Legal Exam 2 Updated

Tort

A violation of a duty imposed by civil law

Defamation

A false statement that harms another person's reputation and is communicated to a third person

False imprisonment

Intentionally restraining another person without reasonable cause and without consent

Battery

Intentional unwanted or offensive physical contact with another person

Assault

An act that causes another person to fear an imminent battery

Intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED)

Extreme and outrageous conduct that causes serious emotional harm

Compensatory damages

Money awarded to compensate the injured plaintiff for their losses

Punitive damages

Money awarded to punish the defendant rather than compensate the plaintiff

Tortious interference with a contract

Improperly interfering with or harming an existing contract

False advertising

False or misleading statements in commercial advertising that are material and likely to influence purchasing decisions

Lanham Act

Federal law that prohibits false statements in commercial advertising or promotion

Fraud

Intentional or reckless deception involving a material fact that the victim justifiably relies on

Assault vs. battery

Assault is fear of an imminent harmful contact

battery is the actual unwanted or offensive contact

Truth and defamation

Truth is generally a complete defense to a defamation claim

Opinion and defamation

A pure opinion generally cannot be the basis of a defamation claim because it cannot be proven true or false

Negligence

A tort where someone is injured because another person failed to use reasonable care

Five elements of negligence

Duty, breach, factual cause, proximate cause, and damages

Duty

A legal obligation to act with reasonable care toward people who could foreseeably be harmed

Breach of duty

Failure to meet the required standard of care

Factual cause

The defendant's conduct actually caused the injury

Proximate cause

The injury was a reasonably foreseeable result of the defendant's conduct

Damages in negligence

The plaintiff must suffer a real, genuine injury or loss

Negligence does not require intent

A person can be liable for negligence even if they never intended to cause harm

Standard of care

The level of care that a reasonable person would use under similar circumstances

Trespasser

Someone who enters another person's property without permission or legal right

Licensee

Someone who enters property for their own purposes with the owner's permission

Invitee

Someone who has a legal right to enter the property

Landowner duty ranking

Generally, the duty is lowest to trespassers, higher to licensees, and highest to invitees

Contributory negligence

A system where a plaintiff who is even slightly responsible for an injury may recover nothing

Comparative negligence

A system where the plaintiff's recovery is reduced according to their percentage of fault

Example of comparative negligence

If damages are $100,000 and the plaintiff is 30% responsible, the plaintiff recovers $70,000

Strict liability

Liability for harm caused by certain ultrahazardous activities or defective products even when the defendant used reasonable care

Ultrahazardous activity

An unusually dangerous activity for which a person may be held strictly liable for resulting harm

Product liability

Legal responsibility for injuries caused by defective products

Negligent product liability

Liability when a seller's negligence in design, manufacturing, or warnings causes harm

Strict product liability

Liability for a defective product even without proving negligence

Strict product liability requirement

The plaintiff generally must show the defendant manufactured or sold a defective product and that the defect caused the injury

Fourth Amendment

Protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government

Reasonable expectation of privacy

Privacy exists when a person actually expects privacy and society recognizes that expectation as reasonable

Third-party doctrine

Information voluntarily shared with a third party generally receives less Fourth Amendment protection

Public disclosure of private facts

Publicly revealing private information can be a tort when the disclosure would be highly offensive and the information is not of legitimate public concern

Intrusion

An offensive invasion into another person's private sphere

ECPA

The Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986, which prohibits unauthorized interception or disclosure of certain electronic communications

Wiretap Act

Prohibits unauthorized interception or recording of certain communications while they are being transmitted

Stored Communications Act

Protects certain stored electronic communications, such as stored emails

FISA

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which establishes rules for government collection of foreign intelligence within the United States

HIPAA

Federal law protecting medical information from unauthorized disclosure

FERPA

Federal law protecting the privacy of student education records

GDPR

European Union privacy law giving individuals broad rights concerning their personal information

