Business Law CH 5

Tort
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Terms in this set (34)
Tort
A wrong. There are three categories of torts: (1) intentional torts, (2) unintentional torts (negligence), and (3) strict liability.
Tort damages
monetary damages that are sought from the offending party.
Intentional Torts
A category of torts that requires that the defendant possessed the intent to do the act that caused the
plaintiff's injuries.
Assault
(1) The threat of immediate harm or offensive contact or (2) any action that arouses reasonable apprehension of imminent harm. Actual physical contact is unnecessary.
Battery
Unauthorized and harmful or offensive direct or indirect physical contact with another person that causes injury.
transferred intent doctrine
Under this doctrine, the law transfers the perpetrator's intent from the target to the actual victim of the act.
false imprisonment
The intentional confinement or restraint of another person without authority or justification and without
that person's consent.
merchant protection statutes (shopkeeper's privilege)
Statutes that allow merchants to stop, detain, and investigate suspected shoplifters without being held liable for false imprisonment if (1) there are reasonable grounds for the suspicion, (2) suspects are
detained for only a reasonable time, and (3) investigations are conducted in a reasonable manner.
misappropriation of the right
to publicity (tort of appreciation)
An attempt by another person to appropriate a living person's name or identity for commercial purposes.
invasion of the right to
privacy
The unwarranted and undesired publicity of a private fact about a person. The fact does not have to be untrue.
Defamation of character1. The defendant made an untrue statement of fact about the plaintiff. 2. The statement was intentionally or accidentally published to a third party. In this context, publication simply means that a third person heard or saw the untrue statement. It does not require appearance in newspapers, magazines, or books.LibelA false statement that appears in writing or other fixed medium isSlanderOral defamation of ones character isdisparagement (trade libel, product disparagement, and slander of title)False statements about a competitor's products, services, property, or business reputation.intentional misrepresentation (fraud or deceit)The intentional defrauding of a person out of money, property, or something else of value.intentional infliction of emotional distress (tort of outrage)A tort that says a person whose extreme and outrageous conduct intentionally or recklessly causes severe emotional distress to another person is liable for that emotional distress.malicious prosecutionA lawsuit in which the original defendant sues the original plaintiff. In the second lawsuit, the defendant becomes the plaintiff and vice versa.unintentional tort (negligence)A doctrine that says a person is liable for harm that is the foreseeable consequence of his or her actions.duty of careThe obligation people owe each other not to cause any unreasonable harm or risk of harm.reasonable person standardA test used to determine whether a defendant owes a duty of care. This test measures the defendant's conduct against how an objective, careful, and conscientious person would have acted in the same circumstances.breach of the duty of careA failure to exercise care or to act as a reasonable person would act.injuryA plaintiff's personal injury or damage to his or her property that enables him or her to recover monetary damages for the defendant's negligence.actual causeThe actual cause of negligence. A person who commits a negligent act is not liable unless actual cause can be proven.proximate causeA point along a chain of events caused by a negligent party after which this party is no longer legally responsible for the consequences of his or her actions.professional malpracticethe liability of a professional who breaches his or her duty of ordinary carenegligent infliction of emotional distressA tort that permits a person to recover for emotional distress caused by the defendant's negligent conduct.negligence per seA tort in which the violation of a statute or an ordinance constitutes the breach of the duty of care.reps ipsa loquiturA tort in which the presumption of negligence arises because (1) the defendant was in exclusive control of the situation and (2) the plaintiff would not have suffered injury but for someone's negligence. The burden switches to the defendant to prove that he or she was not negligent.Good Samaritan LawA statute that relieves medical professionals from liability for ordinary negligence when they stop and render aid to victims in emergency situations.superseding event (intervening event)An event for which a defendant is not responsible. The defendant is not liable for injuries caused by the superseding or intervening event.assumption of the riskA defense a defendant can use against a plaintiff who knowingly and voluntarily enters into or participates in a risky activity that results in injury.contributory negligenceA doctrine that says a plaintiff who is partially at fault for his or her own injury cannot recover against the negligent defendant.comparative negligence (comparative fault)A doctrine under which damages are apportioned according to fault.strict liabilityLiability without fault