Write an essay on intentional and negligent torts. essays

Write an essay on intentional and negligent torts. essays Situations are very few and far between in which a person can be held liable for an act or omission which is in no way attributable to his fault. Tortious wrongs are therefore broadly classified as either intentional or negligent. Where the aggrieved party is a victim of an intentional wrong, the aggrieved party must ground his action in an intentional tort. Where the aggrieved party suffers due to a negligent act or omission of another, the aggrieved party must ground his action in negligence. Intention in tort is different from that in criminal law. In criminal law, intention refers to three ideas: the defendant must foresee the natural consequences of his conduct; he must desire the consequences; and he must do something to bring about those consequences. Thus, where a person drives a car recklessly knocking down a pedestrian and causes his death, he is not liable for murder but only for involuntary manslaughter because he lacks the intention to cause the death or grievous bodily harm of the pedestrian. Historically, tort law has developed differently. First, success in intentional torts, for example, assault, battery and false imprisonment, depends on establishing a direct injury. Secondly, the plaintiff, in the same action, may be allowed to claim damages in intentional (for example, trespass to the person) and negligent torts. Thirdly, exceptionally, in some cases motive of the wrongdoer may be relegated into the background. For example, where the defendant drives his car onto the plaintiffs land, mistakenly thinking that to be his land, he nevertheless commits an intentional tort trespass to land. Generally, intention refers to the defendants knowledge, actual or presumed, whether there was any motive to bring about the consequences that follow or not. The law of tort is largely concerned with intention and not with motive. Thus, for example, A gives B a mild kick on his stomach, which is not suffi...