#intentionaltorts

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Comprehensive Guide to Intentional Torts

Understand the key legal principles of intentional torts with this in-depth course. Learn about assault, battery, defamation, and more to enhance your legal knowledge. Enroll now with EasyShiksha and take your legal expertise to the next level!

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What are Intentional Torts?

Intentional torts are civil suits brought under tort law instead of criminal law. While there is generally overlap between these two fields of law, intentional torts are distinct because they require the plaintiff to prove the intentional tort by preponderance of the evidence rather than beyond a reasonable doubt. A preponderance of the evidence is a lower burden of proof that only requires a jury to believe the defendant was more likely than not liable for the plaintiff’s damages. In order to prove an intentional tort, the plaintiff must show:

1. A Volitional Act 2. Intent to do Harm 3. Causation

What is a Volitional Act?

A volitional act is anything that someone does. For example, driving a car or scratching a bug bite are both volitional acts. A true reflex or seizure is not a volitional act. An example of a true reflex is when the doctor hits a patient’s knee and the leg jolts forward. It is very difficult to establish that the defendant’s conduct was the result of a true reflex. Simply raising your arms in self defense or putting your arm out when you hit the breaks in your car are not considered true reflexes.

What does Intent to do Harm mean?

The defendant must have also intended to do harm to the plaintiff with his volitional act. If the defendant did not intend to do harm, it is enough to prove that the defendant had knowledge to a substantial certainty that the volitional act would harm the plaintiff. A common example given in tort law classes is that of the woman who wanted to kill her husband. In an attempt to murder him, she placed a bomb under his seat on an airplane with several other passengers. While she did not intend on killing the other passengers, she knew that it was substantially certain to happen.

What is Causation?

Finally, a plaintiff must prove that the defendant’s volitional act was a substantial factor in causing the harm. This means that the plaintiff need not prove that the act was the only cause of the harm. Issues with causation arise when there are multiple defendants. For example, when a gang beats someone up, it may be difficult to determine whose punch actually caused the black eye or broken rib. Since the plaintiff only need to prove that the act was a substantial factor in causing his harm, it is easier to hold one member of the gang accountable for contributing to the injuries.

I hope you enjoyed learning about this! For more on intentional torts, view this page.