Bar Exam Torts Questions and Answers: Understanding Torts Law, Exams of Law

Download Bar Exam Torts Questions and Answers: Understanding Torts Law and more Exams Law in PDF only on Docsity! Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Prima Facie for Intentional Torts CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Act: any volitional movement Intent: either with substantial certainty, transferred intent, or standard intent Causation: defendant's act was a substantial factor in bringing about the result Prima Facie Battery CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Harmful/Offense contact - unpermitted contact 2. With plaintiff's person -anything connected to the plaintiff 3) intent on the part of the defendant to bring about harmful/offensive contact 4) causation -direct or indirect contact, got to set the motion in force Prima Facie Assault CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Reasonable Apprehension -must be reasonable 2. Of an immediate Battery -words alone are not enough, need conduct that coincides with the words 3) intent to bring about that reasonable apprehension 4) causation of the apprehension Prima Facie False Imprisonment CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Sufficient act of restraint -threats are enough, inaction can be enough, plaitiff must know they're detainted, shoplifting exception 2. Of a bounded area -freedom of movement limited in all directions; not bounded if there is a reasonable means of escape and plaintiff knows about it 3) intent to bring about that result 4) causation Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Prima Facie Intentional Infliction of Emotion Distress CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Outrageous Conduct -extreme; can be: continuous, consider the type of plaintiff, and type of defendant 2. intent on part of defendant for plaintiff to suffer severe emotional distress, or at least reckless disregard 3. Damages: physical injury not required, but substantial distress needed 4. causation Prima Facie Trespass to Land CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Act of physical invasion by defendant: not necessary to go on the land, but some physical object does 2. Of plaintiff's land: not only surface, but reasonable distance up and down from the land Prima Facie Trespass to Chattels CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Physical Damage 2. of Plaintiff's property Prima Facie Conversion CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Dispossession or complete destruction 2. Of plaintiff's property Defenses to Intentional Torts (listed) CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Defenses to Intentional Torts (listed) Steps for Consent CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Did plaintiff have capacity to consent? 2. Was consent expressly or impliedly given? (mistake, fraud, conversion; custom and usage or plaintiff's conduct) 3. Did defendant stay within the boundaries of plaintiff's consent? Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Publication of facts placing plaintiff in a false light CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Highly offensive to the reasonable person, and must be widely disseminated Ex: "Johnson tests positive for steroids" w/ Magic Johnson's photo, not Ben Johnson Publication of private facts about plaintiff CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Highly offensive to the reasonable person and must also be widely disseminated. Would a reasonable person find the publication of these facts to he highly offensive? Ex: Joey Tribbiani's VD posters Prima Facie Misrepresentation CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Misrepresentation (must be a spoken statement of fact) 2. Scienter (malice, knowing its falsity or acting in reckless disregard; is replaced with negligence in a negligent misrepresentation issue) 3. Intent to Induce Reliance 4. Justifiable Reliance 5. Damages Prima Facie Interference with Business Relations CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1. Valid Relationship between plaintiff and third party (can be prospective or existing) 2. Defendant's knowledge of relationship 3. Intentional Interference with that relationship 4. Damages Defenses to Interference CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Was there privilege? Competitor's privilege with interference of prospective relationships Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Close relationship with defendant -is the 3rd party a relative? Prima Facie Negligence CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) duty 2) breach 3) causation 4) damages Duty CORRECT ANSWERS✅ In order to have a duty, you need 1) a foreseeable plaintiff and 2) a standard of care Negligence: Duty: Foreseeable plaintiff CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Definition: you only a duty of care to those who would be otherwise foreseeable to your negligence Unforeseeable plaintiff? An unforeseeable plaintiff is someone who were not within the foreseeable zone of danger, measured from the time of the negligent conduct. Foreseeable plaintiffs: 1) rescuers 2) viable plaintiffs Negligence: Duty: Standards of Care CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) Reasonable Person Standard 2) Children Standard 3) professionals standard 4) Common carrier standard 5) owner/occupier standard Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Duty: Standards: Reasonable Person CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) An objective test standard, the standard of care in this case is how a reasonable person would react under these circumstances 2) An invented person, assigned with invented person traits 3) Defendant's physical characteristics WILL be taken into account 4) Disabled defendant: if defendant is aware of his/her disability, he/she is supposed to act as a reasonable person with it would act Children Standard CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) a subjective standard, it is the standard of a child of like age, like intelligence and like experience EXCEPTION: if the child is engaged in adult activities, he will be held to the reasonable person standard Professionals Standard CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) A reasonable professional in the same or similar communities 2) specialists will take their expertise into account Common Carrier/Inkeeper standard CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) they will be held for even the slightest negligence Owner/Occupier standard CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 3 Steps: 1) make sure defendant is an owner/occupier or in privity with one 2) determine if the injury happened on or off the land 3) determine if plaintiff is an undiscovered trespasser, OR if you have anyone else, determine what caused the injury -1) an activity or 2) a dangerous condition Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers 2) plaintiff must fall within the protected class If the standard doesn't apply, move to common law negligence this only means a conclusive presumption of negligent conduct, does NOT make defendat liable Exceptions to statutory standards CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) compliance would be more dangerous: a) compliance would be more dangerous than noncompliance, b) compliance would be impossible 2) effect of compliance with an applicable