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15 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
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Fine Suits, Inc. a world renowned maker of suits falsely states that a competing tailor Best Clothes, Inc. marks up and resells suits, which were bought from Wal-Mart for a much lower price. This statement, which is completely false, causes Best Clothes, Inc.’s customers to think less of the product and damages their reputation as one of the finest tailors in the state. A ________, which is also known as a trade libel suit, is what Best Clothes, Inc. should file.
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Disparagement Law Suit
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Disparagement, which is a defamation suit that focuses on damage to a business’ reputation, is when a business intentionally makes false statement about a competitor.
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While Adam is walking down the street minding his own business, Patricia jumps out from behind a tree and attacks Adam. Patricia has committed a ________ and Tortious Act.
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Criminal Act
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Often times, tortious acts are also criminal acts. The burden of proof in a criminal case is the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard, while the burden of proof in a civil case is “a preponderance of the evidence.” Preponderance of the evidence (civil cases)– more probable than not (51% of evidence) Beyond a reasonable doubt (criminal cases) – there is “no reasonable doubt” that the person is guilty
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The New York Times publishes a story about star NFL quarterback Kurt Manning (in which he is accused of using steroids to enhance performance) without bothering to check the facts first. Since he was tested weekly during the time period in question, Kurt can prove that he did not take steroids and the story falsely defamed him. If he decides to sue the New York Times, Kurt should sue for ________ .
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Libel
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Libel – any permanent recorded defamation (written or photographic). In a libel suit the plaintiff must show malice to win the lawsuit. To prove malice, the plaintiff must show that the defendant had knowledge that the information they published was false or that the defendant showed a reckless disregard for the truth.
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Tammi, a nosy landlord, rents an apartment out to Bryant. While Bryant is out of town on vacation, Tammi uses her key to enter the apartment and snoop around. Even though Tammi owns the apartment, she is guilty of ____________.
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Trespassing
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Trespassing, which is technically defined as the unlawful entry upon land, can be a criminal offense in addition to a civil offense. If an object enters someone else’s property without permission, that is also trespassing.
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Gertrude hired We-Move-Antiques to move the $15,000 antique dining room set for her. The moving company is very careful. However, when the dining room set arrived, Gertrude found a deep gouge in one of the chairs. Gertrude sues We Move Antiques and wins because ________ fall under the liability standard of strict liability.
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Common Carriers
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Common carriers includes: Freight companies, airlines, cruise ships, railroads, and bus lines. Common carriers are held to the high standard of “strict liability”. Acts of God (such as hurricanes or tornadoes) are one of the few times when a common carrier can escape liability. Even in these cases, if the plaintiff can prove any negligence, common carriers are still liable.
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Mike’s neighbor constantly plays loud music that makes it difficult for Willie to study or sleep. Willie has asked his neighbor Wilma to turn the music down on multiple occasions and she refuses to do so. If he decides to sue Wilma, Mike needs to use the legal doctrine of __________.
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Nuisance
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Nuisance is substantial interference with an individual’s right to enjoy his property.
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Stephanie and Jared dated for eight years and had a nasty breakup. Following the breakup, Stephanie falsely told Jared’s new girlfriend that Jared had poisoned his grandmother.
Jared should sue Stephanie for _________. |
Slander Per Se
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Slander “per se” is a form of defamation that allegations are presumed to have damaged the plaintiff. With slander “per se,” the plaintiff only has to prove the statements were made and not that they caused harm.
The following false statements would qualify as slander “per se” 1 – Stating a person has a “loathsome disease” 2 – Statements of sexual misconduct 3 – Statement that person has committed a major crime 4 – Statements of professional incompetency (i.e. lawyer is illiterate) |
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The operator of a tall building fails to have the elevators properly certified prior to opening. The day after the grand opening a woman tripped in the lobby and broke her neck. Since the elevator was not properly certified, she attempts to sue the plaintiff on the grounds of “negligence per se.” Since it will be difficult to prove __________ , most likely the case will be dismissed.
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Causation In Fact
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Causation in fact examines whether or not the defendant’s actions caused the plaintiff’s injury. Causation in fact – the damages would not have occurred except for the defendant’s action. Proximate cause – were the damages “natural and probable?” (foreseeable)
With a negligent tort, the plaintiff must: 1 – Show there was a duty owed 2 – Show that the duty was breached 3 – Prove that the breach was the “proximate cause” 4 – Show that damages were suffered Negligence per se – when a defendant is breaking a statute or law, all the plaintiff must prove is causation and damages to win |
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Alan the car salesman stated, “That is the best sports car in the world.” Matthew purchased the vehicle. One week later Mathew saw a Lamborghini Diablo that was obviously a better sports car. He decides to sue Alan for the false statement. Matthew is going to lose because a judge will say that the salesman was __________, which is another word for exaggerated praise of a product.
