Law of Tort民事侵权法Law of Tort民事侵权法

Principles of tortPrinciples of tort

• Law gives various rights to personsLaw gives various rights to persons• A duty imposed by law to respect the legal right of othersright of others

• When a right is infringed, the wrongdoer is liable in tortliable in tort– e.g. invasion by trespassers into a property

• When a tort is committed, the remedy is anWhen a tort is committed, the remedy is an action for damages, i.e. compensation for infringementg

Crime, tort and breach of contractCrime, tort and breach of contract

• CrimeCrime– Prohibited by law

The state prosecute the offender– The state prosecute the offender

– Punishable by fine or imprisonment

B th t t d b h f t t• Both tort and breach of contract are – Civil wrongs

– The person wronged sues in a civil court for compensation

Tortious and contractual liabilityTortious and contractual liability 

• They are similar in thatThey are similar in that– Both are civil wrongs; and– The person wronged sues in the court for p gcompensation

• Differences– In a tortious claim, the defendant may not have any previous transaction or relationship with the l i tclaimant

– In a contractual claim, the defendant and claimant must be the parties to the contractmust be the parties to the contract

Wrong and damageWrong and damage

• You have to prove your loss if you want toYou have to prove your loss if you want to claim damage– No loss no compensation– No loss, no compensation

– E.g. Page 226

E i• Exercise– Activity 1, page 227

Remoteness of damageRemoteness of damage

• When a person commits a tort with theWhen a person commits a tort with the intention of causing loss or harm which in fact results from the wrongful act the loss or harmresults from the wrongful act, the loss or harm can never be too remote a consequence.– i e You are liable to the loss or harm caused by– i.e. You are liable to the loss or harm caused by you when you have intention to do so

• Damages will be awarded for it• Damages will be awarded for it

Page 227‐228

Assignment 2 – 3aAssignment 2  3a

• Compare and contrast tortious liability andCompare and contrast tortious liability and contractual liability

• Compare between tortious liability and l li bili i fcontractual liability in terms of:

– Similarity

– Differences