INTENTIONAL TORTS
Battery
 Intent - to make contact / KTASC / Transferred Intent
 Harmful/Offensive - Any physical impairment /
Reasonably offensive (McCracken) / Unconsented (Cohen)
 Contact – Direct / Extension of body (Fisher)
Assault – Intentional Scare or Incomplete Battery
 Intent – to cause battery / deliberate scare / KTASC
 Imminent Apprehension – Apparent ability of D
 Apprehension Occurs – Reasonable person would feel
apprehension / V perceives Assault
False Imprisonment
 Intent – To confine to fixed boundaries
 Cause Confinement – Perception of boundaries / Moveable
boundaries / genuine restraint / Circumstantial (Whittaker)
 Harm or Conscious – Harm caused / V conscious of
confinement
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
 Intent/Reckless- intent to cause harm / disregard of high
probability / KTASC / Transfer to Family
 Extreme/Outrageous – Outrageous! / Beyond all bound’s
decency (Siliznoff vs. White v. Monsanto)
 Severe Emotional Distress – Fright / Horror / Crying /
Retreat / Physical Manifestations
Trespass - Physical entry + Unauthorized + Intended / Caused by
recklessness / negligence / result ultrahazardous activity
Nuisance - Intentional/unreasonable + caused by negligence/
recklessness/hazardous activity - Detracts from enjoyment of land.
Trespass to Chattels - Dispossessing / Impairing condition value
quality / depriving use substantial time
Conversion exercise dominion/destroy / Harm = value of chattel
Privileges for Intentional Torts
 Implied Consent
 Implied by Actions - Nonverbal conduct (O’Brien)
 Implied by Law – extend operation for unforeseen
circumstances (Kennedy v. Parrott)
o Exception – No medical emergency, acquire
express consent first (Bang)
 Implied by Participation – Violent activity / game
consent to violent behavior
o Exception – No consent to behavior outside
framework of game/rules (Hackbart)
 Express Consent – Informed/substantially thoughtful/only
to parameters of agreement
 Self Def. Non-Deadly Force- Reasonably think about to
intentionally harm you / no duty to retreat/comply
 Self Def. Deadly Force – Reasonably think deadly force
immediate / retreat not in dwelling / defensive deadly
(Courvoisier)
 Defense Others – Force victim could lawfully use
 Def. Property Non-Deadly – request stop/believe futile /
intrusion only prevented by force / entry not privileged
 Def. Property Deadly only to protect life (Katko)
 Shopkeeper – Merchant detains a reasonable time/manner
for reasonable grounds of shoplifting (Not Coblyn)
 Consent – Don’t try to leave seen as implied consent to
confinement (False Imprisonment)
 Necessity – Preserve human life (Ploof) / get around
obstruction / save goods/property from damage (Sindle)
 Obligation – Repay for damage necessary use causes
(Vincent)
NEGLIGENCE
Duty
FZOD – Foreseeable Zone of Duty – (Cardozo) Duty to those in
foreseeable zone of danger from negligent conduct
DTODTA – Duty to One Duty to All – (Andrews) If one person
could be harmed by negligence, duty owed to world
Reasonable Care – What a reasonable person would do under circ.
Standard of Care Modifications
Invitee – Reasonable Care Licensee – Reasonable care to warn of
risk created by D Trespasser – Refrain from wanton/willful conduct
Common Carriers – Utmost care/ Extraordinary Care
Non-paying guests – Lower duty of care than reasonable care
Constant Trespassers – Known trespass in area + artificial condition
created/maintained + condition likely causing death + owner doesn’t
think trespass discover it = Duty of reasonable care to warn of it
Trespassing Children – Know kids trespass here + knows condition
dangerous + children don’t discover/understand condition cause
youth + Utility of cond./burden low to risk + Owner fails RC to stop
risk or warn = Liable for physical harm of condition
Duty to Rescue
Causation of Peril – D conduct causes harm to P (Tubbs)
Vol. Undertaking and Reliance – Vol. undertaking by D +
detrimental reliance P (Erie R.R.)
Vol. Undertaking and Deterrence– Vol. Undertaking of P +
deterrence other rescuers (Lacey: Rest on Oars)
Induced Dependency – P has an induced dependency on D for
protection/precaution (Kline)
Breach
BPL Test – Burden < Probability x Gravity of harm (Carroll Towing)
Safety Statutes – Statute protect life/health + P a person statute
meant to protect + harm statute meant to prevent (Martin/Tedla)
Custom- Common practice / Foreseeable, Feasible, Judgment and
Experience of many – less evidence of Neg. than S.S. (Trimarco)
Res Ipsa Loquitor – Exclusive control by D of instrumentality /
Accident not normally caused w/o neg. – Shifts Burden to D (Shutt)
CAUSATION
Actual Causation – Cause in Fact
“But For” Test – “But For” D negligence / P not suffer harm
Loss of Chance
Relaxed Cause – Substantial Factor: Full recovery (Cahoon)
Separate Injury - % change negligence caused + % recovery
Alternative Causation - One D did it but don’t know which / flips
burden to D to prove exoneration (Summers v. Tice)
Joint & Several Liability – Ds act in concert or create indivisible
injury – Substantial Factor Test / both liable for full amount.
Market Share Liability – generic product/latency of harm/cause by
product/ D liable for % market share of product
Proximate Causation – Policy limit on the liability of D
Foreseeability Test – Was specific type of harm suffered by P a
foreseeable harm that could result from D neg.? (Marshall)
Andrews Kitchen Sink – was negligence substantial factor in harm?
not many intervening causes? not too attenuated by time/space?
Intervening Causes – Do not break proximate causation D liable for
damage from intervening causes – rescues / some criminals / medical
malpractice / weather (Herrera)
Superseding Causes – Breaks chain of causation and relieves D of
liability– Intentional conduct/criminals acts/reckless acts (Stahlecker)
Neg. Defenses
Assumption of Risk – Appreciated magnitude/quality risk +
Voluntarily undertakes risk anyway (Hennessey v. Pyne)
Contributory Neg. – P falls below standard of care that D is judged =
Full bar to recovery – Separate Neg. Analysis (Butterfield)
 Exception: Last clear chance – D had last clear chance to
avoid accident / negates P negligence (Davies)
Comparative Neg. – Pure (recovery = to % not at fault) / Modified (=
or > than D no recovery)
STRICT LIABILITY - liability without fault or use of utmost care /
Unilaterally Imposed / Above background Risk level / only liable for
what makes it ultra-hazardous (Fletcher v. Rylands)
Wild Animals – Animal must be wild + D had ownership/possession
Domestic Animals – Dog or Cat + must know vicious tendencies
Ultrahazard. Activity – high risk of harm (Siegler) / RC can’t
eliminate risk / Activity not common / No value to community
Defenses – Assumption of the Risk / Contributory/Comparative
Negligence / Value outweighs Risk