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Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff operated a mink ranch located in a rural area. Defendant company conducted blastings near plaintiff’s ranch and the vibrations from the blasting operations caused mother minks to kill her kittens. Plaintiff brought an action against defendant claiming strict liability.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Strict liability should be confined to consequences which lie within the extraordinary risk whose existence calls for such responsibility.
Citation. L.R. 1 Exch. 265 (1866)
Brief Fact Summary.
Defendant built a reservoir on top of plaintiff’s old mine. After the reservoir was completed, the mine shaft collapsed and flooded plaintiff’s mine.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
A person who lawfully brings something onto his land that if it escapes is capable of doing harm, is strictly liable for any harm occurring as a natural consequence of the escape.
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff was holding his plate and waiting to be served at a luncheon. The manager of the hotel, Flynn, snatched the plate from plaintiff’s hand and shouted a racial slur at plaintiff. Plaintiff sued the hotel, the manager, and the club where the hotel was located for assault and battery.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Actual physical contact is not necessary to constitute a battery, so long as there is contact with clothing or an object closely identified with the body as to be customarily regarded as part of the person.
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff is a waitress. A bottles of carbonated Coca Cola exploded and hurt her hand. Plaintiff sued the manufacturer.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur does not apply unless defendant had exclusive control of the thing causing the injury and the accident is of such a nature that it ordinarily would not occur in the absence of negligence by defendant.
Brief Fact Summary.
The decedent was a boy who lost his balance on a bridge and grabbed a live wire. The wire was maintained by defendant and was charged with high voltage. Plaintiff, as the administrator of decedent’s estate, brought a negligence action against defendant.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Defendant is liable for damages to plaintiff’s probable future but for defendant’s negligence.
Brief Fact Summary.
Defendant negligently drove his car and killed Dillion. Dillion’s mom and sister both witnessed the accident and sued defendant for negligent infliction of emotional distress.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
In awarding recovery for emotional shock upon witnessing another’s injury or death, the zone of danger doctrine is not a determinative factor.
Citation. 144 App. Cas. 337 (House of Lords, 1899)
Brief Fact Summary.
The defendant misrepresented to the plaintiff that the defendant’s company was authorized in moving its carriages to use steam power instead of horses, thus inducing the plaintiff to purchase shares in the defendant’s company. The company had been authorized by a special act of Parliament to build certain tramways.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
To succeed on an action of deceit, a plaintiff must prove that a misrepresentation was fraudulent.
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff’s donkey was tied on the side of a public highway eating grass. Defendant’s wagon hit the donkey and killed it. Plaintiff brought suit and the jury found in his favor. Mann appealed.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Plaintiff can recover for defendant’s negligence if defendant had a clear chance to avoid the accident and failed to do so.
Brief Fact Summary.
One of the plaintiff’s tenants was injured due to her negligence, but her insurance company refused to settle. The tenant won in court and was awarded a much higher damage amount than the settlement had proposed. This caused the plaintiff’s financial situation to drastically change, leading to a decline in her health.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Insurers are liable for the consequences of refusing to settle if they knew there was considerable risk of substantial recovery beyond the policy limits and they failed to consider the insured’s interests equal to their own.
Brief Fact Summary.
Several robbers came to defendant’s jewelry store and threatened defendant. Defendant grabbed his revolver and chased them outside. Defendant fired warning shots in the air and attracted police officers. Plaintiff, a police officer, approached defendant but was shot by defendant. Defendant claimed that he thought the officer was one of the rioters and shot in self-defense.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Where a defendant in a civil action raises self-defense, he must satisfy the jury not only that he acted honestly in using force, but that his fears were reasonable under the circumstances; and also as to the reasonableness of the means made use of.
Brief Fact Summary.
The plaintiff, a small elderly man, was falsely accused of shoplifting from the defendant. He was taken back into the store from which he had just purchased a sport coat, and he began to feel ill. He was ultimately hospitalized for a myocardial infarct caused by the emotional distress of the incident.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
One must be reasonably justified, using the standard of a reasonable person, in believing that someone was shoplifting in order to detain them without liability.
Brief Fact Summary.
A chapter of the defendant’s book about the 2008-2009 US housing market collapse paints the plaintiff in a negative light. The plaintiff claims that 26 statements made in the chapter are defamatory.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
None of the statements made about the plaintiff in the book are actionable because they do not meet the criteria laid out under New York libel law.
Citation. 11 East. 60, 103 Eng. Rep. 926 (K.B. 1809)
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff was thrown off his horse and injured on a public road. Plaintiff claimed that his injury was caused by the pole placed by defendant across the road. Plaintiff sued defendant for negligence.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Plaintiff cannot recover for defendant’s negligence if plaintiff did not use reasonable and ordinary care to avoid the accident.
Brief Fact Summary.
