INTENTIONAL TORTS

Topic 5: Intentional Torts

Overview

• Business Law in Canada, 13th Edition (Chapter 4, L.O. 4.1-4.4, pp. 111-144).

• Recommended readings from the 12th Edition (Chapter 4, pp. 98-117).

• Importance of reviewing case summaries for practical examples of various torts.

Objectives

• Define Tort: A wrongful act leading to compensation for the victim.

• Identify different types of damages.

• Describe vicarious liability and strict liability.

• Distinguish between various intentional torts:

  • Assault

  • Battery

  • Trespass to Chattels

  • Conversion

  • Detinue

  • Trespass to Land

  • False Imprisonment

  • Private Nuisance

  • Defamation

• Discuss torts related to breach of contract, intimidation, deceit, conspiracy, malicious prosecution, passing off, and injurious falsehoods.

• Review laws on invasion of privacy.

Understanding Tort Law

Definition of Tort

• Tort: A wrongful act (civil or social wrong) for which courts provide compensation.

• Difference from Criminal Law:

  • Criminal law aims at punishment and deterrence, affecting society as a whole.

  • Tort law focuses on victim compensation.

Role of Tort Law

• Compensates victims for harm suffered.

• Tortfeasor: A party found liable will pay compensatory and sometimes punitive damages to the victim.

• Serves to change behavior via liability threats.

Types of Damages

Special Damages

• Compensate for specific calculable pre-trial losses (e.g., medical expenses).

General Damages

• Awarded when quantifying the loss is challenging (e.g., pain and suffering, reputational harm).

Punitive Damages

• Serve to punish the tortfeasor; rarely awarded.

• Intended to address intangible injuries like humiliation.

Trends in Tort Law

• Fault: Expanded from intentional to include careless conduct (negligence).

• Causation: Shift from direct causation to a remoteness test.

• Compensable Injury: Broadened to include economic losses and emotional distress.

Compensation Assessment

• Courts navigate between compensating victims and not inhibiting beneficial conduct.

• Supreme Court Limit: Caps on pain and suffering around $350,000 to prevent excessive awards.

Vicarious Liability

• Employers may be liable for employees' tortious acts performed during work.

• An employer can recover losses from the employee if needed.

Types of Intentional Torts

1. Assault and Battery

• Assault: Threat of contact creating fear.

• Battery: Intentional physical contact without consent.

Defenses to Battery

• Consent: Must be informed.

• Self-Defense: Reasonable force permitted.

2. Trespass to Chattels

• Involves deliberate interference with personal property without consent.

3. Conversion

• Involves appropriating another's property as one’s own.

4. Detinue

• Wrongfully detaining someone else's property, despite initial permission.

5. Trespass to Land

• Being present on another's property without permission.

• Even with initial consent, continuing presence after permission is revoked constitutes trespass.

6. False Imprisonment

• Holding someone against their will; can involve unlawful restraint.

7. Defamation

• Harm to reputation; includes libel (written) and slander (spoken).

Defenses to Defamation

• Truth, Absolute Privilege, Qualified Privilege, Fair Comment.

Privacy Protection

• Breach of privacy is not recognized as a tort in common law; relies on statutes.

• Four specific statutes in Alberta provide privacy protection.

Statutory Protections

• Provincial Acts: Govern personal information handling by public bodies and organizations in Alberta.

• Federal Acts: Similar protections at the federal level, including PIPEDA.

Key Elements of a Tort

• Plaintiff must prove defined elements for tort action success. Elements are referred to as ingredients of the tort.

Case Study Examples

Runcer v. Gould

• Outrageous conduct led to aggravated and punitive damages.

Malette v. Shulman

• Case regarding consent and battery in the medical context.