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Torts
Torts are civil suits that involve physical damage or injury. A common tort is personal injury in an automobile accident.
1,093 Questions
What are the similarities between civil and criminal law?
Criminal Law generally defines cases brought against an individual by the state for committing a crime against local or national law. A Civil lawsuit is one brought between two people settling a grievance
Do you need a license to drive a 70cc moped?
Yes, anything that is above 50cc you will new a license for.
No, you cannot sue a minor. You can sue the minor's parents though because they can be held responsible for the minor's actions.
What are the stages civilizations go through?
1. Development
2. Birth
3. Childhood
3. Adulthood
4. Senior
What does the term theft of information mean?
Information theft is the act of taking another persons sensitive information. This could be social security numbers, passport info, billing information, credit cards, etc which is all highly illegal due to the damage it can cause.
How do you respond to a motion for relief of stay?
It varies. Check your local court rules. The Massachusetts District Bankruptcy Court local rule sets 30 days as the time to reply. Things happen faster after that. If more time is needed, a motion to extend the time to file the reply must be filed and allowed by the court, usually after a hearing.
How is negligence determined under common law?
Negligence refers to an action or omission that falls short of a reasonable standard of care. If an employer fails to install standard safety features on machinery, this would, in the least, negligence.
What is the penalty for trespassing?
A fine * States and municipalities establish laws controlling acts of civil disobediance such as trespass. Depending upon the circumstances the violator can be let off with a warning, cited for the act (breach of peace) and required to pay a fine or arrested and jailed until a court hearing.
How do you file a lawsuit against a county?
get an attorney!
and you have to have a good reson to file a lawsuit and have a good lawyer
What can you do to someone that files a fraudulent lawsuit against you?
my landlord files too many lawsuits in retailiation against person(s) that have filed HUD complaints against it company. Is there a law against how many claims a company can bring to court, especially if they are fraudalent claims?
What are the three type of torts?
Negligence, Intentional Torts, and Strict Liability
I. Negligence The elements of proving negligence (with examples) 1. defendant has a duty to the plaintiff (to keep the grocery store safe) 2. defendant breached that duty (by leaving a banana peel on the floor for two hours) 3. the breach proximately caused (plaintiff slipped on the banana peel) 4. plaintiff's damages (plaintiff says ouch!) Main defense to a negligence claim -- remember that Georgia is a comparative negligence state - in addition, if a jury finds that the plaintiff is more than 50% negligence, plaintiff recovers NOTHING. Examples of Negligence 1. WRONGFUL DEATH - the measure of damages is the full value of life of the deceased -- it includes economic damages (lifetime income with no deduction for living expenses, etc) and intangible factors such as enjoyment of life -- it's up to the jury to determine this amount. In GA, there is no statutory formula or limit to figure out these amounts. - a surviving spouse shares equally with the decedent's surviving children -- there is no spouse or surviving children, the parents have the right to sue. If the death was caused intentionally, then it would be an intentional tort 2. PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY (MALPRACTICE) - is actually a negligence action against a professional - professionals must exercise the appropriate standard of professional care - there's no cap on damages in GA - An affidavit from a like professional must be filed with the Complaint stating that there was malpractice committed in his/her opinion (or within 45 days of filing the Complaint was filed within 10 days of the statute of limitations) DAMAGESAs we know, there are two parts to building a case - liability and damages. In a personal injury case, we need to know that a plaintiff may recover compensatory damages, which may include medical expenses, lost income and pain and suffering (physical and emotional). There is no limit on pain and suffering in Georgia. Georgia recognizes the tort of loss of consortium - the loss of companionship of a spouse. Remember that punitive damages are NOT recoverable in a simple negligence case - they are recoverable if the defendant committed gross negligence. II. Intentional Torts 1. SLANDER AND LIBEL - Slander is a