Quiz 6: Tort Law
Business
Q 1Q 1
Defamation Richard is an employee of the Dun Construction Corp. While delivering materials to a construction site, he carelessly backs Dun's truck into a passenger vehicle driven by Green. This is Richard's second accident in six months. When the company owner, Dun, learns of this latest accident, a heated discussion ensues, and Dun fires Richard. Dun is so angry that he immediately writes a letter to the union of which Richard is a member and to all other construction companies in the community, stating that Richard is the "worst driver in the city" and that "anyone who hires him is asking for legal liability." Richard files a suit against Dun, alleging libel on the basis of the statements made in the letters. Discuss the results.
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Defamation: • The tort of libel is defamatory speech in a written statement that wrongfully causes injury to another's reputation. A court will determine whether the defendant made a statement of opinion or a statement of fact. • Statements of opinion are usually not actionable; however a statement of fact is actionable. A statement of fact is false and represents something as fact. • For a plaintiff to prevail in a lawsuit for libel she must prove injury to reputation, and that the statement was false. The statement that Richerd is the "worst" driver in the city is obviously a false statement, and so is the statement that hiring him is asking for legal liability. • Richard will have to prove the falsehood of those statements in court. General damages are presumed as a matter of law and are designed to compensate the plaintiff for nonspecific harms such as disgrace or dishonor in the eyes of the community, and emotional distress. • If Richard can prove that he has been turned down for a job because of Dun's statement, then he will prevail in a lawsuit.
Q 2Q 2
Two sisters, Darla and Irene, are partners in an import business located in a small town in Rhode Island. Irene is married to a well-known real estate developer and is campaigning to be the mayor of their town. Darla is in her mid-thirties and has never been married. Both sisters travel to other countries to purchase the goods they sell at their retail store. Irene buys Indonesian goods, and Darla buys goods from Africa. After a tsunami destroys many of the cities in Indonesia to which Irene usually travels, she phones one of her contacts there and asks him to procure some items and ship them to her. He informs her that it will be impossible to buy these items now because the townspeople are being evacuated due to a water shortage. Irene is angry and tells the man that if he cannot purchase the goods, he should just take them without paying for them after the town has been evacuated. Darla overhears her sister's instructions and is outraged. They have a falling-out, and Darla decides that she no longer wishes to be in business with her sister. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
Suppose that Darla tells several of her friends about Irene's instructing the man to take goods without paying for them after the tsunami disaster. If Irene fi les a tort action against Darla alleging slander, will her suit be successful? Why or why not?
DEBATE THIS : Because of the often anonymous nature of the Internet, defamation has become an outdated legal concept. It's now too difficult to track down the person responsible for the defamatory statement.
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Defamation I could sue D on the ground of defamation but she cannot be successful in her case. Defamation means making false and defamatory statements about some person which lower's down her reputation. In this case, if D told her friends about I's instruction to the man to take the goods without paying for them after the tsunami disaster. It cannot be claimed as defamation as I did not make any false statement. Therefore, the suit for defamation would not stand just and D will not be successful in her suit.
Q 3Q 3
QUESTION WITH SAMPLE ANSWER: Wrongful Interference.
Lothar owns a bakery. He has been trying to obtain a long-term contract with the owner of Martha's Tea Salons for some time. Lothar starts a local advertising campaign on radio and television and in the newspaper. This advertising campaign is so persuasive that Martha decides to break the contract she has had with Harley's Bakery so that she can patronize Lothar's bakery. Is Lothar liable to Harley's Bakery for the tort of wrongful interference with a contractual relationship? Is Martha liable for this tort?
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Case brief: L was a bakery owner and trying to obtain a long-term contract with the owner of MT salon. L makes a advertising campaigns in TV and newspaper which appears to be very persuasive then the MT salon decided to break the contract with him. Doe L was liable for the tort of wrongful interference with regard to contract relationship. Intentional torts against people: Intentional tort is an illegal act that causes to harm other person with an intention is termed as intentional torts. While it happens against a person intentionally then is called as intentional torts against people. The theory under which H may be able to recover would be an intentional tort of "wrongful interference with a contractual relationship." H must prove the following: • H and M had a valid contract • L knew of the contract between H and M • L purposely tried to interfere with the contract by convincing M to break the contract with H. In this case, L may have hoped that his ads would cause M to end her contract with H. However, M's decision was based on the ads, rather than anything L did. Thus, L cannot be guilty of the tort Although H cannot recover against L, he may still be able recover against M for breach of contract.
