TORTS Civil wrong, other than breach of contract, for which law will provide remedy of damages Most often related to personal injury 3 Types: Intentional, Negligence, Strict Liability TORTS based on NEGLIGENCE Negligent operation of a car Malpractice Slip & Fall Shoddy workmanship INTENTIONAL TORTS Defamation - libel and slander False imprisonment Intentional infliction of emotional distress Invasion of privacy Wrongful interference Fraud STRICT LIABILITY Dog bite R.C. 955.28(B) Defenses - Trespass, tormenting or crime Torts not recognized in Ohio Alienation of affection Malicious litigation Educational malpractice DUTY OF CARE arises by... By statute (per se) Standards in the industry Common law - court decisions recognize duties inherent in a civilized society Reasonable forseeability of harm BREACH OF DUTY is established by... Reasonable person standard Expert witness testimony Res ispa loquitor Elements and Defenses Elements help draft COMPLAINTS Identify needed evidence/witnesses Creates outline for motion for summary judgment Jury preparation Defenses help draft affirmative defenses for ANSWER Identify needed evidence/witnesses Help settle cases when weaknesses discovered Torts in the News: January 2013 Woman Sues Over False Arrest by Immigration Officers A Pennsylvania woman has filed a lawsuit against a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent and the North Regional Joint Police Board after she was improperly jailed due to an immigration status error. The woman was improperly detained as an illegal immigrant in January 2011 and was not released despite ICE agents making it clear that a mistake had been made. She is alleging violations of her rights to equal protection and freedom from unreasonable search and seizure. Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 01/15/2013 Bar Accused of Over-Serving Man Killed in Crash A lawsuit has been filed against Sherlock's Baker Street Pub & Grill in Houston, accusing the establishment of overserving a local man on the evening he died in a car crash. The suit, filed by the man's children, claims the pub "continued to serve [the man] alcohol, even though he was obviously intoxicated." The man died on the night of Aug. 13, 2011 in a single-car accident. Erin Mulvaney, Houston Chronicle 01/16/2013 Toyota Settles Utah Sudden-Acceleration Lawsuit Toyota Motor Corp. will settle a lawsuit filed over a sudden-acceleration fatal car crash that occurred in Utah in 2010. In the suit, the families involved said the accident occurred "when the vehicle unexpectedly accelerated and didn't stop even after the driver slammed on the brakes." The case was set to go to trial in mid-February. Torts in the News: January 2013 Teachers Forced Child to Urinate in Cup on School Bus A middle school student in Wilmington, Ill., has filed suit against the school district she attends, claiming she was forced by teachers to urinate in a cup on a moving school bus during a field trip. The suit says the girl asked teachers to stop the bus so she could use a restroom, but teachers refused. The incident caused the girl "severe humiliation, embarrassment and extreme emotional distress," the suit states. The girl's family is seeking unspecified damages in the case. Steve Schmadeke, Chicago Tribune 01/09/2013 Psychiatrist Named in Suit of Aurora Theater Killings The widow of one of the victims in the Aurora, Colo., movie theater killings has filed a lawsuit against the University of Colorado and the university psychiatrist who worked at the student health center and was treating the alleged killer. In the suit, the woman claims the killer told his psychiatrist that he "fantasized about killing people" a few days before the incident and should have been put on a 72-hour psychiatric hold. The suit says the doctor "rejected" the idea of putting the man on a hold when it was proposed by a campus police officer.Tom McGhee, Denver Post 01/16/2013 E. Coli Death Prompts Suit over Infected Beef The family of a man with Down syndrome who died in 2010 from eating food contaminated with E. coli has filed a lawsuit against three beef companies and a group of retailers for their roles in selling the product. The suit says the negligence of all the defendants resulted in the death of the man. Federal officials have not been able to pinpoint