Tort law
is the part of law for most harms that are not either
criminal
or based on a
contract
. Tort law helps people to make claims for
compensation
(repayment) when someone hurts them or hurts their property. For example, a car accident where one driver hurts another driver because he or she was not paying attention might be a
tort
. If a person is hurt by someone else, he or she can
sue
in
court
.
Many torts are accidents, like car accidents or slippery floors that make people fall down and get hurt. These are called
negligent
torts. But some torts are done on purpose. These are called
intentional
torts. For example, if one person punches another person in the nose, it might be an intentional tort called
battery
.
Many torts cause physical harm to people. Some torts cause damage to property, like a broken window. Some torts can harm other things, like someone's reputation or a business.
The kinds of torts this article talks about are a part of the
common law
. The common law is found in
England
and former British colonies, such as the
United States of America
. Different laws are found in
civil law
countries such as
France
or
Germany
. In those countries people usually use the word
delict
instead of tort, but they mean very similar things.
Torts are what happens when one person (or organization) injures another. The person or organization that causes the injury is known as a
tortfeasor
. The person who is injured is often called the
victim
.
The victim may sue the tortfeasor. The people or organizations on each side of a
lawsuit
are called the
parties
. In a lawsuit, the victim is called the
plaintiff
. The tortfeasor is called the
defendant
.
Usually, the plaintiff in a lawsuit is asking the court to make the defendant pay money to make up for the harm that the defendant caused. For example, the money that the plaintiff asks for might pay for the plaintiff's medical bills if he or she was hurt in an accident. Money that the court orders the defendant to pay is called
damages
. For some torts, especially ones done on purpose (intentional torts), the plaintiff might also ask the court to
punish
the defendant by making him or her pay extra money. That extra money is sometimes called
punitive damages
.
Sometimes a plaintiff also asks the court to order the defendant to stop doing something, like polluting the air or water. An order to stop doing something is called an
injunction
(in the United States it is sometimes called a
restraining order
).
Tort law or
'The Law of Torts'
is a body of laws that is applied by
civil court
proceedings to compensate people who have suffered harm due to the wrongful act of another.
[1]
Sometimes the same act can be both a tort and a
crime
. For instance, stealing someone else's property might be a
criminal
offense, but it is also a
tort
against the person who owns the property. Similarly, punching somebody in the nose can constitute both the crime and tort of
battery
.
When a defendant causes an injury on purpose, that injury is an intentional tort. Sometimes, an injury can be an intentional tort if the defendant knows it will happen, even if the defendant does not want it to happen. Intentional torts include hitting people and saying things about them that are not true.
Unintentional torts are accidents. They usually happen because someone was not being careful. When someone is not careful, it is called
negligence
or recklessness.
An example of negligence is driving a car while not paying attention to the road. In a case of negligence, the court figures out what happened and decides whether the defendant was careful enough. It orders the defendant to pay money only if the defendant was not careful enough.
Recklessness occurs when somebody knows that a substantial risk may result to the lives and safety of others as a result of his or her actions, but acts with indifference to the safety of others. An example of a reckless act is shooting a gun randomly toward an occupied building. Although there is no intent to hurt anybody inside of the building, the action creates a significant risk that somebody could be injured or killed.
In some kinds of cases, it does not matter whether the defendant was careful or not. This is called
strict liability
or
absolute liability
. For example, in the United States, if someone buys a soda can and it explodes because it was manufactured badly, the manufacturer will probably have to pay the victim money even if the court finds that the defendant was as careful as it could be.
Physical torts are injuries to a person's body, such as hitting them or making them sick.
Abstract torts are injuries to a person's mind,
reputation
, or
property
. A person's mind or reputation can be injured by saying things about them that are not true. A person's property can be injured by taking it from them without permission or saying that it belongs to someone else.
Torts that involve people include hitting them, saying things about them that are not true, and making them stay in one place when they want to leave. Hitting someone is called
battery
. Saying things about someone that are not true is called slander, and writing things about someone that are not true is called libel, both of which are forms of
defamation
. When a police officer takes a person to prison when he or she is not supposed to, that is called
false imprisonment
or
false arrest
.
Torts involving property include walking on someone else's property without permission, taking someone else's property without permission, or damaging someone else's property. Walking on someone else's property without permission is called
trespassing
. Taking someone else's property without permission is called stealing or
conversion
.