Q 4Q 4
Two sisters, Darla and Irene, are partners in an import business located in a small town in Rhode Island. Irene is married to a well-known real estate developer and is campaigning to be the mayor of their town. Darla is in her mid-thirties and has never been married. Both sisters travel to other countries to purchase the goods they sell at their retail store. Irene buys Indonesian goods, and Darla buys goods from Africa. After a tsunami destroys many of the cities in Indonesia to which Irene usually travels, she phones one of her contacts there and asks him to procure some items and ship them to her. He informs her that it will be impossible to buy these items now because the townspeople are being evacuated due to a water shortage. Irene is angry and tells the man that if he cannot purchase the goods, he should just take them without paying for them after the town has been evacuated. Darla overhears her sister's instructions and is outraged. They have a falling-out, and Darla decides that she no longer wishes to be in business with her sister. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
Now suppose that Irene wins the election and becomes the city's mayor. Darla then writes a letter to the editor of the local newspaper disclosing Irene's misconduct. If Irene accuses Darla of committing libel, what defenses could Darla assert?
DEBATE THIS : Because of the often anonymous nature of the Internet, defamation has become an outdated legal concept. It's now too difficult to track down the person responsible for the defamatory statement.
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Q 5Q 5
Intentional Torts against Property Gerrit is a former employee of ABC Auto Repair Co. He enters ABC's repair shop, claiming that the company owes him $800 in back wages. Gerrit argues with ABC's general manager, Steward, and Steward orders him off the property. Gerrit refuses to leave, and Steward tells two mechanics to throw him off the property. Gerrit runs to his truck, but on the way, he grabs some tools valued at $800; then he drives away. Gerrit refuses to return the tools.
(a) Discuss whether Gerrit has committed any torts.
(b) If the mechanics had thrown Gerrit off the property, would ABC be guilty of assault and battery? Explain.
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Q 6Q 6
Two sisters, Darla and Irene, are partners in an import business located in a small town in Rhode Island. Irene is married to a well-known real estate developer and is campaigning to be the mayor of their town. Darla is in her mid-thirties and has never been married. Both sisters travel to other countries to purchase the goods they sell at their retail store. Irene buys Indonesian goods, and Darla buys goods from Africa. After a tsunami destroys many of the cities in Indonesia to which Irene usually travels, she phones one of her contacts there and asks him to procure some items and ship them to her. He informs her that it will be impossible to buy these items now because the townspeople are being evacuated due to a water shortage. Irene is angry and tells the man that if he cannot purchase the goods, he should just take them without paying for them after the town has been evacuated. Darla overhears her sister's instructions and is outraged. They have a falling-out, and Darla decides that she no longer wishes to be in business with her sister. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
If Irene accepts goods shipped from Indonesia that were wrongfully obtained, has she committed an intentional tort against property? Explain.
DEBATE THIS : Because of the often anonymous nature of the Internet, defamation has become an outdated legal concept. It's now too difficult to track down the person responsible for the defamatory statement.