the precise source of the contaminated beef, but Minnesota health officials say it came from a plant in Kansas. Mike McGraw , Kansas City Star 01/16/2013 Torts in the News: January 2013 Fatal Nashville House Fire Prompts Suit The death of a young woman in a house fire in East Nashville last spring has prompted a lawsuit by the girl's family against the owner of the home. The suit claims the owner of the home and property management company "kept the property in poor condition" and never acted on lease violations that threatened residents and guests. When the fire started, the suit states, no smoke alarms went off, which could have given residents and guests the time to escape. Nate Rau and Bobby Allyn, Tennessean 01/11/2013 Pittsburgh TV Station Settles Lawsuit : A Pittsburgh television station has settled a lawsuit with a local woman whose photo was wrongly displayed on a local newscast in a story about a kidnapping. In 2010, the station improperly identified the plaintiff as the woman charged with kidnapping, when in fact it was her daughter who was facing charges. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Rich Lord , Pittsburgh PostGazette 01/02/2013 Suit Filed over Fatal December Plane Crash A lawsuit has been filed against a company owned by the late singer Jenni Rivera, naming the company a defendant in a suit filed on behalf of four members of her entourage who died along with the star in a December plane crash. The suit names Starwood Management, Jenni Rivera Enterprises and two other companies in the suit, saying they are responsible for choosing the 43-year-old Learjet that crashed into mountains in Mexico. The suit is seeking punitive damages against the current owners of the aircraft as well as the previous owner, who sold the plane last year. Adolfo Flores, LA Times 01/11/2013 Torts in the News: January 2013 Pregnancy Drug Cancer Lawsuit Settled Eli Lilly and Co. has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by four sisters who claimed they all developed breast cancer due to an estrogen drug produced by the company that their mother took during pregnancy in the 1950s. The drug, DES, was prescribed to women in the 1950s and 1960s to prevent miscarriages, but the suit claimed Eli Lilly "failed to test the drug's effect on fetuses before promoting it." Experts say this could force settlements in similar lawsuits filed by women against drug companies all across the country. Wire Report, The Washington Post 01/09/2013 Man Attacked in Hotel Restaurant Files Lawsuit A Chicago doctor has filed a lawsuit against a local restaurant in the Westin Hotel after he was "violently attacked and stabbed" by another man in the bathroom of the restaurant. The suit accuses hotel officials of negligence, saying they allowed "unauthorized persons to gain access to their hotel, restaurant and restroom facilities" without performing proper security checks. The suit also names the attacker as a defendant and is seeking unspecified damages. Jennifer Delgado, Chicago Tribune 01/08/2013 Suit over Death at NY Amusement Park Settled The family of a double amputee Iraq veteran who died when he fell from a roller coaster at a New York amusement park has settled a suit with park officials. After an investigation, state officials determined that operator error was the cause of the accident. While the exact figures of the settlement were not disclosed, sources say it was in the seven-figure range. The Washington Post 01/08/2013 Torts in the News: January 2013 Suit: Jailers Ignoring Sick Man Led to His Death A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against the Sacramento County sheriff's department over the death of a man in a local jail. In the suit, the man's family says jail officers ignored his pleas for help as he violently vomited in his cell for 12 hours. The suit says the man tore his esophagus, which went unchecked and led to internal bleeding and his death. Wire Report, San Jose Mercury News 01/07/2013 Cleveland VA Hospital Settles Malpractice Lawsuit The Cleveland VA Medical Center will pay $500,000 to the widow of a military veteran who died after undergoing a botched hernia repair procedure. In her suit, the woman claimed the surgeon, who had never done this type of surgery before, perforated the man's bowel, causing him to die of