First Amendment and the internet

The First Amendment protects many forms of online speech but does not protect certain illegal speech such as true threats, child pornography, obscenity, and fraud

Communications Decency Act (CDA)

Generally protects internet service providers and web hosts from liability for information created by other people

FCC

The Federal Communications Commission, the agency responsible for regulating electronic communications

True threats

Statements communicating serious threats of unlawful violence that are not protected by the First Amendment

Employer electronic monitoring

Employers may monitor electronic communications in certain situations, including employee consent and monitoring in the ordinary course of business

Privacy law reminder

The United States does not have one single source of privacy law

protection comes from constitutional provisions, statutes, and common law

Contract

A legally enforceable promise

Elements of a contract

Offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, legal purpose, consent, and sometimes a writing requirement

Bilateral contract

Both parties exchange promises

Unilateral contract

One party makes a promise and the other accepts by performing an act

Executory contract

One or both parties still have duties that have not been performed

Executed contract

All parties have completely performed their contractual duties

Valid contract

A contract that is fully enforceable

Unenforceable contract

An agreement that has a legal defect preventing enforcement

Voidable contract

A contract that one party has the option to cancel

Void contract

An agreement that the law will not recognize or enforce

Express contract

A contract in which the parties explicitly state their agreement and terms

Implied contract

A contract created by the parties' conduct, words, or past dealings rather than a formal agreement

UCC

The Uniform Commercial Code, which generally governs contracts for the sale of goods

Common law

The body of law that generally governs contracts other than sales of goods

Mixed contract

A contract involving both goods and services

the court looks at the primary purpose of the agreement

Promissory estoppel

A doctrine that may enforce a promise when the promisor expected reliance, the promisee reasonably relied on it, and refusing recovery would be unfair

Quasi-contract

A legal remedy used to prevent unjust enrichment when one party receives a benefit without paying for it

Meeting of the minds

The parties must agree on the essential terms of the contract

Offer

A statement or act proposing definite terms that allows the other party to create a contract by accepting

Offeror

The person who makes the offer

Offeree

The person who receives the offer

Ways an offer can end

Revocation, rejection, counteroffer, expiration, or destruction of the subject matter

Acceptance

The offeree's words or actions showing agreement to the offer

Mirror image rule

Under common law, acceptance must exactly match the terms of the offer

Mailbox rule

An acceptance is generally effective when it is properly dispatched

Silence as acceptance

Silence normally does not count as acceptance unless special circumstances make it reasonable

Consideration

Something of measurable legal value that is bargained for and exchanged between the parties

Two requirements of consideration

Each party must receive something of value and the parties must bargain for the exchange

Act or forbearance

Consideration can be an action or a promise to refrain from taking an action

Peppercorn rule

Courts generally do not question whether the amount of consideration is adequate as long as legal value was exchanged

Illegal contract

A contract for an illegal purpose is void and unenforceable

Capacity

A person's legal ability to enter into a binding contract

Minor's contracts

Minors generally have the right to disaffirm many contracts

Intoxication and contracts

An intoxicated person may disaffirm a contract if they were unable to understand the nature of the transaction

Fraud in contracts

An intentional or reckless misrepresentation of a material fact that the injured party justifiably relied upon

Elements of contract fraud

Intentional or reckless misrepresentation, material fact, and justifiable reliance

Unilateral mistake

Only one party is mistaken about a fundamental fact

When unilateral mistake may allow rescission

The other party knew or should have known of the mistake, the mistake was mathematical or mechanical, or enforcement would be unconscionable

Mutual mistake

Both parties make the same fundamental factual mistake about the subject matter of the contract

Statute of Frauds

A law requiring certain contracts to be in writing to be enforceable

Contracts covered by the Statute of Frauds

Land sales, agreements that cannot be performed within one year, promises to pay another's debt, executor promises, promises made in consideration of marriage, and sales of goods worth $500 or more

Statute of Frauds writing requirement

The writing must be signed by the defendant and identify the parties, subject matter, essential terms, and promises