218 Chapter 6 Questions

Which one of the following terms is NOT an affirmative defense in a defamation action?

Actual malice means the party acted either 1) with knowledge of the falsity of a claim or 2) with reckless disregard for the claim's truth. The others are affirmative defenses in a defamation action.

If a plaintiff suffers harm due because a defendant violated a statute, and that statute was passed by the legislature to mitigate the exact harm that was caused, then the defendant will most likely be found liable for what tort?

An individual is who causes harm to another individual by violating a statute that was created to mitigate such harm is liable for negligence per se, not just plain negligence. Contributory negligence always applies to the plaintiff. Compensatory negligence is "not a thing."

_________ occurs when one person places another person in fear or apprehension of an immediate, offensive bodily contact.

Assault

Which of the following terms refers to a defense that allows the defendant to escape any liability upon proving that the plaintiff engaged in an activity that he or she was fully aware could result in the type of harm suffered?

Assumption of the risk

How are Canadian punitive damage awards different than punitive damage awards in the United States?

Canadian punitive damages are both rarer and smaller

Which one of the following is NOT an intentional tort against a person

Conversion

Gabe is browsing movies in a video store when he sees a man fall to the ground. Gabe has had a CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and first aid class before, and upon examining the victim, Gabe determines that he should give the man CPR until the ambulance arrives. Gabe does give CPR and successfully resuscitates him. However, later, the man sues Gabe because while giving him CPR, Gabe broke two of the man's ribs. That's real appreciation for saving a life, isn't it? Anyway, what is the best defense Gabe could use to not be held liable for breaking the man's ribs during CPR?

Good Samaritan laws are an attempt by state legislatures to encourage selfless and courageous behavior by removing the threat of liability. Gabe was acting selflessly and courageously in helping the man before the paramedics could arrive. Absent such a statute, no one would ever do anything to help their fellow men for fear of a lawsuit. Even with the statute, however, people are somewhat fearful of helping because of the cost of defending such a lawsuit in the first place.

John becomes seriously ill while vacationing at a remote island resort. Dr. Smith is vacationing at the same resort. Because it is an emergency and no one else is available, the doctor treats John until he can be flown to the mainland. John's illness is outside of Dr. Smith's area of expertise, and the treatment she provides causes permanent damage to Frank. If John sues Dr. Smith, he can defend himself under

Good Samaritan statutes

Orson takes Harrison's car without Harrison's permission and without just cause. Orson has probably committed the tort of conversion unless he can show that

Harrison does not really own the car

Which factor(s) influence the amount of punitive damages a plaintiff receives?

Juries usually consider the egregiousness or willfulness of the tort and the wealth of the defendant

Harold was playing catch with his son when the ball went into the neighbors' woods. Harold then went to chase after the ball and went onto property that said "No Trespassing. Violators will be prosecuted." Harold got the ball and did not cause any harm, but his neighbor called the police anyway. Harold is now being charged with trespassing. The jury decided that no actual harm occurred to the owner of the property or the property itself. As a result, the jury awarded the owner of the private property $5 in damages. These damages were most likely which type of damages?

Nominal damages

Adam sells audio and video equipment. He tells a customer, Abbey, "This MP3 player is the best one ever made." Adam's statement is

Puffery

NOT a purpose of tort law

Punishing wrongdoers

A 10-year-old taco company is losing business to a new restaurant down the road. To try to gain business back, the taco company launches an "oral marketing campaign" (also known as "spreading a rumor") that the new restaurant's tacos are of such poor quality that seventy-five percent (75%) of customers who eat there experience diarrhea. The old taco company completely lied about this rumor and had no evidence to back up this assertion. Which type of tort is this scenario a possible example of?

Slander of quality

Which of the following situations would NOT qualify as a tort of trespass to realty

Stealing is considered robbery, which constitutes a crime, as opposed to a tort.

Which of the following terms is NOT a defense to negligence?

Strict liability

______________ is liability without fault

Strict liability

A a television company manufactures a defective product. The televisions burst into flame and explode randomly. Ironically, they are named, "D'Bomb Television." In one circumstance, a television that is sitting next to a bunch of illegal fireworks on a garage shelf explodes. As a result of the fireworks exploding, the entire house catches on fire. The fire then spreads to the houses of three neighbors down the block. Their houses now in ashes, the neighbors want to sue the television company for negligence. In most states, the neighbors would NOT succeed in suing the television company for negligence. Why?

The events were NOT foreseeable and therefore proximate cause (1 of the 4 elements of negligence) cannot be proved.

What do the following torts, False light False imprisonment Defamation and Battery, all have in common?

They are all intentional torts against a PERSON.

Which one of the following is NOT a privacy tort

Trespass to reality is considered an intentional tort against property, not persons. Privacy torts are all intentional torts against persons.