infection. The suit also claimed other hospital staff failed to recognize the mistake for several days, resulting in the infection. Staff Report, PR Newswire 01/03/2013 Suit Filed over 'False' Ford Hybrid MPG Claims Ford Motors has been hit with a federal lawsuit over the MPG claims of its Fusion Hybrid. The suit says the company's marketing of the car's fuel economy is "false and misleading" and that it is almost impossible to maintain the 47 MPG advertised for the hybrids. Recently, automakers Hyundai and Kia have faced similar claims and were eventually ordered by the EPA to correct their advertised figures. Antony Ingram, Christian Science Monitor 01/02/2013 Torts in the News: January 2013 Suit Filed over Fatal Ski Accident in Wyoming A lawsuit has been filed against the city of Casper, Wyo., and local ski patrol over the death of a fiveyear-old girl in a ski accident in 2010. The girl and her mother had stopped in the middle of a black-diamond run to put the girl's skis back on when a snowboarder crashed into them, killing himself and the girl. The suit claims ski patrolmen had witnessed the snowboarder skiing recklessly all day and failing to stop or warn him, making them responsible for the girl's death. Kelly Byer, Billings Gazette 01/02/2013 Wrongful Death Suit Filed Against Groundskeeper The family of an 11year-old boy who was killed in a sledding accident at Duncan Park in Grand Haven, Michigan, has filed a lawsuit against the park's part-time groundskeeper. According to the suit, the boy died after striking a branch that had fallen in the park, suffering fatal internal bleeding in his abdomen. The boy's parents say the groundskeeper failed to keep the sledding area clear of debris. Wire Report, Detroit Free Press 12/30/2012 TORTS Actions based on Negligence & Intentional Misconduct REVIEW ALL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS 1) DUTY TO EXERCISE REASONABLE CARE 2) FAILURE TO MEET THAT DUTY 3) THAT FAILURE IS THE PROXIMATE CAUSE OF INJURY 4) DAMAGES NEGLIGENCE- CAR ACCIDENT 1) DUTY TO DRIVE IN A SAFE MANNER, IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL TRAFFIC LAWS 2) FAILURE TO EXERCISE REASONABLE CARE BY DRIVING IN VIOLATION OF TRAFFIC LAW OR IN A SAFE MANNER 3) CONDUCT DIRECTLY & PROXIMATELY CAUSED INJURY TO THE PLAINTIFF 4) DAMAGES NEGLIGENCE- SLIP & FALL PREMISES LIABILITY 1) Defendant has a duty to exercise ordinary care not to cause injury to the guest/visitor by any act or failure to act and/or Defendant has a duty to warn of any known conditions that could cause injury 2) Failure to exercise duty 3) proximately causes injury 4) Damages NEGLIGENCEMEDICAL MALPRACTICE 1) Duty to act with the degree of skill, knowledge, care, and diligence normally applied by members of that profession under like or similar circumstances 2) Failure to meet that duty 3) Proximately causes injury 4) Damages NEGLIGENCE- NUISANCE 1) Defendant created a nuisance which endangered the comfort, health, or safety of the plaintif 2) Which directly and proximately caused annoyance, injury, or inconvenience to the plaintif 3) Damages PRODUCTS LIABILITY 1) Defendant has a duty to exercise ordinary care not to design or manufacture a product that is likely to cause injury 2) Defendant has a duty to warn of any known conditions that could cause injury 3) Failure to exercise duty proximately causes injury 4) Damages INTENTIONAL MISCONDUCT- ASSAULT & BATTERY Assault is the intentional ofer or attempt, without authority or consent, to harm or ofensively touch another that reasonably places the other in fear of such contact. Battery is intentional, unconsented, contact with another. Failure to exercise reasonable care not to harm or place another in fear of harm Damages DEFAMATION, LIBEL & SLANDER Defamation is a false written or oral statement that injures another's reputation. Defamation is making the statement with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard as to whether it was false or not Duty to tell the truth Failure to exercise reasonable care not to injure another person's reputation Conduct must proximately causes injury to the Plaintif FRAUD INTENTIONAL MISREPRESENTATION OF A MATERIAL FACT OR FAILURE TO DISCLOSE (IF THERE IS A DUTY TO DISCLOSE) UPON WHICH THE PLAINTIFF JUSTIFIABLY RELIES WHICH CAUSES DETRIMENT (FINANCIAL LOSS)