Law Commons^™

The Restatement's Rejection Of The Misappropriation Tort, Gary Myers

Faculty Publications

Some legal theories, like the proverbial vampire, refuse to die. The common law tort of misappropriation is one such legal theory, and the recent Restatement (Third) of Unfair Competition (Restatement) may finally lead to the demise of this outdated cause of action. Misappropriation began advisedly enough as a means of protecting certain intellectual property rights from unjust usurpation, often by direct competitors employing improper means. Arising before comprehensive copyright, patent, and trademark laws were fully developed, the tort may have played an important role in protecting intangible proprietary interests.The tort's high water mark was the 1918 Supreme Court decision in …

Spousal Emotional Abuse As A Tort? , Ira Mark Ellman, Stephen D. Sugarman

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Four Phases Of Promissory Estoppel, Eric Mills Holmes

Seattle University Law Review

Case law accurately delineates the four evolutionary stages of promissory estoppel. As an overview, promissory estoppel has evolved in American case law in four developmental stages: (1) Estoppel Phase, consisting initially of “defensive equitable estoppel” to estop contract defenses based on statutes of limitations and the statute of frauds. In the second part of this first phase, courts have extended “estoppel” based on representations of facts to “promissory” representations and enforced the promissory basis of the representation, thereby creating an affirmative theory of relief. Thus, this first phase of promissory estoppel consists of defensive equitable estoppel and offensive equitable estoppel. …

Learned Intermediaries And Sophisticated Users: Encouraging The Use Of Intermediaries To Transmit Product Safety Information, Richard C. Ausness

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

The general rule, under both negligence principles and strict products liability, is that a producer or supplier is required to warn users or consumers of its products. In most cases, this duty can be satisfied by placing a warning label on the product itself or by providing safety information in an owner's manual or in other literature attached to or enclosed with the product. However, there are some situations where it is difficult or impracticable to provide a direct warning to the ultimate user or consumer. In such cases, producers and suppliers should be able to satisfy their duty to …

The Distinction Between Crime And Tort In The Early Common Law, David J. Seipp

Faculty Scholarship

Lawyers and judges in English royal courts between 1200 and 1500 drew a distinction between crime and tort. Each type of lawsuit-each writ or action-had its own form and nature. Medieval English lawyers grouped these individual actions into categories such as real actions and personal actions, writs of possession and writs of right.' The lawyers recognized categories that later acquired the labels crime and tort, although those were not the names for them in the early common law. Crimes were prosecuted by actions known as indictments and appeals of felony. Torts were remedied by writs of trespass alleging use of …

Comment On The Tort/Crime Distinction: A Generation Later, Michael C. Harper

Faculty Scholarship

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Professor Epstein has used the occasion of this Symposium to again voice his disapproval of the modern regulatory state.' Those of you who know me will not be surprised to hear that I disagree with the bald assertions and assumptions he makes concerning that issue. In my view, compelling reasons justify the kinds of environmental and, at least in the absence of pervasive independent employee collective representation at the work place, worker safety laws attacked by Professor Epstein.² However, I will refrain from compounding the diversion by engaging Professor Epstein on these normative issues.

Instead, I will …

Principles Of Governmental Immunity In Texas: The Texas Government Waives Sovereign Immunity When It Contracts - Or Does It Comment., Renna Rhodes

St. Mary's Law Journal

When the government causes injury through negligence or by breaching a contract, the injured party must face the obstacle of governmental immunity. The doctrine of governmental immunity can act as a total bar to recovery, especially in Texas. Over the years, governmental immunity increasingly has faced attack from courts and commentators. Some states, including Texas, have revised the common-law doctrine, allowing the government to be sued in certain situations. In Texas, principles of governmental immunity are often misconstrued. Which principles of governmental immunity apply to a particular situation in Texas depends on whether the defendant is a state entity or …