BUSINESS TORTS A. Common-Law Tort Theory Applied. A business that has been injured is as entitled to compensation for the injury as an individual would be. 1. If the tortious activity continues and the injured business cannot be compensated by money, = court may issue an injunction (equitable relief) against the wrongdoer, restraining the tortious activity a. EXAMPLE: Generally, a court will enjoin (issue an order to stop) a competing firm from using a name on a product that is so similar to an existing product name as to cause confusion between competing products. Thus, the manufacturers of GMC Trucks might secure an injunction against a company selling a similarly equipped truck under the name GMC Pickups. 2. Simply stated, the courts have applied common-lew tort theory to provide relief from unfair and tortious business practices. This module focuses on some of the ways that traditional tort theory has been applied to modern business practices. B. Interference with Business Relations 1. The right to enter into a contract and the right to expect its performance are necessary to the orderly conduct of commercial enterprises. Consequently, two significant concepts of the tort of interference with business relations are a. Interference with contractual relations b. Interference with employer-employee relations 2. The law clearly recognizes that the parties to a valid contract have a reasonable expectation of performance of the contract. Tort law protects the interests of both parties from interference by parties outside of the contract (third parties). a. A third party might wrongfully interfere with the contractual relations of others at two stages of the contracting process: 1) At the outset, by interfering with the formation of a contract 2) After the contract is in existence, by interfering with its performance