A superceding cause is an unforeseeable event that interrupts the causal chain between the defendant's breach of duty and the damages the plaintiff suffered.

True

The reasonable person standard is a measurement of the way members of society expect an individual to act in a given situation.

True

A local laundromat (an establishment with coin-operated washing machines and dryers for public use), called Laura's Laundromat, recently opened. Laura's Laundromat temporarily offered use of its machines for free. When this occurred, all of the customers who attended one of the 5 other local laundromats in Harrisonburg decided to go to Laura's instead. The other 5 laundromats went out of business. After the other laundromats closed their doors/went out of business, Laura's began charging money for using its washing machines and dryers. What tort would the other 5 laundromats charge Laura's Laudromat as having committed against them if they brought a lawsuit against Laura's?

Unfair competition

Carla is a bus driver. Carla was driving the bus full of children one day when she suffered a heart attack. As a result, the bus hit another vehicle and five children were injured. Carla had no warning signs of heart failure and has had perfect health up until the accident. Carla's attorneys should argue she is not liable under which legal doctrine?

Unfortunate accident

Which of the following concepts is NOT a standard element of negligence tort that a plaintiff must prove to win a negligence case?

Unfortunate accident

Ted is running down the sidewalk at a high rate a speed and bumps into Robin, knocking her down. She jumps back up and continues on. In a negligence action, all of the following elements would be met except:

damages

Mark is a famous syndicated radio personality for TalkRadio. He has a distinctive voice and manner of speaking. MoreTalk hires Gordon, who sounds nearly identical to Mark, to host a competing show. MoreTalk encourages Gordon to imitate Mark as closely as possible while on the air. MoreTalk is most likely to be liable for

appropriation

Andy decides to go skydiving for his 40th birthday. He signs a waiver, boards the plane and prepares for the jump. Everything is going smoothly until just before landing a down draft forces Andy down at a much faster rate into the ground, causing injury to both of his legs. Andy will likely not be able to recover for his injuries under the defense of

assumption of the risk

Once the plaintiff has established that the defendant owes her a duty of care, she must prove that the defendant's conduct violated that duty. This violation is called a _____________.

breach of duty

Because the primary objective of tort law is to compensate innocent persons/victims, the primary type of damages is ___________.

compensatory damages

Southern Trucking arrived at WoodCo to pick up a shipment of wood furniture. When the Southern Trucking driver was backing up his truck into the loading dock, the truck accidentally crushed a pallet of valuable wood tables and bedframes. Southern Trucking is

liable for compensatory damages

Ethan is larger and stronger than Nate. Ethan threatens to beat Nate, punches Nate in the face, and knocks out Nate's tooth. Nate may bring a lawsuit against Ethan

for assault and battery.

Mel sent Jasper an e-mail message telling Jasper that his wife had been killed in a car accident, and Mel knew this was untrue. Jasper may be able to sue Mel for

infliction of emotional distress

Austin, Texas has passed a local ordinance that provides all motor vehicles must provide at least three feet of clearance when passing a bicycle. Ted is driving his vehicle and accidentally hits Zoey. His actions of violating the local ordinance and hitting Zoey constitute

negligence per se

Cory opens a small jewelry store but has difficulty competing with Bling Jewels, a much larger firm. In his newspaper ad, Cory includes the false statement, "Bling Jewels sells stolen diamonds." Bling experiences an immediate decrease in sales. Cory has most likely committed the tort of

slander of title.

Astor Manufacturing stores hazardous and volatile chemicals in its warehouse. The warehouse has state of the art equipment to make sure the chemicals do not explode. An unexpected earthquake shakes the warehouse, causing the chemicals to explode and injure William, a passer-by on a nearby sidewalk. Astor Manufacturing is

strictly liable for William's injuries

While Jessica, Ashley, and Bryan are snowboarding, they ignore warning signs indicating that they have left the marked trail and are entering dangerous territory. They become lost, and a rescue effort begins. Climbing the mountain, a snowplow accidentally cuts a nearby town's main electrical cable. Due to the loss of her electric heat, Ethel, an elderly woman, dies of hypothermia. The boarders' negligence in ignoring the warning signs is

the causation in fact, but not the proximate cause, of Ethel's death.

Doug obtains permission to be on Nathan's land for one day to hold a four-wheeling event. Doug's truck breaks down, and instead of removing it, he leaves it on Nathan's property for several days after the event. Doug has most likely committed

trespass to land

The members of the City High soccer team have been training with Hanson, a personal trainer who charges by the hour, for several years. Bob, the soccer coach, tells the team members that they must now train with Martin, not Hanson, or they will be kicked off the team. All of Hanson's clients immediately stop training with Hanson. Bob is most likely to have committed

wrongful interference with a business relationship