Tort Law: Objectives, No-Fault, Workers Compensation, Intentional Torts, and Negligence, Quizzes of Business and Labour Law

Download Tort Law: Objectives, No-Fault, Workers Compensation, Intentional Torts, and Negligence and more Quizzes Business and Labour Law in PDF only on Docsity! TERM 1 Objectives of Tort Law DEFINITION 1 Loss distribution/adjustment: shifting losses from victims to perpetrators (fairness)Compensation: through the award of pecuniary (money) damages --> place the victim in the position they were in before the tort was committed (justice)Deterrence: through exemplary or punitive damages (secondary aim) TERM 2 No Fault Statue DEFINITION 2 -Individuals injured in automobile accidents are limited in their ability to seek recovery from other drivers or vehicle owners involved in an accident Do not litigate fault for payment of insurance benefits (people will just go through their own insurance) -No-Fault Policy must have: 1. Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Coverage 2. Property Protection (PPI) 3. Residual Liability Insurance Coverage TERM 3 Workers Compensation DEFINITION 3 Exemption: permit injured person to accept economic damages Every employers must provide some way of assuring that it can pay benefits to its workers should they become injured Severe penalties for failure to provide workers compensation: 1. Injured worker may sue for civil damages 2. Workers Compensation Agency actively enforces Workers Disability Compensation Act Why it works: 1. Workers would reliably receive care and benefits 2. Employer would be shielded from litigation 3. Administration would be fair and efficient TERM 4 Intentional Tort DEFINITION 4 Intentional or reckless behavior Torts in which the defendant possessed the intent or purpose to inflict the resultant injury Focus is on the conduct of the tortfeasor, injury is not a required element for an intentional tort Did tortfeasor intend the consequences of their action? Ex: Assault, Battery, False Imprisonment, Fraud, Trespass fault driven Do not need objective evidence ex-bball player groping butt, cannot show it, but it happened TERM 5 Assault DEFINITION 5 Occurs when one person intentionally puts another in reasonable fear of an imminent offensive or harmful bodily contact TERM 6 Battery DEFINITION 6 Harmful or offensive touching - includes pushing, punching, spitting, or shooting.-Most common defense is self-defense TERM 7 Defamation DEFINITION 7 False statements that injure a person's reputation or good name Slander- spoken Libel- written or printed To be Defamatory the statement must be: False Communicated to 3rd party The victim's reputation is ruined or he/she faces ridicule Absolute priv- to make any statement true or false Conditional priv- right to make false statement provided the statement was made without malice (knowledge of falsity) TERM 8 False Imprisonment DEFINITION 8 The intentional confinement of a person against the person's will and without lawful privilege can include being handcuffed or locked in room or car TERM 9 Negligence DEFINITION 9 Conduct which falls below the legal standard for protection of others against unreasonable risk of harm - fault driven Elements: Duty of care -place in hand of judge Breach of duty ---> injury/damage----> Place into hands of jury Causation and proximate cause --> -Intend is not required for negligence-Most common-"are my actions the legal cause of someone's death?" TERM 10 Negligence per se DEFINITION 10 A legal doctrine within the laws whereby an act is considered negligent be it violates a statue or regulation TERM 21 Assumption of the Risk DEFINITION 21 If plaintiffs are aware of the danger, but decide to subject themselves to the risk anyway Ex. Walking on a wet floor when there is a warning sign Unreasonably encountered a known risk TERM 22 Threshold Injuries in No Fault DEFINITION 22 Significant or permanent loss of an important bodily function, permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medial probability, significant/permanent scarring or disfigurement or death Can sue if criteria above are met TERM 23 Imputed Liability DEFINITION 23 Attachment of responsibility to a person for harm or damages caused by another person in either a negligence lawsuit or criminal prosecution Employee is always liable for his or her own act, but you can have joint which is when you impute employer as well but they are both fully responsible and there must be an employee and employer relationship TERM 24 Direct Liability DEFINITION 24 A legal obligation which results from someone's personal actions TERM 25 Principal - Agent Relationship DEFINITION 25 An arrangement in which one entity (principle) legally appoints another (agent) to act on its behalf The agent acts on behalf of the principle and should not have a conflict of interest in carrying out the act TERM 26 Degree of control Test DEFINITION 26 Determines whether one person is in a position to order not only what is to be done, but also how it is to be done Where such control exists, the courts have generally regarded the relationship as that of an employer and employee 4 factors: -Selection: payer retains power to select worker -Dismissal: player has right to suspend worker -Method of work: payer has right to control method of job -Remuneration: Payer sets payment scale for wages or other remuneration to the worker TERM 27 Independent Contractor DEFINITION 27 An independent contractor, "hiring" company is not your employers, but your customer have right to decide when, where, and how a given project should be completed businesses hiring you are not entitled to direct your work your customer specifies the desired outcome of your work, and you have the freedom to determine how to achieve that outcome TERM 28 Express (actual) Authority DEFINITION 28 Specific powers, expressly conferred by a principle to an agent to act on the principal's behalf. This power may be broad, general power or it may be limited, special power. Also known as "express authority" TERM 29 Implied (apparent) Authority DEFINITION 29 An agent's power to act on behalf of a principal, even though not expressly or impliedly granted This power arises only if a third party reasonably infers, from the principal's conduct, that the principal granted such power to the agent TERM 30 Ratification of an Agent's Unauthorized Decisions DEFINITION 30 The principle can bind himself or herself to an agent's unauthorized acts through ratification, that is, affirmation of the prior acts When an act has been ratified, it is then treated as if the principal had originally authorized it Can be express or implied not legal authority - but has benefited from it TERM 31 Frolic DEFINITION 31 Major departure from work A frolic constitutes a major departure wherein the employee is acting on his own and for his own benefit, rather than a minor sidetrack in the course of obeying an order from the employer TERM 32 Detour DEFINITION 32 Minor departure from work A detour occurs when an employee or agent makes a minor departure from his employer's charge TERM 33 Statutory Liability DEFINITION 33 A responsibility imposed on an individual or business by a law. Example: the directors of a corporation assume certain statutory liabilities (legal obligation) when they join the board. Is different from a contractual liability Examples: environmental law, employment laws, occupational health and safety laws, and dram shop laws. TERM 34 Statue / Code / Ordinance DEFINITION 34 A single legislative enactment a more comprehensive set of statutes covering a particular are of law a city or local law TERM 35 Disabilities Act DEFINITION 35 Public accommodations employment transportation state and local government services telecommunication