But Achilles hath wrought to fury the proud heart within him, cruel man! neither recketh he of the love of his comrades wherewith we ever honoured him amid the ships above all others—pitiless one! Lo, a man accepteth recompense from the slayer of his brother, or for his dead son; and the slayer abideth in his own land for the paying of a great price, and the kinsman's heart and proud spirit are restrained by the taking of recompense.

• What are torts?
• Intentional torts
  • E.g., assault and battery
• Negligence
  • Unintentional carelessness which results in harm
• Strict liability
  • Briefly, as we will cover during product liability

A tort is a legally-actionable wrong. If you or your property has been injured by another, tort law is likely your remedy.

• Put you in the same position as if there had been no tort
• Compensatory damages
  • Special damages = we can put a price tag on it
    • Medical expenses, lost wages
  • General damages = harder to put a price tag on
    • Pain and suffering
    • Loss of companionship
    • Disfigurement

• Punitive damages
  • Punish the wrongdoer
  • Generally only available for intentional torts and gross negligence, with a higher degree of culpability
  • Due process limitations ….

Battery is …

• unauthorized
• intentional
  • actual intent, or
  • substantial certainty
• harmful or offensive
• physical contact
• with another person or their immediate property.

Assault is …

• intent to cause
• the threat of immediate harm or offensive contact

Against persons

• False imprisonment
• IIED
• Defamation (libel / slander / slander per se)
  • Practice!
• Privacy torts
• Fraudulent misrepresentation (fraud, for short)
  • Practice!
• Abusive litigation

Against property

• Trespass to land
• Trespass to chattels
• Conversion

• A duty of care
• That was breached
• That caused
  • But for and proximate
• Actual damage or loss

• Ultrahazardous activities, such as keeping wild animals
• Product liability
  • We will cover in another chapter