Negligence
The elements of Negligence are:
Duty, Breach, Causation, Proximate/Legal Cause, Damages
This required element of battery, which examines whether the defendant touched the plaintiff, can be made directly or indirectly.
What is Contact?
For False Imprisonment, this element is critical, but it is satisfied only if there is no reasonable means of escape or if the plaintiff is unaware of the boundary limits.
What is Confinement?
This property tort requires the defendant to exercise substantial control over the item, seriously interfering with the plaintiff’s ownership rights.
What is Conversion?
Dan and Victor are arguing over a parking spot at a grocery store. The argument heats up, and Dan steps out of his vehicle. He reaches into his back pocket and pulls out an unloaded pistol (though Victor does not know it is unloaded).
Dan points the gun directly at Victor’s chest and shouts, "You better move your car right now!" Victor, terrified that he is about to be shot, dives behind his own vehicle for cover. Dan laughs, puts the gun away, and drives off without ever pulling the trigger.
What is Assault?
Latin for "the thing speaks for itself," this doctrine applies when an injury occurs that would not normally happen without negligence.
What is Res Ipsa Loquitur
This is the specific term for the anticipation or expectation of imminent harmful or offensive contact that is required for the tort of Assault.
What is Reasonable Apprehension
For IIED, the defendant’s intent can be proven if they knew with substantial certainty their actions would cause distress, or if they acted with this alternative state of mind.
What is Reckless Disregard?
In a claim for Trespass to Chattels, the defendant is liable for the actual damages or this specific measure of the property’s worth before the trespass occurred.
What is the Difference in Value?
Brenda has a deep, well-known fear of losing her husband, who works the night shift at a factory. Knowing this, her neighbor, Arthur, decides to play a "practical joke" on her while he is drunk.
At 2:00 AM, Arthur calls Brenda, disguising his voice as a police officer. He tells her, "Ma'am, there has been an explosion at the factory. Your husband is dead. We need you to come to the morgue to identify the body." Brenda drops the phone, goes into immediate shock, suffers a severe panic attack, and collapses, requiring hospitalization. Arthur calls back five minutes later to say, "Just kidding!"
What is IIED?
Cause in fact connects the defendant's breach to the plaintiff's injury. The primary tests include:
What is the "But for" test, Substantial Factors test, and Concurrent causes.
The Defendant's intent to commit a specific intentional tort against one person (or by one means) can be _____ for the purposes of establishing liability for a different resulting tort or injury.
What is Transferred?
For a plaintiff to succeed in an IIED claim, the emotional distress suffered must reach this high level and be something a reasonable person would also experience.
What is Severe?
A defendant who commits this tort may be liable simply by impairing the use of the plaintiff’s property, or by depriving the plaintiff of the use of the property for this amount of time.
What is a Substantial amount of time?
Tom is standing in line at a cafeteria when he gets into a heated argument with Jerry over a sports team. Jerry shouts, "You don't know what you're talking about!" and steps aggressively into Tom's personal space.
Intimidated, Tom holds up his lunch tray with both hands, using it like a shield between them. Jerry, in a fit of rage, slaps the lunch tray out of Tom's hands, sending the food flying. Jerry never actually touches Tom’s skin or body.
What is Battery?
Proximate cause limits liability to harms that are foreseeably related to the defendant's negligent conduct. Key concepts include:
Foreseeability, intervening events, and superceeding interviening events
This is a defense to intentional torts like Battery that can be given by a statement or the conduct of the plaintiff, but it is invalid if the plaintiff lacks the Incapacity to grant it.
What is consent?
To establish False Imprisonment, the defendant's actions must confine the plaintiff without this essential element, which makes the detainment improper.
What is Legal Justification?
Brown's elements for Trespass to Property.
What are: (1) Ownership or Control of the property (2) Intentional, reckless or negligent entry (3) Lack of Permission (4) The conduct was a substantial factor in causing the harm
Alice leaves her brand-new, $3,000 MacBook Pro on her desk at the library while she goes to get lunch. Her classmate, Ben, urgently needs to send an email but his phone is dead. Without asking Alice, Ben takes the laptop, intending to use it for only five minutes and return it before she gets back.
While Ben is typing the email, he accidentally knocks his large iced coffee onto the keyboard. The liquid shorts out the motherboard instantly, completely frying the computer. It creates a total loss; the laptop cannot be repaired.
What is Conversion?
Even if the plaintiff proves all five elements, the defendant may raise these defenses to reduce or eliminate liability:
What is Contributory Negligence (1% negligent = no recovery), and Comparative Negligence (Pure and Modified)
Bonus: Pure (can recover even if they're 99% at fault), Modified (Can't recover if they are more than 50% or 51% at fault) or 51%) negligent)
This defense to intentional torts like Battery allows a defendant to protect their land or chattels but strictly prohibits the use of deadly or serious force unless the intrusion threatens death or serious injury.
What is Defense of Property?
In addition to requiring the distress to be severe, the plaintiff in an IIED claim must show that the conduct of the tortfeasor was____.
Extreme or Outrageous.
When determining the remedy for conversion, the defendant is liable for this specific financial measure of the property at the moment the taking occurred.
What is the Fair market value of the property?
Stan has just been fired from his job. Furious, he storms toward the building's exit. Without checking the window panel in the door, Stan kicks the heavy metal door open with all his might to vent his anger.
Unfortunately, a delivery driver, Mary, is standing directly on the other side of the door. The door swings open with tremendous force, smashing into Mary’s face and breaking her nose.
What is Negligence?