Battery & Assault
The intentional infliction of a harmful OR offensive contact with the plaintiff's person
What is Battery?
The two alternative requirements for intent: it was one's purpose OR this.
What is "knew with substantial certainty the act would have occurred"?
An unauthorized entry onto the land of another, for which you are liable even if no damage occurred.
What is Trespass to Land?
The two questions to ask when analyzing consent as a defense.
What are "Is the consent valid?" and "What is the scope of consent?"
To claim self-defense, you must honestly and reasonably believe this.
What is "that you are being attacked"?
Spitting in someone's face is a classic example of this type of battery, which does not cause physical harm.
What is offensive battery?
This case held a 5-year-old liable for battery for pulling a chair out from a woman as she was sitting down.
What is Garratt v. Dailey
In Dougherty v. Stepp, the court held the defendant liable for trespass even though he caused no harm and believed he was on his own land, demonstrating that this is not a defense.
What is an honest or reasonable mistake?
This case held a fight promoter liable because one cannot consent to a breach of peace, making the consent invalid as a matter of public policy
What is Hudson v. Craft?
You can only use this level of force when you honestly and reasonably believe you are being attacked with the same level of force.
What is deadly force?
The intentional infliction of the apprehension of an imminent harmful or offensive contact.
What is Assault?
This doctrine holds that if A seeks to batter B but misses and hits C, A is liable to C for battery.
What is Transferred Intent?
This legal fiction allows a plaintiff to win a trespass to land case even without proving any actual harm.
What is inferred damages?
In Mohr v. Williams, a surgeon was found liable for battery for operating on the wrong ear because the action was beyond this.
What is the scope of consent?
When defending property against a trespasser who won't leave, you may use this type of force to evict them
What is reasonable non-deadly force?
This concept, explored in Vosburg v. Putney, explains why kicking someone in a classroom is battery, but kicking them on the playground might not be.
What is Implied License?
This "take your plaintiffs as you find them" rule holds a tortfeasor liable for all injuries, even if they were unforeseeable due to a plaintiff's pre-existing condition.
What is the Eggshell Skull Rule?
Unlike regular trespass, this type of trespass (e.g., electromagnetic waves) requires a showing of physical damages to recover.
What is Intangible Trespass?
These are the four requirements for the emergency doctrine
what is
plaintiff is incapable of giving consent
no substitute is available
there's a real emergency,
and a reasonable person would have consented.
The three requirements for this defense are fresh pursuit, a purely wrongful taking, and no use of deadly force.
What is Recapture of Chattels?
These are not enough to constitute assault because they lack imminence.
What are threats of future harm?
A perspective of fairness between the plaintiff and defendant, asking who should prevail.
What is Corrective Justice?
Under the doctrine of private necessity, you are privileged to enter another's land in an emergency but are still strictly liable for this.
What is any damage you cause?
According to Turcotte v. Fell, an athlete can be liable for battery for these types of infractions.
What are flagrant infractions unrelated to the normal method of playing the game and done without any competitive purpose?
The reason transferred intent does not apply if you reasonably defend yourself but accidentally injure a third party.
What is "because an intentional tort is not being committed"?