spoken untruth. Libel is a written untruth Read the Slander statute in the web reading: OCGA 51-5-4 The first 3 items (a 1,2,3) in that statute are statements which are defamatory just by saying them (we call that SLANDER PER SE - where damages are presumed JUST BY MERELY MAKING THOSE STATEMENTS). Since damages are presumed, this falls in the General damages category -- the thinking is that these statements are so bad, someone shouldn't have to prove they were "damaged". Here's an analogy -- if you are ticketed and convicted for following too closely as you rear end someone's car with your own, then when that person sues you in civil court, the civil court will look at your conviction and say to the plaintiff that s/he doesn't need to prove LIABILITY anymore (THIS IS CALLED PER SE NEGLIGENCE). Then all plaintiff needs to do is prove damages. Under 51-5-4a(4), in any other type of statement not found in 1-3, a plaintiff must prove that s/he was actually damaged by the uttered statement through evidence (CALLED SLANDER PER QUOD - WHICH REQUIRES A SHOWING OF SPECIAL DAMAGES). -- 51-5-11 deals with newspapers and libel. If the newspaper publishes an acceptable retraction within 7 days written demand from plaintiff, then it can avoid a future award of punitive damages. Getting the picture of how high stakes a game punitive damages can be? DEFENSES - you need to know that truth is an absolute defense to libel and slander. NEWSPAPERS/FIRST AMENDMENT - NY TIMES V. SULLIVAN - While a "private person" can prevail in libel/slander by showing the defendant was merely negligent, a "public figure" must show the court proof that the defendant knew the statement was false or was reckless in making the statement. Thus, it's easier for a private person/plaintiff to win this type of lawsuit. Other types of Intentional Torts 2. SLANDER/DEFAMATION OF TITLE - the elements: 1- defendant uttered and published (said to third person) slanderous words), 2- the words were false, 3- the words were malicious, 4- damages, 5- plaintiff actually owned title to the property being "slandered" 3. INTENTIONAL INTERFERENCE WITH CONTRACTUAL RELATIONS - Elements: 1- defendant acted improperly and without privilege, 2- acted with intent and malice to injure, 3- induced a third party to break a contract with plaintiff or not to do business with plaintiff, 4- damages (example - inducing a bank not to loan plaintiff money with the intent to destroy the business) 4. FRAUD (also known as INTENTIONAL MISREPRESENTATION) 1- a false representation made by defendant, 2- defendant knew the statement was false, 3- defendant intended plaintiff to rely on statement, 4- plaintiff justifiably relies on statement, 5- damages were proximately caused by statement 5. MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS - be careful not to give up a former employer's trade secrets when going to a competitor as a new place to work - This tort claim often supplements intellectual property claims based on patent and copyright infringement counts in a lawsuit III. Strict Liability Strict liability departs from Negligence in a huge way. In negligence - we assess whether a defendant breached its duty of care to the plaintiff, and we ask the question DID THE DEFENDANT ACT REASONABLY. If the jury finds that it acted reasonably, end of story. In strict liability cases, the defendant is liable even if it acted reasonably. There are 3 types of strict liability cases: 1- keeping wild animals 2- dangerous, legal activities such as blasting roads 3- the manufacture of products (products liability) PRODUCTS LIABILITY PRIVITY OF CONTRACT was abolished by the McPherson case. Privity of contract used to mean that only the purchaser of the product could sue. Today, if you buy a toaster and it blows up, your injured neighbor who is over for breakfast can sue the manufacturer, though she is not in privity of contract with the manufacturer.
What are main differences between criminal law and civil law including tort law?
Quite simply, criminal law deals with violations of statutory crime and its punishment, civil law deals with non-criminal things such as contracts/business, and things such as divorce, etc. You can be charged under both criminal and civil proceedings though. A perfect example is OJ Simpson being aquitted of criminal charges but being found guilty in civil proceedings. Probably the biggest difference between the two is what is called "BURDEN OF PROOF"
In criminal proceedings the burden is "BEYOND ALL REASONABLE DOUBT" for someone to be convicted. This means that the evidence points substantially towards guilt and there is little to no question of guilt. For a jury in this case you would need everyone in agreement or the case is a mistrial. Unaminity is the key.