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Q 7Q 7
Intentional Torts against Property Gary Kremen registered the domain name "sex.com" with Network Solutions, Inc., to the name of Kremen's business, Online Classifieds. Later, Stephen Cohen sent Network Solutions a letter that he claimed to have received from Online Classifieds. It stated that "we have no objections to your use of the domain name sex.com and this letter shall serve as our authorization to the Internet registrar to transfer sex.com to your corporation." Without contacting Kremen, Network Solutions transferred the name to Cohen, who subsequently turned sex.com into a lucrative business. Kremen filed a suit in a federal district court against Cohen and others, seeking the name and Cohen's profits. The court ordered Cohen to return the name to Kremen and pay $65 million in damages. Cohen ignored the order and disappeared. Against what other parties might Kremen attempt to obtain relief? Under which theory of intentional torts against property might Kremen be able to file an action? What is the likely result, and why? [ Kremen v. Cohen, 337 F.3d 1024 (9th Cir. 2003)]
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Q 8Q 8
Two sisters, Darla and Irene, are partners in an import business located in a small town in Rhode Island. Irene is married to a well-known real estate developer and is campaigning to be the mayor of their town. Darla is in her mid-thirties and has never been married. Both sisters travel to other countries to purchase the goods they sell at their retail store. Irene buys Indonesian goods, and Darla buys goods from Africa. After a tsunami destroys many of the cities in Indonesia to which Irene usually travels, she phones one of her contacts there and asks him to procure some items and ship them to her. He informs her that it will be impossible to buy these items now because the townspeople are being evacuated due to a water shortage. Irene is angry and tells the man that if he cannot purchase the goods, he should just take them without paying for them after the town has been evacuated. Darla overhears her sister's instructions and is outraged. They have a falling-out, and Darla decides that she no longer wishes to be in business with her sister. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
Suppose now that Irene, who is angry with her sister for disclosing her business improprieties, writes a letter to the editor falsely accusing Darla of having sexual relations with her neighbor's thirteen-yearold son. For what intentional tort or torts could Darla sue Irene in this situation?
DEBATE THIS : Because of the often anonymous nature of the Internet, defamation has become an outdated legal concept. It's now too difficult to track down the person responsible for the defamatory statement.
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Q 9Q 9
Invasion of Privacy During the spring and summer of 1999, Edward and Geneva Irvine received numerous "hang-up" phone calls, including three calls in the middle of the night. With the help of their local phone company, the Irvines learned that many of the calls were from the telemarketing department of the Akron Beacon Journal in Akron, Ohio. The Beacon's sales force was equipped with an automatic dialing machine. During business hours, the dialer was used to maximize productivity by calling multiple phone numbers at once and connecting a call to a sales representative only after it was answered. After business hours, the Beacon programmed its dialer to dial a list of disconnected numbers to determine whether they had been reconnected. If the dialer detected a ring, it recorded the information and dropped the call. If the automated dialing system crashed, which happened frequently, it redialed the entire list. The Irvines filed a suit in an Ohio state court against the Beacon and others, alleging, among other things, an invasion of privacy. In whose favor should the court rule, and why? [ Irvine v. Akron Beacon Journal, 147 Ohio App.3d 428, 770 N.E.2d 1105 (9 Dist. 2002)]
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Q 10Q 10
Defamation Lydia Hagberg went to her bank, California Federal Bank, FSB, to cash a check made out to her by Smith Barney (SB), an investment services firm. Nolene Showalter, a bank employee, suspected that the check was counterfeit. Showalter called SB and was told that the check was not valid. As she phoned the police, Gary Wood, a bank security officer, contacted SB again and was informed that its earlier statement was "erroneous" and that the check was valid. Meanwhile, a police officer arrived, drew Hagberg away from the teller's window, spread her legs, patted her down, and handcuffed her. The officer searched her purse, asked her whether she had any weapons and whether she was driving a stolen vehicle, and arrested her. Hagberg filed a suit in a California state court against the bank and others, alleging slander. Should the absolute privilege for communications made in judicial or other official proceedings apply to statements made when a citizen contacts the police to report suspected criminal activity? Why or why not? [ Hagberg v. California Federal Bank, FSB, 32 Cal.4th 350, 7 Cal.Rptr.3d 803 (2004)]
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Q 11Q 11
CASE PROBLEM WITH SAMPLE ANSWER: Emotional Distress.
