Introduction to Torts and Negligence

Name: Introduction to Torts and Negligence
Brand: Academic Documents Platform
Price: 2.5 USD
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Author: Mason Bennett

The Introduces torts and negligence, explaining civil wrongs, intentional vs. unintentional torts, the reasonable person test, duty of care, causation, damages, and defenses like contributory negligence and voluntary risk assumption.

Mason Bennett

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Introduction to Torts and Negligence

Torts
A tort is a "civil wrong." In other words, it's a private party injuring
another physically, financially or economically because of their
wrongful action.
"Crimes" are social wrongs that affect society. It's possible for the same
action to be both a crime and a tort.
"Breach of Contract" happens when there is a contractual relationship
between parties. Torts don't require a contractual relationship.

Intentional and Unintentional Torts
Torts that are done intentionally. Assault, battery, stealing, trespass,
etc. are all intentional acts.
Negligence is failing to be careful and causing injury to others as a
result. This is an "unintentional tort."
Even though someone was unintentionally hurt, there was still an
element of wrongdoing.

Subjective test
A "subjective test" determines what the actual person involved did or
knows given the circumstances. This is an uncommon test.
For example - the law is not concerned with whether you personally
think it's safe to text and drive (subjective test). It's concerned with
what you should know or do (objective test): would our reasonable
person of ordinary intelligence and caution think it's safe to text and
drive?

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Example
Luke decides to disconnect from society. He goes out in the wilderness
for two months without telling anyone. While Luke is away, BC Hydro
(the electric utility company in BC) sends a letter to Luke saying his bill
is overdue and he must pay soon or get his electricity disconnected.
When Luke returns home, he finds his electricity disconnected. He later
goes to Small Claims Court over the re-connection fee and says that he
should not have to pay the fee because he was not aware of the
original warning letter BC Hydro sent.
Explain what the outcome of the case would be if the court followed an
a) subjective test and b) a reasonable person test.

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Misfeasance vs. Nonfeasance
It is dramatically easier to find liability when someone engages in a
positive wrongful act (a misfeasance).
Courts value individual autonomy and hate forcing someone to take a
positive action absent a good reason. Finding someone liable when
they committed a nonfeasance requires establishing a legal relationship
between those two people. That relationship is called a "duty of care."

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Misfeasances and Nonfeasances
Recall the default state of the law: you do not generally owe obligations
to strangers to act in their best interests. You're allowed to walk past a
drowning person (assuming no relationship with them)
Negligence is the law that says if you have a relationship (a "duty of
care") with a person you must be careful towards them.
Examples:
• People driving cars owe an obligation to pedestrians.
• Lifeguards owe an obligation to people swimming in their pool.

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Established Duty of Care
A lot of court cases have already been decided about when a
relationship exists. If previous courts have already established an
obligation exists, you no longer need to do a "duty of care" analysis.
Some duties of care are obvious. Examples include:
• Elementary school teachers have a duty towards their students.
• Manufacturers of a car have a duty towards car users.
In this course we will focus on non-obvious duties of care.

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Donoghue v Stevenson , [1932] AC
562
This case was the foundational case establishing negligence law. It also
originally established the formulation of the duty of care, which is still
influential today.
Donoghue's friend wanted to treat her, so they went to a cafe together. At
the cafe the friend purchased a bottle of ginger beer. Donoghue drank the
bottle only to find a decomposing snail near the bottom. She became ill.
Donoghue couldn't sue in contract, and so negligence law was developed in
response. Lord Atkin said the following about the duty of care:

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Donoghue v Stevenson
562
, [1932] AC
"The rule that you are to love your neighbour becomes in law you must
not injure your neighbour; and the lawyer’s question 'Who is my
neighbour?' receives a restricted reply. You must take reasonable care
to avoid acts or omissions, which you can reasonably foresee would be
likely to injure your neighbour."
"Who, then, in law, is my neighbour? The answer seems to be - persons
who are so closely and directly affected by my act that I ought
reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when I
am directing my mind to the acts or omissions which are called in
question."

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Bolton v Stone, [1951] AC 850
People were playing cricket in a field. Only "6 times in the last 30 years"
were balls able to escape the field because of the build of the field and
fence.
A ball left the field and hit Ms. Stone. She sued, stating (paraphrased)
that because the ball had been known to go outside the field 6 times in
30 years, that the risk was "reasonably foreseeable," and the batter
should be liable in negligence.

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Civil Law

Introduction to Torts and Negligence

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