Tort Law 2 Week 7

Product Liability and determining it through its elements (3)

Duty of care
Breach of Duty
Damages and Causation

Occupiers' Liability (In Ontario) (4)

Statutory Impact: occupier of a premises owes a duty to take care of people entering the premises

Importance of insurance: helps shift risk

Duty for Trespassers/assumed risk: a lower standard of care applies to tresspassers under the Trespass to Property Act and to people entering rural or other properties for recreational activties without paying a fee

Exceptions to Liability: may not be liable if the injured person willingly assumed the risks or engaged in criminal activity

Professional Negligence (4)

Duty of care: a professional owes a duty of care to their client from a professional client relationship

Breach of Duty (standard of care): they must execerise reasonable care, skill and judgement
specialists and experts are held to a higher standard due to advanced knowledge.
Inexperience or exaggerated credentials: inexperience foes not excuse a failure to meet the standard.

Damages: must show they suffered quantifiable damages such as financial loss, injury or other harm as a result

Causation: both factual causation and legal causation must be proven

Negligent Representation (also fraudulent misrepresentation) (4)

Duty of Care:

• they must reasonably foresee that the plaintiff would rely on the representation (ex. financial interest in the transaction, special skills judgement or knowledge, deliberateness of advice given in a business setting)

• there must be a special relationship

• if the plaintiff used the statement for a different purpose than intended, no duty of care exists

Breach of duty: representation must be untrue, inaccurate, or misleading

Damages and Causation: the plantiff suffered a loss caused by the plaintiff's reliance on the misrepsentation

Fraudulent Misrepresentation/Deceit: includes the above elements plus intent to deceive

Strict Liability (2)

• absolute duty to prevent harm, even without fault

• ex. person puts something on their land that is likely to cause harm if it escapes

Nuisance (definition + 3 factors)

unreasonable intereference with another's use of enjoyment of land
factors include
nature of the neighborhood
duration and intensity
sensitivity of the plaintiff: must be unreasonable to an ordinary person

Assault

intentionally creating a reasonable belief of offensive contact

Battery

intentional creation of offensive bodily contact (even without harm)
unlawful, contact, lack of consent

False Imprisonment

restraining an individual or restricting an individual's freedom, can be psychological

Malicious Prosecution

improperly causing the plaintiff to be prosecuted without reasonable grounds or malic

Defamation (definition, slander, libel, defenses)

tort that protects a person's reputation from false and harmful statements
slander = spoken defamatory statements
libel = written or permenant defamatory statements (in print or broadcast)
Defenses include truth, absolute privilege, and responsible commmunication

Privacy Torts - Intrusion upon seclusion ( 3 elements)

3 elements to establish

1. defendants conduct was intentional or reckless

2. defendant invaded the plaintiff's private affairs without lawful justification

3. a reasonable person would regard the invasion as highly offensive, causing distress, humilation or anguish

Public disclosure of embrassing private facts about the plaintiff (4 elements)

4 elements:

1. defendant publicized an aspect of the plaintiff's private life

2. the plantiff did not consent to publication

3. the matter which was publicized would be highly offensive to a reasonable person

4. publication was not of legitimate concern to the public

trespass to land

someone intentionally enters or remains on land without lawful justification

tresspass to chattels

intentional interference with another persons personal property, which can include damaging or depriving the owner of its use