Law of Torts questions for study

  1. What is the difference between damage and damages –
DamageDamages
The loss or injury sustainedThe reparation given as a result of Damage
Is the cause of actionIs the end result of the cause of action
Loss is directed towards property or personDamages are levied on individuals who are the direct or indirect cause of injury
Can be sustained without a claim for damagesDamages cannot exist without the existence of sustained damage

2. Define “Nuisance” – Ordinarily, nuisance means disturbances. According to Winfield, nuisance is incapable of an exact definition. But for the purpose of the law of tort, it may be described as unlawful interference with a person’s use or enjoyment of land or of some right over, or in connection with it. we can divide them into 2 types, such as 1. Public Nuisance 2. Private Nuisance

3. Essential Elements of Nuisance under Law of Torts –

4. What is Defamation – in law, means attacking another person’s reputation by a false publication (communication to a third party).tending to bring the person into disrepute.

As per, Black’s Law Dictionary records that defamation means offence of injuring a person’s character, fame, or reputation by false and malicious statements.

It’s a legal term that refers to any statement or communication that harms the reputation of a person, business, or organization. It is a common type of tort law that protects individuals from false or harmful statements that can cause them to suffer economic or reputational damages.

Defamation can be divided into two categories: libel and slander. Libel is a written or published defamatory statement, while slander is an oral defamatory statement.

5. Unliquidated damages -Unliquidated damages can be defined as the sum of money that cannot be foreseen or assessed by a fixed formula. It is established by a judge in a court. Damages me be categorised as unliquidated when the amount of damages is unidentifiable or subject to an unforeseen event that makes the amount not calculable.

For example –  if a person was planning a big sale at his clothing store and the suppliers did not deliver in time, the plaintiff cannot recover the full amount of money he believes he would have made at the sale, since there is no proof such an amount would have actually been made

6. Observe the position of married women as a part of suing and being sued under the law of tort under English law (Capacity to Sue and be Sued )– The common law does not permit a married woman to sue or to be sued all alone. It is necessary to be in association with her husband only then it shall be valid. This was the rule because earlier under the law in England, husbands and wives were considered as single entity in the eyes of law. Thus married women could not be sued all alone. This difficulty was later removed by Married Women’s Property Act and later a married woman can be sued independently without joining her husband as a party to the suit.

7. Quasi-Parental Authority under the Law of Torts – Quasi – Parental come from the Latin word “loco parentis” means ‘in the place of parents. Quasi parental authority have less rights then the parental authority. Quasi parental authority also have an option to delegate their responsibilities with the other person. Other person consist of the schools, local guardian or relatives, who can take care of their children. Babysitter also acts as a quasi -parental authority for some specified time period.

In parental authority there is no delegation of the rights and the duties but in the quasi authority there is some delegation of the   duties and the rights to other person or authority.  Let’s take an example- parents give some authority to school teachers, principle or tuition master, for the welfare of the children. So they can study properly and achieve their goals in future. This is for the betterment of the child. Nanni or babysitter also act as a quasi- parental authority. Quasi parent is also important for the student to leans the social norms and how to live in the society. 

8. Characteristics of The law of torts –

There is a difference between civil wrongs and criminal wrongs. In civil wrongs, the injured party or the plaintiff files civil proceedings against the person causing injury or the defendant. The matter in a civil wrong is to be sued by a person himself, and the remedy for the same is unliquidated damages. Whereas, this is not in the case of criminal wrongs. In criminal wrongs, the sufferer or a victim of a crime is not compensated; rather justice is granted by punishing the wrongdoer.

9. Nuisance is Injury To Property or Physical Comfort –

Salmond- According to Salmond, nuisance consists in causing or allowing to cause without lawful justification, the escape of any deleterious thing from one’s land or from anywhere into land in possession of the plaintiff such as water, smoke, gas, heat, electricity.

Damage to property- With regard to property any sensible injury to the property would be sufficient to support an action for damages. Such a nuisance arises from manufacturing works, chains like smoke, fumes gas, noise, etc. It can effect the owner’s property through the physical injury or also it can affect the enjoyment of the property Unlike public nuisance,  talking about private nuisance, an individual’s usage or enjoyment of property is destroyed as distinguished from the public or society at large. The remedy for private nuisance is a civil action for damages or an injunction or both.

Physical Discomfort- In the case of physical discomfort there are two essential conditions needed. In excess of the natural and ordinary course of enjoyment of the property. The usage by the third party should be of out of the natural course of enjoyment from one party. Interfering with the ordinary conduct of human existence. The discomfort should be of such a degree that it would affect an individual in the locality and people would not be able to put up or tolerate with the enjoyment.

Cases

Radhey Shyam V Gur Prasad– In this case, Mr. Gur Prasad Saxena and others had filed a suit against Mr Radhey Shyam and five others for a permanent injunction restraining the defendant from installing and running a flour mi in the premises occupied by the defendant. Gur Prasad Saxena had filed another suit against the petitioner Radhey Shyam and five others for permanent injunctions from running and continuing to run an oil expeller plant. The plaintiff in the case alleged that the mill was causing noise which as a result was affecting the health of the plaintiff. The court held that by running a flour mill in a residential area, the defendant was causing the nuisance which also affected the health of the plaintiff.

10. Private Nuisance Elements. –

To be successful in a private nuisance lawsuit, the plaintiff must prove three private nuisance elements:

  1. The plaintiff owns the property.
  2. The defendant acted in a way that interfered or disturbed the plaintiff’s use or enjoyment of the property.
  3. The act was unreasonable.

The first element is typically non-controversial and is easy to prove. You could be a property owner or even a tenant in an apartment building. 

The second element is essentially saying the plaintiff indeed suffered damages due to the defendant’s actions. Damages can be physical (i.e. injury), but it can also include a monetary measure of:

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