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Puffing
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Puffery, which is exaggerated praise and is normally used by advertisers/salesmen for promotional purposes. Puffery statements are normally based on opinion and it is almost impossible to hold someone accountable for these statements. Puffery can also be absolutely untrue (parody) such as Red Bull claiming “to give you wings” if you consume their energy drink
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Joe visits Massages parlor and receives a massage from Rebecca. Joe falls asleep during the massage and Rebecca decides it would be humorous to shave Joe’s head. Joe, who did not grant permission for this outrageous behavior, feels violated. This is an example of the intentional tort of___________.
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Battery
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Battery, which is the wrongful touch of another individual, can be direct (hitting someone), due to a force the defendant put in motion (throwing a stone), or exceeding one’s authority for any physical contact. Since battery does not have to cause physical harm, spitting on someone or poking someone in the chest is also considered battery.
In criminal law, "assault and battery" are normally components of one offense. However in tort law, these are separate offenses: Assault – threatening words accompanied with a threatening action that causes someone to believe they are in immediate danger Battery – wrongful touching of an individual (whether or not it causes harm) |
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A car salesman states, “This vehicle only has 13,150 miles and has never been wrecked.” By making this type of statement the car salesman has created a(n)_________.
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Express Warranty
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An express warranty is a guarantee from the seller to the buyer that goods are in a certain condition. An express warranty can only be waived by the language within the warranty. Express warranties are based on facts not opinions. With regard to the car example:
Express warranty – Vehicle has only 13,150 miles Implied warranty of merchantability – the vehicle is fit to drive |
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Harry owns “swim with the sharks” business. He throws chum off the back of his boat to attract sharks and then has his customers enter a specially designed safety cage that protects them from the sharks. Harry only allows adults to “swim” with the sharks and clearly instructs each adult not to try to touch the shark and to stay in the “safe” area of the cage. Jason decides to try to touch the shark and the shark ate his arm in one delicious bite.
Harry is claiming he was not negligent. However, due to ___________, the plaintiff (Jason) is not required to prove Harry’s negligence. |
Strict Liability
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Some abnormally dangerous activities that will almost always fall under strict liability are:
1 – Companies working with explosives/dynamite 2 – Crop dusting 3 – Keeping wild animals This is why cases involving strict liability, the plaintiff is not required to show negligence. Strict liability can also apply to manufacturers. |
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Running through the halls of her law school to get to class on time, Laura accidentally knocked 89 year old Professor Lawman down a flight of stairs. Professor Lawman suffered serious injuries including broken ribs and wants to recover for his damages. He knows this action was not a case of battery and decides to file a tort on the grounds of ___________.
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Negligence
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This tort was unintentional so it cannot be filed as the intentional tort of battery. This case will be tried as a civil case on the grounds of negligence and Professor Lawman just might win enough money to finally retire.
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Samuel the top slugger for the San Jose Wasps struck out for the third time in a row. A fan named Howard had been yelling “SWWWWINNNNNGGG!” after each pitch and it angered the slugger greatly. Following the strike out, Samuel ran into the stands and swung his bat at Howard. Howard quickly ducked and the bat struck Melody’s arm (breaking it). Samuel feels horrible about his action and did not intend to break Melody’s arm (he wanted to hurt Howard). This situation is an example of a(n) _________.
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Intentional Tort
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Transferred intent occurs when a defendant intends to hurt one person and accidentally hurts another person instead. A defendant’s intent can be “transferred” to another person who the defendant originally had no intention of harming.
In the case above, two torts occurred: Battery – Samuel struck Melody’s arm (transferred intent) Assault – Samuel caused Howard reasonable apprehension that he would cause him harm With intentional torts, the damages awarded to the plaintiff are typically much larger than for negligent torts. The defendant may be ordered to pay both compensatory (actual) damages and punitive (above and beyond actual) damages. |
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Ronald threw a stick at Lisa, who did not see the stick coming. Even though Ronald was attempting to hit Lisa, the stick missed Lisa, but knocked her hat off. This is an example of _________.
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Battery
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Inappropriate touching of a person or anything attached to a person is battery. It does not matter if the inappropriate contact is with the person or something attached to the person, the action is still battery. Since Lisa did not even see the stick coming, it is impossible for this example to be assault.
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