A tort is a civil law that holds a defendant liable for the injury they caused the plaintiff. Under tort law, a plaintiff can recover damages for the losses and harm that the defendant caused. There is a lot to unpack with tort, and in this article, we will explain tort law, with examples, and the legal remedies tort law offers plaintiffs.
The Basics of Tort Law
Tort law is a type of civil case where one party is liable for another party’s “injury.” In legal terms, injury does not always mean physical injuries like broken bones; it just means that the other party suffered some kind of harm. This may be lost wages, loss of opportunity, property damage, physical injuries, or deprivation of property. Tort law can be used in personal injury or property damage cases, as well as trespassing and fraud cases.
A tort case will need to examine if the defendant is in fact liable to the plaintiff, and if so, how much compensation the plaintiff is due for their injuries.
The plaintiff in the tort will present evidence for the compensatory damages they are claiming. The purpose of compensatory damages is to ensure the plaintiff is not worse off from the defendant’s actions in the tort incident. The court may also award punitive damages to punish the defendant for reckless or intentional behavior or to act as a deterrent.
The Three Types of Tort Law
There are three different types of tort: Negligence torts, intentional torts, and strict liability torts.
Negligence torts mean that the defendant did not act with the amount of care a reasonable person would and caused injury to the plaintiff. In this type of tort, the plaintiff must show that the defendant owed them a duty and they breached the duty. They must then show how the negligence caused the damages and present evidence of the damages. This is the most common type of tort. Examples of negligence torts are:
- Slip and falls
- Car accidents
- Medical malpractice
Intentional torts are when something the defendant intentionally did caused injury to the plaintiff. In this type of tort, the plaintiff must show that the defendant’s actions were intentional. Examples of intentional torts are:
- Fraud
- Assault
- Battery
- Infliction of emotional distress
- Trespassing
Strict liability torts focus on the incident itself. Certain types of incidents have an automatic presumption of liability, like a wild animal escaping and injuring someone. Examples of strict liability torts are:
- Extremely dangerous activities like hazardous material spills
- Owning wild animals
- Defective products
What Legal Remedies Can a Plaintiff Seek Under Tort Law?
The purpose of tort law is to restore the plaintiff to their previous situation (as much as possible) before the incident. While tort law cannot help a plaintiff regrow a leg that was lost in a car accident, it can compensate the plaintiff for medical bills and any loss of opportunity.
Common remedies that tort law provides plaintiffs are compensation, restitution, and injunctions and restraining orders. The plaintiff and their lawyer can discuss what tort remedies they are seeking and include it in their legal claim. They can seek these legal remedies even if the other party wants to settle, as settlements may include these types of tort remedies.