Personal Injury Defined:
Torts (Personal Injury) can be classified in three broad categories: negligence, intentional
torts and strict (or absolute liability) torts.
How do you define negligence?
The most common tort--and the one most difficult to define--is negligence.
Negligence is defined as the failure to use reasonable care to avoid a
foreseeable harm to a person, place or thing. An individual will be liable
if his or her unreasonable act or failure to act causes an injury, even if
the harm is unintentional.
Some common negligence claims involve:
- slip and fall accidents (a person slips,
falls and is injured on someone else's property);
- alcoholic beverage liability (a provider
of alcohol--either a social host or bartender--serves too many drinks
to an underage or noticeably intoxicated individual who is then
involved in an accident that causes injury to a third person);
- injuries on the job (workplace
accidents);
- motor vehicle accidents (accidents
caused by reckless or careless driving); and
- medical malpractice (when a doctor
doesn't maintain the level of skill and knowledge commonly exercised
by other doctors).
How do you define intentional tort?
Intentional harm or intentional tort is the "malicious" or
"intentional" infliction of harm that results in injury. For
example, if a person involved in an emotional dispute with you purposely
hits you with the intent to hurt you physically, the person must
compensate you for your injuries. Types of intentional torts are:
- Assault
- Battery
- False imprisonment
- Intentional infliction of emotional
distress
- Fraud and misrepresentation
- Wrongful death
- Harm to reputation (defamation)
- Trespass
- Trespass to chattel (theft of personal
property)
- Unauthorized contamination of property
Many intentional torts are also criminal
offenses. For example, an assault can result in both civil charges and
criminal charges.
How do you define strict (absolute) liability?
Strict or absolute liability means that the defendant is responsible for
injuring another person regardless of negligence or intent. Some instances
in which the law might apply strict liability are with regard to product
liability, abnormally dangerous or ultra-hazardous activities and animal
owner's liability. For example, a plaintiff may be entitled to
compensation after a defective product injures him or her regardless of
whether the manufacturer was actually negligent. In other words, the
plaintiff only has to prove that a product is defective or unreasonably
dangerous and that the defect caused the injury. It is not necessary to
show that the manufacturer was careless or negligent, which is much more
difficult to prove. |