In civil proceedings all that is required is "preponderance of evidence" which means that if it is found that it was more likely than not that an incident occured then you can be convicted. This kind of proceeding is really a "who has the best evidence" type of case. Only a majority of jury members decision is needed in this case.
ANSWER 2
1. Criminal Law cases must prove the person's guilt beyond reasonable doubt, whilst civil cases must be proved on the balance of probability
2. The main difference however is who the law is aimed at.
Theoretically criminal law is a considered to be harming all members of society. Consequently, the victim of the criminal case is all of society; hence the case is brought on behalf of the police and prosecution on behalf of society. In contrast to this, civil/private law, the offence is committed against the individual :)
The main purpose of tort law is to compensate the victims of wrongdoing for the injuries they suffer as a result.
It generally is not concerned with punishing, or casting moral judgment on, the wrongdoer - it simply compels the person who caused the harm to compensate the person who suffered the harm.
The law of torts has four functions -
1). It provides remedies for wrongs.
2). It provides compensation and vindication.
3). It acts as a deterrant and provides protection.
4). Tort law is concerned with corrective justice and distributive justice.
How do you prove criminal harassment and slander or defamation of character?
to pursue some one means you want to chase them, if you mean to "sue" someone you will have to go to court with an attorney to help you with your case.
Can you sue a city for wrongful death?
Yes, however, the rules for suing governmental entities are sometimes different than for suin individuals or companies. Suits against governmental entities for wrongful death are not uncommon. A city employee may cause a death in a car accident while driving on city business.
Is profane email considered harassment?
Yes. Any type of action or communication that is unwelcome and is so serious that it causes what is called a "hostile work environment" falls under the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations regarding harassment. One e-mail is most likely not going to amount to actionable harassment, although there has been a case where only one instance of conduct did.
A complaint is signed by the attorney; a verified complaint contains an additional verification page signed by the plaintiff which is notarized. A verified complaint requires a verification page signed by the defendant.
Does tort law provides legal remedies for both personal injury and property damage?
Tort may be defined as a personal injury; or as "a civil action other than a breach of contract."
A person who suffers a tortious injury is entitled to receive "damages", usually monetary compensation, from the person or people responsible - or liable - for those injuries. Tort law defines what is a legal injury and, therefore, whether a person may be held liable for an injury they have caused. Legal injuries are not limited to physical injuries. They may also include emotional, economic, or reputational injuries as well as violations of privacy, property, or constitutional rights. Tort cases therefore comprise such varied topics as auto accidents, false imprisonment, defamation, product liability (for defective consumer products), copyright infringement, and environmental pollution (toxic torts), among many others.
You may ask for a Continuance (motion and notice). However, if you still can't find an attorney (just because your last attorney dropped the case) you have to represent yourself. The law is that the legal process continues - with the party available. You may sue your attorney if he dropped the case because he have to have a mighty good reason to drop a case - you may also make sure you take him to the legal board in your state. That's what I will do with the rat who dropped my case -- after I finish with my case.
What happens if you don't appear in a civil suit court case?
The plaintiff wins the case by default and a judgment is entered against the defendant. A civil lawsuit summons is not a court order per se and therefore the defendant is not obligated to appear. An order of appearance from the court, interrogatories, depositions, discovery motions and so forth are different matters and the person(s) named should always respond. Legal counsel is always advisable in such matters.
A toxic tort is a special type of personal injury lawsuit in which the plantiff claims that exposure to a chemical caused the plaintiff's toxic injury or disease.
Where can you find the records for a lawsuit?
You can find them in the courthouse of the county or district in which the lawsuit was filed. * Information for recent suits (1-4 weeks)that have been ruled on can be obtained from the office of the clerk of the court where the suit was heard. Information for pending suits can only be obtained by those persons named in the suit until it is settled and has become a matter of public record. Generally information for lawsuits that have been settled within the past 30 days or more will need to be obtained by the interested party through a search of public records of the court in which the suit was litigated. Finding such information might prove difficult unless the interested party knows the docket/case number, court date and the court division number.