Between 1996 and 1998, Donna Swanson received several anonymous, handwritten letters that, among other things, accused her husband Alan of infidelity. In 1998, John Grisham, Jr., the author of The Firm and many other best-selling novels, received an anonymous letter that appeared to have been written by the same person. Grisham and the Swansons suspected Katherine Almy, who soon filed a suit in a Virginia state court against them, alleging, among other things, intentional infliction of emotional distress. According to Almy, Grisham had said that he "really, really wanted to make [her] suffer for writing those letters," and the three devised a scheme to falsely accuse her. They gave David Liebman, a handwriting analyst, samples of Almy's handwriting. These included copies of confidential documents from her children's files at St. Anne's-Belfield School in Charlottesville, Virginia, where Alan Swanson taught and Grisham served on the board of directors. In Almy's view, Grisham influenced Liebman to report that Almy might have written the letters and misrepresented this report as conclusive, which led the police to confront Almy. She claimed that she then suffered severe emotional distress and depression, causing "a complete disintegration of virtually every aspect of her life" and requiring her "to undergo extensive therapy." In response, the defendants asked the court to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim. Should the court grant this request? Explain. [ Almy v. Grisham, 273 Va. 68, 639 S.E.2d 182 (2007)]
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Q 12Q 12
Libel and Invasion of Privacy The Northwest Herald, a newspaper in Illinois, regularly received e-mail reports from area police departments about criminal arrests. The paper published the information, which is proper because the reports are public records. One day, the Herald received an e-mail stating that Carolene Eubanks had been charged with theft and obstruction of justice. The paper put that information into an issue that was to be published four days later. Several hours after the original e-mail had been received, the police issued another e-mail, explaining that Eubanks had not been charged with anything; the correct name was Barbara Bradshaw. Due to a long weekend, no one at the Herald noticed the e-mail until after the paper had been published. The following day, five days after the e-mails had been received, the paper published a correction. Eubanks sued the Herald for libel and for invasion of privacy. Does Eubanks have a good case for either tort? Why or why not? [ Eubanks v. Northwest Herald Newspapers, 922 N.E.2d 1196 (App.Ct.IU. 2010)]
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Q 13Q 13
Business Torts Medtronic, Inc., is a diversified medical technology company that develops therapies to treat a variety of medical conditions. The market is highly competitive, and Medtronic competes nationally and internationally with St. Jude Medical S.C., Inc. James Hughes worked for Medtronic as a district sales manager in Birmingham, Alabama. Hughes's employment contract prohibited him from working on competitors' products for one year after leaving Medtronic. After thirteen years with Medtronic, Hughes sought and accepted employment as a sales director for St. Jude in Orlando, Florida. In their negotiations, representatives of St. Jude told Hughes that they believed his employment contract with Medtronic was unenforceable. Medtronic fi led a lawsuit in a Minnesota state court against St. Jude, alleging wrongful interference. Which type of wrongful interference tort was most likely the basis for this lawsuit? What are its elements and defenses? Should the defendant be held liable? Why or why not? [Medtronic, Inc. v. Hughes, __ N.W.2d __ (Minn.App. 2011)]
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Q 14Q 14
A QUESTION OF ETHICS: Wrongful Interference with a Contractual Relationship.
White Plains Coat Apron Co. is a New York-based linen rental business. Cintas Corp. is a nationwide business that rents similar products. White Plains had five-year exclusive contracts with some of its customers. As a result of Cintas's soliciting of business, dozens of White Plains' customers breached their contracts and entered into rental agreements with Cintas. White Plains demanded that Cintas stop its solicitation of White Plains' customers. Cintas refused. White Plains filed a suit in a federal district court against Cintas, alleging wrongful interference with existing contracts. Cintas argued that it had no knowledge of any contracts with White Plains and had not induced any breach. The court dismissed the suit, riding that Cintas had a legitimate interest as a competitor to solicit business and make a profit. White Plains appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. [ White Plains Coat Apron Co. v. Cintas Corp., 8 N.Y.3d 422, 867 N.E.2d 381 (2007)]
(a) What are the two important policy interests at odds in wrongful interference cases? Which of these interests should be accorded priority?
(b) The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit asked the New York Court of Appeals to answer a question: Is a general interest in soliciting business for profit a sufficient defense to a claim of wrongful interference with a contractual relationship? What do you think? Why?
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