from competitors' goods.
100: What is a trademark?
100
Original literary and artistic expression fixed in a durable medium; it protects the particular expression, not the underlying idea.
100: What does copyright protect?
100
To help identify the source of goods and prevent consumers from being confused into thinking one company's goods come from another company.
200: Why does the law protect trademarks?
100
Using, without permission, a mark that is the same as or confusingly similar to another party's protected mark when marketing goods or services.
300: What is trademark infringement?
100
It must be novel, useful, and not obvious in light of current technology.
400: What three requirements must an invention generally meet to be patentable?
100
A utility patent generally lasts 20 years and a design patent 14 years, measured from the date the patent application is filed.
500: How long does a patent generally protect an invention, and when does the protection period begin?
100
The logo or presentation may involve trademark infringement (and potentially trade-dress protection) if the use is confusingly similar and unauthorized. Using the patented process without permission may be patent infringement. The patent holder may sue in federal court for an injunction and damages such as royalties and lost profits; attorneys' fees and costs may also be available, and willful infringement can lead to treble damages. A permanent injunction requires proof of irreparable injury and consideration of the public interest.
1000: A competitor uses a logo and product presentation that closely resemble a registered brand, potentially confusing buyers. Separately, it uses the brand owner's patented process without permission. Identify the two forms of infringement and the remedies the chapter describes for patent infringement.
100
Unsolicited junk email, often containing advertisements, solicitations, or similar communications.
100: What is spam?
100
Liability for injury regardless of fault, imposed in certain situations identified by law.
200: What is strict liability?
100
Manufacturing defects, design defects, and inadequate warnings or instructions.
300: Name the three traditional types of product defects.
100
Duty of care, breach of that duty, causation in fact, proximate causation, and legally recognizable damages (injury).
400: What are the five elements a plaintiff must prove to win a negligence action?
100
A manufacturing defect occurs when an individual product departs from its intended design or specifications. A design defect exists when the product is made as designed, but the design itself is flawed; the plaintiff must show a reasonable alternative design was available and that failing to adopt it made the product not reasonably safe.
500: How does a manufacturing defect differ from a design defect?
100
The plaintiff may allege a design defect and an inadequate-warning defect. For a design defect, the plaintiff generally must show a reasonable alternative design was available and that not adopting it made the product not reasonably safe. For inadequate warnings, the foreseeable risk could have been reduced or avoided by reasonable instructions or warnings, and omitting them made the product not reasonably safe. The chapter describes strict product liability for defective and unreasonably dangerous goods.
1000: A manufacturer builds a product exactly according to its plans, but the product's design creates an avoidable risk. The manufacturer also provides no warning about a foreseeable danger. Explain the two possible defect theories and what must generally be shown.
100
A tort committed through the Internet or other online conduct.
100: What is a cyber tort?
100
The statement may constitute defamation—specifically, a false statement about a product may also be trade libel (slander of quality). A false statement presented as fact can be actionable; a statement that is clearly opinion normally is not. The plaintiff generally must show the statement was communicated to someone other than the plaintiff and harmed the relevant reputation or business interest.
1000: A business posts a false factual online accusation that a competitor's product is unsafe. Identify the likely tort issue and explain the key distinction between a defamatory fact and a protected opinion.
1000
The Communications Decency Act (CDA).
200: What federal law generally protects Internet service providers from liability for defamatory messages posted by their users?
1000
Social media posts can affect litigation and settlement agreements; law enforcement and administrative agencies also use social media to detect illegal activities and conduct investigations.
300: Give one way social media can affect legal processes, as described in the chapter.
1000
The person generally must have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the particular situation; the invasion must also meet the applicable legal standard.
400: What is the basic privacy requirement for bringing an invasion-of-privacy claim in an Internet-related situation?
1000
The ECPA prohibits intentional interception or disclosure of wire, oral, or electronic communications. Its business-extension exception permits employers to monitor employees' electronic communications made in the ordinary course of business, but not their personal communications.
500: What does the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) prohibit, and what is the business-extension exception?
1000
Monitoring work-related electronic communications in the ordinary course of business may fall within the ECPA's business-extension exception. However, the Stored Communications Act (SCA), which is part of the ECPA, prohibits intentional unauthorized access to stored electronic communications, such as backup data. The personal-message access may therefore raise an SCA issue.
1000: A company monitors employees' work-related messages on its internal system, but also accesses an employee's stored personal messages without authorization. Analyze the two actions under the laws discussed in the chapter.
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