Tort Law, Seventh Edition
By J. Stanley Edwards and Traci L. Cull
Contents:
Preface xv
List of Cases xvii
About the Author xxvii
Part I
Introduction
Chapter 1
Overview of Tort Law 2
Chapter Objectives | 2
Background | 3
What Is a Tort? | 3
Reasonableness of Conduct | 4
Public Policy | 4
Morality of Conduct | 5
Slippery-Slope Arguments | 5
Creation of Case Law | 5
Relationship between Tort Law and Other Areas of the Law | 6
Brief History of Tort Law | 7
Case: Schultz and Another v. Frank | 9
Coming Full Circle | 11
Classification of Torts | 11
Summary | 12
Key Terms | 13
Review Questions | 13
Practice Exam | 14
Tort Teasers | 16
Internet Inquiries | 16
Practical Ponderables | 16
Chapter 2
Overview of a Tort Case 17
Chapter Objectives | 17
Initiating a Complaint | 18
Defendant’s Response | 20
Discovery | 20
Pretrial Procedures | 23
Trial | 23
Post-Trial | 25
Emphasis on Discovery throughout this Text | 25
Summary | 25
Key Terms | 26
Review Questions | 27
Practice Exam | 28
Tort Teasers | 31
Internet Inquiries | 32
Chapter 3
Intentional Torts 33
Chapter Objectives | 33
What Is an Intentional Tort? | 34
Intentional Torts against Persons | 35
Intentional Torts against Property | 40
Defenses | 43
Case: State v. Warren | 48
Summary | 54
Key Terms | 55
Review Questions | 56
Practice Exam | 56
Practice Pointers | 60
Tort Teasers | 64
Internet Inquiries | 65
Practical Ponderables | 65
Part II
Reasons to Sue
Chapter 4
Negligence: Duty 68
Chapter Objectives | 68
Overview of Duty | 69
Possessors of Land | 70
Trespassers | 70
Trespassers as Rescuers | 72
Licensees | 74
Invitees | 74
Common Law Distinctions Today | 76
Outside the Possessor’s Property | 76
Landlord/Tenant Liability | 76
Case: Hemmings v. Pelham Wood Ltd. | 78
Sellers of Land | 82
Duty to Protect or Aid Others | 82
Case: Seebold v. Prison Health Service, Inc. | 84
Case: Linda Riss, Appellant, v. City of New York,
Respondent | 90
Unborn Children | 94
Case: Castro v. Melchor | 95
Vicarious Liability | 99
Practice Pointers | 100
Summary | 100
Key Terms | 101
Review Questions | 102
Practice Problem | 103
Tort Teasers | 104
Practical Ponderables | 105
Internet Inquiries | 105
Chapter 5
Negligence: Breach of Duty 106
Chapter Objectives | 106
What Is Reasonable Conduct? | 107
Learned Hand Formula | 107
Case: Opinion | 109
Restatement Position | 115
Reasonable-Person Standard—Objective versus Subjective | 116
What the Reasonable Person Is Expected to Know | 116
Defendants with Special Characteristics | 117
Children | 118
Emergencies | 119
Case: Cordas v. Peerless Transportation Co. | 119
Custom | 121
Professions | 121
Negligence Per Se | 122
Case: Milbert v. Wells Township Haunted House Inc. | 124
Automobile-Guest Statutes | 131
Res Ipsa Loquitur | 131
Application | 133
Summary | 134
Key Terms | 135
Review Questions | 135
Practice Exam | 136
Practice Pointers | 138
Tort Teasers | 139
Internet Inquiries | 140
Practical Ponderables | 140
Chapter 6
Negligence: Causation 141
Chapter Objectives | 141
Actual Cause | 142
Case: Mohr v. Grantham | 145
Proximate Cause | 148
Case: Palsgraf v. Long Island Rail Co. | 150
Exceptions to the Cardozo Rule | 157
Intervening Causes | 159
Case: Patterson v. Thunder Pass, Inc. | 161
Jury Question | 164
Application | 165
Summary | 166
Key Terms | 166
Review Questions | 167
Practice Exam | 168
Practice Pointers | 170
Tort Teasers | 172
Internet Inquiries | 173
Practical Ponderables | 174
Chapter 7
Negligence: Damages 175
Chapter Objectives | 175
Categories of Damages | 176