Defendant was not licensed to practice medicine, but gave plaintiff several medical treatments. Plaintiff was paralyzed, and sue defendant for negligence per se.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
If violation of a statute by the defendant is the proximate cause of a plaintiff’s injury, then the plaintiff may recover upon proof of violation; if violation of the statute has no direct bearing on the injury, proof of the violation does not necessary constitute negligence.
Brief Fact Summary.
In attempting to separate two fighting dogs, defendant unintentionally struck the plaintiff in the eye with a stick, causing serious injuries to plaintiff.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
An individual, who in the course of doing a lawful act uses ordinary care, is not liable for injuries resulting from the lawful act.
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiffs sued defendant for trespass and nuisance, claiming defendant company’s emission damaged plaintiffs’ properties.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Whenever the damage resulting from a nuisance is found not unsubstantial ($ 100 a year), injunction should flow.
Brief Fact Summary.
Plaintiff was a 15 year old girl. She filed an action against defendant, alleging that a chauffeur from defendant company raped her while she was a passenger on the bus.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Plaintiff, even under the age of eighteen, has no cause of action against a male with whom she willingly consorts, if she knows the nature and quality of her act.
Brief Fact Summary.
During the terrorist attack of the World Trade Center on 9/11, a building located on the northern edge of the World Trade Center site was burned down due to flaming debris from the attack. Firefighters did not have the resources to fight that fire, so they made the decision to allow the building to collapse. The plaintiff’s electrical substation was located underneath the building and was destroyed in the collapse.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
A defendant’s negligence must be causally and factually linked to the plaintiff’s injury beyond speculation for the defendant to be held liable.
Continue reading “Aegis Insurance Services, Inc. v. 7 World Trade Co., L.P.”
Brief Fact Summary.
Mrs. Zuchowicz was prescribed Danocrine at double the maximum authorized dosage for one month and the maximum authorized dosage for two months. Four months after, she developed a rare heart disease that caused her death. Her husband sued for her Estate, relying heavily on two expert witnesses because research on excess dosages of Danocrine were not readily available.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
When use of a drug results in a negative side effect and the drug was wrongly prescribed in an unapproved and excessive dosage, the injured plaintiff has generally shown enough to permit the finder of fact to conclude that the excessive dosage was a substantial factor in producing the harm and it is up to the defendant to produce an explanation for why the wrongful conduct was not a substantial factor in producing the plaintiff’s injury.
Brief Fact Summary.
A news reporter filmed Zacchini’s 15-second cannonball act without Zacchini’s consent and broadcast the entire act on a routine news program.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
The First and Fourteenth Amendments do not immunize the media when they broadcast a performer’s entire act without compensation and without his consent.
Continue reading “Zacchini v. Scripps-Howard Broadcasting Co.”
Brief Fact Summary.
A nonparty allegedly told Mincolla that Yonaty was gay or bisexual, and then Mincolla told a close family friend of Yonaty’s long-time girlfriend with the hope that Yonaty’s girlfriend would be told. Yonaty and his girlfriend thereafter broke up.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
Statements falsely describing a person as lesbian, gay or bisexual do not constitute slander per se.
Brief Fact Summary.
Eldridge was hired to get a photo of Womack to use in a sexual molestation case, so she posed as a news reporter writing an article on Womack’s place of employment. The photograph was unsuccessful at trial and resulted in dragging Womack into the case when his only nexus to the case was that he worked at the same place where Seifert was arrested. Womack suffered great shock, distress, and nervousness because of Eldridge’s fraud and deceit and how his community might perceive him as a child molester.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
A cause of action will lie for emotional distress, unaccompanied by physical injury, provided the following elements are shown:
Brief Fact Summary.
Without announcing his entry, Wishnatsky attempted to enter Crary’s office. Huey pushed the door closed, effectively pushing Wishnatsky back into the hallway.Wishnatsky sued Huey for battery.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
A person is not liable for battery for mere offensive contact with another person that was unintentional and occurred due to the inevitable contact of a crowded world.
Brief Fact Summary.
DC Comics published a fictional comic book featuring two villainous brothers that had the likeness of well-known musicians Johnny and Edgar Winter.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
When an artist is faced with a right of publicity challenge to the artist’s work, the artist may raise an affirmative defense that the work is protected by the First Amendment if it contains significant transformative elements or the value of the work does not derive primarily from the celebrity’s fame.
Brief Fact Summary.
Wells worked as secretary to a DNC executive director during the Watergate scandal. A key to her desk was found in the burglars’ possession after they were arrested. Liddy, bolstered by media speculations, repeated a conspiracy theory that Nixon’s legal counsel had ordered the break-in to see whether the DNC was arranging call girls for visiting dignitaries. According to the theory, Wells’ stolen key led to a drawer of a list or photos of such call girls.
Synopsis of Rule of Law.
An individual is an involuntary public figure when she acts in a manner reasonably foreseeable to cause public interest, an actual public controversy occurs, the defamatory statement is made thereafter, and she is recognized as a central figure during debate over that matter.