TORT LAW

TORT
- It denotes certain Civil wrong
(and not criminal wrong)
 Tort Law

- Refers to the set of laws that provides

remedies to individuals who have suffered
harm by the unreasonable acts of another.

- Tort law is the body of laws that enables

people to seek compensation for wrongs.
Objectives of Tort Law
The Primary Objective of tort law is to make whole someone who
has been damaged by the intentional or negligent acts of another.

The Secondary Objective of tort law is to provide means through

which someone who has been damaged by another may use the
power and authority of the state to prevent such harm from
recurring.

The Third Objective of tort law is to punish those who intentionally

and maliciously cause harm to another, such that their behavior is
unlikely to be repeated.
4 Elements to every successful tort
case:
1. Duty
2. Breach of Duty
3. Causation
4. Injury
 Tort Lawsuit are the biggest
category of civil litigation, and
can encompass a wide range of
personal injury cases however,
there are three main categories:
Intentional torts, Negligence, and
Strict liability.
Intentional torts
An Intentional Tort is when an individual or
entity purposely engages in conduct that
causes injury or damage to another.
Negligence Tort
The legal duty of care referred to is one
that arises independently of a
contractual obligation and, indeed, in the
absence of a contract. Over many years
the courts have produced a long series of
decisions to assist in deciding whether or
not, on particular facts, a duty of care
arises.
Strict Liability
Last are torts involving strict libility. Strict
or absolute liability applies to cases
when responsibility for an injury can be
imposed on the wrongdoer without proof
of negligence or direct fault. What
matters is that an action occurred and
resulted in the eventual injury of another
person.
 Contracts vs Tort
Contracts Tort

Promise which the law A collection of civil law remedies

will enforce. entitling to a person to recover
damages for loss and injury which
have been caused by the actions
There is a reciprocity of omissions or statements of another
undertaking passing person in such circumstances that
between the promisor and the latter was breach of a duty or
the promisee. obligation imposed at law.
 Contracts vs Tort
Contracts Tort

The rights and The rights and obligations are

obligations are created by created by the courts applying
the acts of agreement common law, which has, on the basis
between the parties to of previous authority fallen into three
the conceptual distinct categories:
arrangement. (1) Negligence
(2) Nuisance
(3) Trespass.
Negligence in Construction Industry
Unlike intentional torts, negligence cases do
not involve deliberate cases, but instead are
when an individual or entity is careless and
fails to provide a duty owned to another
person.
Negligence in Construction Industry
The tort of negligence is concerned with a breach of a
duty to take care. In order to succeed in action for
negligence, a plaintiff must prove:

The defendant owned to the plaintiff a legal duty of

care
The defendant was in breach of duty
The plaintiff has suffered damage as a result of that
breach
Nuisance in Construction Industry
Nuisance is unreasonable interference
with another partys use of land.

Nuisance can be public, private, or

statutory.
Nuisance in Construction Industry

3 Types of Nuisance

1.Public Nuisance
2.Private Nuisance
3.Statutory Nuisance
Nuisance in Construction Industry
1. Public Nuisance affects classes of
people and can constitute a criminal
offense.

2. Private Nuisance affects a specific

person s right to use land. A person
does not have to have a proprietary
interest in land to suffer nuisance.
Nuisance in Construction Industry
Private Nuisance might be caused by:

a)Encroachment onto land.

b)Damage to land or buildings.
c)Interference with a party s enjoyment of
the land.
Nuisance in Construction Industry
3. Under Part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990
certain matters may constitute statutory nuisance:
o Noise
oArtificial Light
o Odor
o Insects
o Smoke
o Dust
oPremises
oFumes or gases
o Accumulation or deposit
Trespass in building design and
construction
Trespass in construction industry usually refers
to intrusion upon land in the possession of another
without permission or right.

Trespass can be by a person on the land, or by

placing or leaving something on the land, although if
materials pass onto the other persons land as a
consequence of some action for which the defendant
has a right, then this is a nuisance rather that
trespass.