statute: complying with the statute does NOT mean that, in this case, the circumstances required more Negligent infliction of emotional distress CORRECT ANSWERS✅ inflicting emotional distress on someone within the foreseeable zone of danger 1) plaintiff must suffer injury -shock is sufficient 2) plaintiff MUST be within the target zone -so close, you have to like be in the car, or sitting right next to the injured person Affirmative duty to act CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Rule: there IS no affirmative duty to act Exceptions: 1) there's a special relationship btw the parties 2) duty to control the third persons: right and ability -parents/kids; know or should know that it's required 3) assumption of duty to act by acting 4) plaintiff's peril due to defendant's negligence Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Negligence: Breach CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Breach is when the defendant uses negligent conduct, determined if the defendant met the appropriate standard of care One consideration: res ipsa loquitur Res Ipsa Loquitur CORRECT ANSWERS✅ This is a nuance in breach, where circumstantial evidence shows that a particular injury indicates breach of a duty Fact pattern will indicate that plaintiff does not have solid evidence to establish negligent conduct on defendant's part THIS IS A PROBABILITY INFERENCE TEST: 1) inference of negligence: usually wouldn't happen if someone wasn't negligent 2) negligence attributed to defendant: evidence connects defendant with negligence -the instrumentality causing the injury was within defendant's EXCLUSIVE control 3) plaintiff not contributorily negligent Defendant will NOT win a motion for a directed verdict Causation CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) Actual Causation: you truly caused the injury, you were the ACTUAL cause (but for, substantial factor, alternative causes) 2) Proximate Causation: a way for the jury to let a negligent defendant who actually caused an injury off based on lack of foreseeability (direct cause, indirect cause) Actual Cause: But For CORRECT ANSWERS✅ An act or omission to act is the cause in fact of an injury when the injury would not have occurred BUT FOR the act Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Actual cause: substantial factor CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Defendant's conduct was a substantial factor in causing the injury Actual cause: alternative causes CORRECT ANSWERS✅ two or more negligent defendants, but it is not certain as to which caused the injury If this occurs, the plaintiff sues both, and then the defendants will have the burden of proof to show the one who caused, lest they both be held liable Proximate Cause: direct cause CORRECT ANSWERS✅ It was an uninterrupted chain of events between negligent at and injury will be almost always foreseeable Proximate cause: indirect cause CORRECT ANSWERS✅ between negligent act and injury, there is an intervening force which combines with the prior act to cause injury Proximate Cause Rules CORRECT ANSWERS✅ If result was unforeseeable, let the defendant go if result was foreseeable, hold the defendant liable EXCEPTION: In an indirect cause case, if the intervening force was an unforeseeable intentional tort or crime, defendant will NOT be liable, despite foreseeability Eggshell Thin-skulled plaintiff CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) not an unforeseeable result -someone has major brain damage from something that anyone else would just have a bruise 2) It is only necessary that someone is able to foresee an injury, not the extent of the injury Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Defenses for Strict Liability CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Contributory Negligence: a) knowing: plaintiff does not recover b) unknowing: plaintiff always recovers Comparative Negligence a) knowing and unknowing: both can be asserted against recovery b) plaintiff recovers what they would recover under that state's comparative negligence rules Strict liability: specific situation CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Animals a) you are strictly liable for pets with inherent dangerous propensities b) you only become strictly liable for domestic pets at the second bite Abnormally Dangerous/Ultrahazardous situation a) SUPER CAREFUL defendant fact pattern -doesn't matter, is strictly liable Products Liability CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Who can you successfully hold liable for products liability? ANY commercial supplier as long as you can establish two requirements: 1) defect causing the injury must have existed at the time the product left the defendant's control 2) your workable theory: negligence or strict liability Products Liability: leaving defendant's control CORRECT ANSWERS✅ there is an inference that the defect existed when it left any given defendant's control if, since that time the product has moved thru the normal channels of distribution Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers Products liability: negligence CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) focus on defendant's conduct 2) same elements as negligence 3) conduct possibilities: 1) negligent design, 2) negligent manufacture, 3) negligent warnings, 4) negligent inspections 4) Anyone in the foreseeable zone of risk is a plaintiff 5) who can be a defendant? usually just manufacturers on this theory Products liability: Strict liability CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) same elements as strict liability 2) strict liability test: an unreasonably dangerous condition 3) foreseeable plaintiff: zone of danger 4) ANYONE up the chain of commerce can be a foreseeable defendant Products liability: Warnings CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Adequate warnings will generally insulate from liability Products liability: feasible alternatives CORRECT ANSWERS✅ if one could have cured the defect for a minor amount of money relative to the risk involved, he/she should have done it AND a warning would not save them products liability: product use incidental to performance of services CORRECT ANSWERS✅ strict liability is unavailable ex.: defective blood being used in a medical procedure Nuisance CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) can be based on either intentional, negligence, or strict liability Bar Exam Torts Questions and answers 2) private and public nuisances 3) standard: conduct must be objectionable to an average person, an objective test standard 4) there is a balancing of the interests as to how the court should award Private Nuisance CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) Substantial, unreasonable interferences with one's use and enjoyment of the land 2) plaintiff must have either possession or the right to immediate possession Public Nuisance CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) act which unreasonably interferes with health, safety or property rights of the community 2) private persons may recover only if he/she has suffered unique damage not suffered by the public General Considerations CORRECT ANSWERS✅ Vicarious Liability Multiple Defendant Issues Survival and Wrongful Death Immunities Vicarious liability CORRECT ANSWERS✅ 1) when someone is liability for the tort of another 2) respondeat superior 3) auto owners/drivers 4) parents/children