Question 1

Dewayne sold a space heater to Vivian, telling her it would heat a 200-square-foot area, even though he knew it would effectively heat only about one-third of that space. Dewayne is liable for the intentional tort of fraud.

Accepted Answer

Dewayne intentionally misled Vivian and made a false representation that induced her to purchase the space heater. This constitutes the intentional tort of fraud.

Question 2

In order for a plaintiff to win a case involving intentional infliction of emotional distress, she must prove the defendant acted in an extreme and outrageous manner.

Accepted Answer

This is a key element of the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress. The defendant's conduct must be so extreme and outrageous that it exceeds the bounds of decency and is intolerable in a civilized society.

Question 3

Which of the following statements about torts is correct?

Accepted Answer

A tortious act may also be a criminal act, but not always. Criminal acts involve violations of criminal law, while torts involve civil wrongs. Some torts, such as assault, battery, and theft, may also be crimes. However, contract disputes are not torts, as they involve breaches of contract rather than civil wrongs.

Question 4

A salesclerk at Braybon's Department Store observed a customer remove a ring from a display case and put it in her purse. In most states, Braybon's will be able to detain the customer for suspicion of shoplifting.

Accepted Answer

In most states, store clerks or security personnel are allowed to detain customers if they have reasonable suspicion of shoplifting. However, there are specific guidelines and restrictions, and the detainment must be done in a reasonable manner.

Question 5

If Gloria threw a rock that hit Merle, she is liable for an intentional tort of battery only if she intended to injure or harm Merle.

Accepted Answer

Gloria can be liable for the intentional tort of battery if she intended the act itself (throwing the rock) that resulted in contact, regardless of whether she intended to injure or harm Merle. Intent to harm is not a necessary element for battery; intent to make contact suffices.

Question 6

A witness testifying in a court or legislature may never be sued for defamation.

Accepted Answer

Witnesses testifying in court or legislature are protected by absolute privilege, which means they cannot be sued for defamation for anything they say in their testimony. This protection is necessary to ensure that witnesses can speak openly and honestly without fear of legal repercussions.

Question 7

Shortly after Brian started to work at Trevit, Inc., a coworker, Ann, began asking him out. Brian said no. Nevertheless, Ann persisted. One day Ann playfully but intentionally touched Brian "below the belt." Which statement is correct?

Accepted Answer

Ann committed the tort of battery by intentionally touching Brian "below the belt" without his consent.

Question 8

The First Amendment guarantee of freedom of speech is an absolute right.

Accepted Answer

The First Amendment does not guarantee an absolute right to free speech. There are certain types of speech that are not protected, such as speech that incites violence or poses a clear and immediate danger to others. Additionally, there are certain restrictions that can be placed on speech, such as restrictions on obscenity, defamation, or speech that infringes on intellectual property rights.

Question 9

The single recovery principle requires a court to settle a matter once and for all by awarding a lump sum for past and future expenses.

Accepted Answer

The statement is true. The single recovery principle aims to avoid multiple lawsuits and awards by requiring the court to consider all past and future damages and expenses in one lump sum settlement.

Question 10

Taking or using someone's personal property without consent is referred to as

Accepted Answer

Conversion is the legal term for taking someone's personal property without their consent or authorization. It is considered a civil wrong and can result in the victim seeking compensation for the value of the property that was wrongfully taken or used. The other options, fraud, negligence, and trespassing, involve different actions and legal consequences.

Question 11

In an advertisement, FreshAir, Inc. stated that its air freshener lasted for 3 hours while the competitor's Smell Sweet lasted for only 36 minutes. In fact, Smell Sweet freshens the air for more than 2 hours. FreshAir has not violated the Lanham Act because the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech applies.

Accepted Answer

FreshAir, Inc. has made a false and misleading statement about its product and the competitor's product, violating the Lanham Act. The First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech does not protect false advertising.

Question 12

Punitive damages are intended to punish the defendant for conduct that is extreme and outrageous.

Accepted Answer

Punitive damages are meant to punish the defendant for their conduct, which is considered extreme and outrageous.

Question 13

A tort is a violation of a duty imposed by the civil law.

Accepted Answer

This is the definition of a tort, which is a type of civil wrong that can result in legal liability for the person who committed the wrongful act.

Question 14

Working out some frustrations after a bad game, Jessica angrily hits a baseball and then sees it is flying toward the umpire. She yells, "Watch out!" The umpire ducks and the ball misses him. Since there was no physical contact, no assault or battery occurred.

Accepted Answer

Assault can occur without physical contact if there is an intentional act that causes another person to fear imminent harmful or offensive contact. In this scenario, the act of hitting the baseball towards the umpire and causing fear of being hit constitutes assault, even though the ball did not physically contact the umpire.

Question 15

Ahmi was a witness in a lawsuit. When asked why he fired Rana, Ahmi replied, "Rana was fired for willful misconduct." Indeed, Rana had not engaged in any misconduct. Rana will be able to successfully sue Ahmi for defamation based on what Ahmi said in court.

Accepted Answer

Statements made in the course of judicial proceedings are generally protected by absolute privilege, meaning Ahmi cannot be sued for defamation for statements made during a lawsuit.

Question 16

Lori works for Big Corporation. The existing contract between Lori and Big Corporation can be terminated at will by either party. Richard, the owner of a small store, offers to pay Lori much more money if she will leave Big Corporation and work for his store. When Lori starts to work for Richard, Big Corporation correctly claims Richard is liable for tortious interference with a contract.

Accepted Answer

Since the contract between Lori and Big Corporation can be terminated at will by either party, Richard's offer to Lori does not constitute tortious interference with a contract because there is no breach of a fixed-term contract.

Question 17

Jim told his manager, Lana, that a coworker, Diane, had been in prison for theft. Lana checked into the matter, and when she learned that Diane had served time in prison for theft, she fired her.

Accepted Answer

Jim is not liable for defamation because defamation requires the statement to be false. Since Diane did indeed serve time in prison for theft, Jim's statement is true, and truth is a defense against defamation.

Question 18

A national magazine published an article about a famous television star. The television personality is upset because the information contained in the story is not correct. If the actress sues the magazine,

Accepted Answer

In order to successfully sue the magazine for defamation, the actress will need to prove that the magazine either knew the story was false or acted with reckless disregard of the facts. This is the legal standard for proving defamation in the United States, known as the actual malice standard. It is not enough for the information to be incorrect, the actress must prove that the magazine acted knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth.

Question 19

Public officials can win a defamation case only by proving the defendant's actual malice.

Accepted Answer

According to the landmark Supreme Court case New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964), public officials must prove that the defendant acted with actual malice to win a defamation case. Actual malice means that the defendant knew the statement was false or made it with reckless disregard for its truth or falsity.

Question 20

There are four elements to a defamation case, and the plaintiff in any kind of lawsuit must prove one of the four elements to prevail.

Accepted Answer

There are actually five elements to a defamation case: 1) a false statement was made about the plaintiff; 2) the statement was published or communicated to a third party; 3) the plaintiff suffered harm as a result of the statement; 4) the statement was made with fault (either negligence or intent); and 5) the statement is not protected speech. The plaintiff must prove all five elements to prevail in a defamation case.

Quiz 8: Intentional Torts and Business Torts