Tort

In the common law, a tort is a civil wrong for which the law provides a remedy. The origins of the modern law of torts lie in the old remedies of trespass and trespass on the case. The term itself comes from Law French and means, literally, 'a wrong' (avoir tort = "to be wrong" or "to have wronged "). The equivalent body of law in civil law legal systems is delict.

Categories of torts

Torts are generally categorized by two factors:

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• The level of intent that must be assessed against the tortfeasor, and
• The interest affected by the tort.

Intentional torts

Intentional torts are any intentional acts that are reasonably foreseeable to cause harm to an individual, and that do so. Intentional torts have several subcategories, including torts against the person, property torts, dignitary torts, and economic torts.

Related Topics:
Intentional torts - Torts against the person - Property torts - Dignitary torts - Economic torts

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Torts against the person

Torts against the person harm or restrict the person of the plaintiff. Torts against the person include assault, battery, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Related Topics:
Assault - Battery - False imprisonment - Intentional infliction of emotional distress

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Property torts

Property torts involve any intentional interference with the property rights of the plaintiff. Those commonly recognized include trespass to land, trespass to chattels, and conversion.

Related Topics:
Property torts - Trespass to land - Trespass to chattels - Conversion

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Dignitary torts

Dignitary torts are torts that cause no tangible injury to a person or his property, but rather cause intangible harm to his reputation. These may include defamation, slander, libel, misappropriation of publicity, invasion of privacy, and disclosure. In the United States, the First Amendment places special limitations on the defamation of public figures with respect to issues of public importance. Abuse of process and malicious prosecution are often classified as dignitary torts as well.

Related Topics:
Dignitary torts - Defamation - Slander - Libel - Misappropriation of publicity - Invasion of privacy - Disclosure - United States - First Amendment - Abuse of process - Malicious prosecution

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Economic torts

Economic torts include common law fraud and tortious interference with contractual or business relationships.

Related Topics:
Economic torts - Fraud - Tortious interference

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Negligence

The tort of negligence is the broadest of the torts and is the basis of most personal injury cases. Its four classic elements are as follows: (1) The defendant owed a duty of due care (that is, he is bound to act as a reasonably prudent person) to the plaintiff; (2) the defendant breached the duty; (3) the defendant's breach was the legal and proximate cause of injury to the plaintiff; and (4) the plaintiff suffered damages as a result of the defendant's actions. These elements are often summarized as the formula of "duty, breach, causation, and damages."

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Obviously, whether any given injury can be brought as a negligence claim depends upon whether a lawyer can convince a court that the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of due care to not inflict the particular injury at issue.

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Nuisance

The tort of nuisance allows a plaintiff to sue for most acts that interfere with their use and enjoyment of their land. For example, noise pollution from airports is usually remedied through nuisance claims.

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Strict liability

Strict liability is applied in some countries to ultrahazardous activities, which present such grave dangers that parties engaged in those activities are held liable for injuries resulting therefrom even if they were not negligent. This theory is applied to injuries resulting from things such as the keeping of wild animals, use of explosives, or storage or use of radioactive materials.

Related Topics:
Strict liability - Ultrahazardous activities

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In some countries, strict liability is the rule in certain product liability cases, on the theory that only strict liability can force manufacturers to always pursue the safest possible design. It is also believed necessary to force all parties in the "chain of commerce" to exercise the highest level of due care to ensure that products are in good condition and are not dangerously defective.

Related Topics:
Product liability - Manufacturer

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Also, in some jurisdictions, copyright infringement has been made a strict liability tort by statute.

Related Topics:
Copyright infringement - Statute

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