Illustration of Damages | 176
Shortened Life Expectancy | 179
Collateral-Source Rule | 180
Expenses of Litigation | 180
Damages for Physical Harm to Property | 181
Damages in Product Liability Cases | 181
Punitive Damages | 181
Case: Phillip Morris USA v. Williams | 188
Recovery for Loss of Consortium | 194
Assessment of Damages | 196
Wrongful-Death and Survival Actions | 197
Discounting Future Damages | 199
Structured Settlements | 200
Mitigation of Damages | 201
Mental Suffering | 201
Application | 203
Summary | 204
Key Terms | 205
Review Questions | 206
Practice Exam | 207
Practice Pointers | 212
Tort Teasers | 214
Internet Inquiries | 215
Practical Ponderables | 216
Chapter 8
Negligence: Defenses 217
Chapter Objectives | 217
Contributory Negligence | 218
Comparative Negligence | 220
Case: Children’s Wish Foundation Intern, Inc. v. Mayer Hoffman McCann, PC | 222
Case: Kaatz v. State | 229
Assumption of Risk | 233
Case: Pellham v. Let’s Go Tubing, Inc. | 237
Immunities | 243
Statutes of Limitations and Statutes of Repose | 248
Application | 248
Summary | 249
Key Terms | 250
Review Questions | 251
Practice Exam | 252
Practice Pointers | 256
Tort Teasers | 257
Internet Inquiries | 259
Practical Ponderables | 259
Chapter 9
Malpractice and Professional Negligence 260
Chapter Objectives | 260
What Is Reasonable Care? | 261
How Negligence Can Occur | 261
Case: O’Neal v. St. John Hospital and Medical Center | 263
Specialists | 271
Informed Consent | 271
Battery versus Negligence | 272
Case: Cuc Thi Ngo v. Queen’s Medical Center | 273
Defenses to Professional Negligence | 283
Maintaining Adequate Records | 284
Underlying Causes of Professional
Negligence Suits | 285
How to Prevent Professional Negligence Suits | 286
Medical Malpractice Crisis | 288
Summary | 290
Key Terms | 290
Review Questions | 290
Practice Exam | 291
Practice Pointers | 296
Tort Teasers | 298
Internet Inquiries | 298
Practical Ponderables | 299
Chapter 10
Misrepresentation, Nuisance, and Other Torts 300
Chapter Objectives | 300
Development of Misrepresentation and Its Relationship to Other Torts | 301
Intentional Misrepresentation | 301
Negligent Misrepresentation | 305
Innocent Misrepresentation | 308
Nuisance | 308
Interference with Business Relations | 314
Case: Ixchel Pharma LLC v. Biogen, Inc. | 316
Misuse of Legal Process | 324
Summary | 326
Key Terms | 327
Review Questions | 327
Practice Exam | 329
Tort Teasers | 333
Internet Inquiries | 334
Practical Ponderables | 335
Chapter 11
Strict Liability 336
Chapter Objectives | 336
Overview of Strict Liability | 337
Strict Liability for Harm Caused by Animals | 337
Case: Gruber v. YMCA of Greater Indianapolis | 338
Abnormally Dangerous Activities | 341
Case: City of Neodesha v. BP Corp. North America, Inc. | 343
Product Liability | 349
Limitations on Strict Liability | 350
Summary | 352
Key Terms | 352
Review Questions | 352
Practice Exam | 353
Practice Pointers | 354
Witness Statements | 355
Photographs | 355
Tort Teasers | 356
Internet Inquiries | 357
Practical Ponderables | 357
Chapter 12
Product Liability 358
Chapter Objectives | 358
Overview of Product Liability | 359
Theories of Recovery | 359
Types of Losses | 369
Types of Defects | 369
Defenses | 376
Preemption | 378
Class Actions | 380
Summary | 382
Key Terms | 383
Review Questions | 384
Practice Exam | 385
Practice Pointers | 391
Tort Teasers | 392
Internet Inquiries | 394
Practical Ponderables | 394
Chapter 13
Defamation and Related Torts 395
Chapter Objectives | 395
Libel versus Slander | 395
What Is a Defamatory Statement? | 397
Case: WFAA-TV v. McLemore | 402
Privileges | 407
Defamation on the Web | 409
Invasion of Privacy | 411
Case: Minnifield v. Ashcraft | 413
Injurious Falsehood | 419
Summary | 421
Key Terms | 422
Review Questions | 423
Practice Exam | 424
Practice Pointers | 428
Tort Teasers | 429
Internet Inquiries | 430
Practical Ponderables | 430
Part III
Whom to Sue
Chapter 14
Vicarious Liability 432
Chapter Objectives | 432
Overview of Vicarious Liability | 433
Employer–Employee Relationship | 433
Employers–Independent Contractors | 435
Case: Lee v. Pulitzer Publishing Co. | 436
Bailments | 444
Imputed Contributory Negligence | 445
Parental Liability | 447
Summary | 448
Key Terms | 449
Review Questions | 449
Practice Exam | 450
Practice Pointers | 453
Sample Interrogatories | 453
Tort Teasers | 454
Internet Inquiries | 455
Practical Ponderables | 455
Chapter 15
Joint Liability 456
Chapter Objectives | 456
Joint and Several Liability | 457
Case: In Re Stutsman | 459
Satisfaction | 463
Contribution | 463
Case: Spence v. Julian | 466
Release | 466
Case: Reutzel v. Hunter Yes, Inc. | 474
Indemnification | 476
Summary | 478
Key Terms | 478
Review Questions | 479
Practice Exam | 479
Practice Pointers | 482
Tort Teasers | 484
Internet Inquiries | 485
Practical Ponderables | 486
Part IV
Torts in Practice
Chapter 16
Tort Reform 488
Chapter Objectives | 488
Goals of the Tort System | 488
Historical Roots of Tort Reform | 489
Focus of Today’s Reformers | 490
Is There Really a Problem? | 495
Tort Reform in Practice | 497
Summary | 505
Review Questions | 505
Practice Exam | 506
Tort Teasers | 509
Internet Inquiries | 510
Practical Ponderables | 510
Chapter 17
Automobile Insurance 511
Chapter Objectives | 511
Overview of Automobile Insurance | 512
Automobile Liability Coverage | 512
Medical Payment Coverage | 514
Comprehensive Coverage | 515
Collision Insurance | 515
Miscellaneous Coverage | 515
Uninsured Motorist Coverage | 515
Underinsured Motorist Coverage | 517
Arbitration | 517
Termination | 518
No-Fault Insurance | 518
Summary | 520
Key Terms | 521
Review Questions | 521
Practice Exam | 522
Practice Pointers | 525
Tort Teasers | 526
Internet Inquiries | 527
Practical Ponderables | 527
Chapter 18
Bad Faith 528
Chapter Objectives | 528
How Bad Faith Is Committed | 529
Historical Development of Bad Faith Concept | 529
Overview of Bad Faith | 530
First-Party versus Third-Party Claims | 531
Case: Nardelli v. Metropolitan Group Property and
Cas. Ins. Co.| 534
Case: Scottsdale Insurance Company v. Addison Insurance Co.| 543
Declaratory Judgment Actions | 548
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage | 549
Summary | 550
Key Terms | 551
Review Questions | 551
Practice Exam | 551
Practice Pointers | 553
Tort Teasers | 553
Internet Inquiries | 554
Practical Ponderables | 554
Chapter 19
Workers’ Compensation 555
Chapter Objectives | 555
What Is Workers’ Compensation? | 556
Historical Background | 556
The Statutory Framework | 557
Today’s Systems | 558
Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim | 561
Current Issues in Workers’ Compensation | 562
Summary | 563
Key Terms | 564
Review Questions | 564
Practice Exam | 564
Practice Pointers | 566
Tort Teasers | 566
Practical Ponderables | 567
Appendix A
Suggested Responses to “Putting It into Practice” Exercises and Answers to Practice Exams 569
Appendix B
Interviewing 613
Appendix C
Overview of Insurance 621
Glossary | 629
Index | 634