Torts Commons^™

Tort Law In A World Of Scarce Compensatory Resources, Mark A. Geistfeld

Michigan Law Review

Large corporations facing extensive tort liabilities have often gone into bankruptcy, forcing tort plaintiffs to accept pennies on the dollar as compensation for their injuries. Bankruptcy painfully illustrates the social fact that the compensatory properties of tort law depend on the availability of compensatory resources. Although this feature of tort law is self-evident, no one has adequately analyzed whether it matters for substantive tort doctrine, and if so, how.

Wealth would seem to be substantively irrelevant given the rule that excludes evidence concerning the defendant’s financial resources when determining breach or compensatory damages. The antecedent tort duty, however, depends on …

Proof Of Defect In A Strict Products Liability Case, Robert F. Hanson

Maine Law Review

The realization that negligence doctrines do not provide an adequate remedy for consumers injured by defective products has led many courts to adopt theories of strict liability. Justification for the strict liability doctrine rests on the judicial belief that the law should provide maximum protection for the health and safety of all consumers, and that the manufacturer is "conditionally at fault" if he does not compensate consumers injured by his defective products. Manufacturers are not held liable for all product-related harm to consumers. To recover the plaintiff must plead and prove that the product which caused the harm was defective …

New Policies Bearing On The Negligent Employer's Immunity From Loss-Sharing, Maine Law Review

Maine Law Review

The statutory and judicial controls on loss-sharing between third-party tortfeasor and negligent employer must yield in the face of major modern developments in tort law. The third party's tort liability burden has sharply increased both in amount and frequency. New attitudes towards loss-apportionment highlight the imbalance that results from the employer's immunity and subrogation right. Although the situation is ripe for legislative action, courts, in the absence of full-scale systemic reassessment, must attempt some balancing of the competing policy objectives. While this Comment concludes by urging the adoption of a specific remedy allowing the third party to assert the employer's …

From "Maine Law" To Model Act: Liquor Liability In Maine, William P. Shumaker

Maine Law Review

With the passage of the Maine Liquor Liability Act by the 112th Legislature, the State of Maine has completed a thorough reexamination of its public policy in the area of liability for injuries resulting from the use of alcoholic beverages. For 130 years the state's policy in this area was expressed by the statute commonly known as the dram shop act, the essential provisions of which had remained unchanged for over a century. This statute held sellers and other providers of alcoholic beverages strictly liable to any third party injured as a result of the intoxication of the recipient of …

In Pursuit Of The Appropriate Standard Of Liability For Defective Product Designs, Christina M. Moylan

Maine Law Review

Since the advent of strict products liability with the holding in Greenman v. Yuba Products Co. in 1963 and the promulgation of section 402A of the Restatement [Second] of Torts ("Restatement") in 1965, courts have struggled to strike an appropriate balance between competing social policies with respect to liability for defective products. On the one hand, those injured by defective products should not be burdened by the contractual intricacies of the law of sales or the onerous (virtually insurmountable in products cases) evidentiary obstacles of negligence. On the other hand, most courts agree that manufacturers and distributors should not be …

"I Am Become Death, The Destroyer Of Worlds": Applying Strict Liability To Artificial Intelligence As An Abnormally Dangerous Activity, Renee Henson

Faculty Publications

Artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tools have produced a myriad of injuries, up to and including death. This burgeoning technology has caused scholars to ask questions, such as, How do we create a legal framework for AI? Because AI creators have acknowledged that even they do not know the capacities of their technology for good or bad outcomes, this Article argues that an existing framework, strict liability, is an appropriate fit for harms arising from this new technology because a party need not prove negligence to prevail. Strict liability was uniquely developed to handle those activities that are “abnormally dangerous.” An abnormally …

Impaired, In Pairs, Cristina Carmody Tilley

Faculty Publications

Rape, like many other one-on-one aggressions, can be treated as both a crime and a tort. But neither body of law responds effectively to these aggressions. Criminal rape prosecution is notoriously difficult, and civil rape suits are notoriously rare. Today, as private law theorists have begun to study tort’s potential to drive social justice on issues of race, gender, and class, it is an ideal time to reassess the terms of civil liability for intimate injury. Culture has long limited “real rape” to premeditated, stranger-on-stranger, aggression. Consequently, tort has long categorized what this Essay terms “non-collaborative sex” as an intentional …

Tort Liability And Unawareness, Surajeet Chakravarty, David Kelsey, Joshua C. Teitelbaum

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

We explore the implications of unawareness for tort law. We study cases where injurers and victims initially are unaware that some acts can yield harmful consequences, or that some acts or harmful consequences are even possible, but later become aware. Following Karni and Vierø (2013), we model unawareness by Reverse Bayesianism. We compare the two basic liability rules of Anglo-American tort law, negligence and strict liability, and argue that negligence has an important advantage over strict liability in a world with unawareness—negligence, through the stipulation of due care standards, spreads awareness about the updated probability of harm.

Differentiating Strict Products Liability’S Cost-Benefit Analysis From Negligence, Paul F. Rothstein, Ronald J. Coleman

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Dangerous products may give rise to colossal liability for commercial actors. Indeed, in 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in Johnson & Johnson v. Ingham, permitting a more than two billion dollar products liability damages award to stand. In his dissenting opinion in another recent products liability case, Air and Liquid Systems Corp. v. DeVries, Justice Gorsuch declared that “[t]ort law is supposed to be about aligning liability with responsibility.” However, in the products liability context, there have been ongoing debates concerning how best to set legal rules and standards on tort liability. Are general principles of …

Just Strict Liability, Cristina Carmody Tilley

Faculty Publications

Theorists who contend that tort is designed to do justice cannot explain strict liability. The strict sector plagues these scholars because it extracts payment from defendants who have acted reasonably and are therefore considered innocent. If tort is about wronging and recourse, then strict liability makes no sense. Stymied, justice theorists have ceded the sector to economically minded counterparts who are concerned primarily with efficient market outcomes. As this theory has taken hold, some have declared strict liability “dead.” This Article offers a justice theory of the interpersonal wrong that permits liability in the absence of traditional fault; namely, the …

Computational Complexity And Tort Deterrence, Joshua C. Teitelbaum

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Standard formulations of the economic model of tort deterrence constitute the injurer as the unboundedly rational bad man. Unbounded rationality implies that the injurer can always compute the solution to his care-taking problem. This in turn implies that optimal liability rules can provide robust deterrence, for they can always induce the injurer to take socially optimal care. In this paper I examine the computational complexity of the injurer's care-taking problem. I show that the injurer's problem is computationally tractable when the precaution set is unidimensional or convex, but that it is computationally intractable when the precaution set is multidimensional and …

Some Objections To Strict Liability For Constitutional Torts, Michael Wells

Scholarly Works

Qualified immunity protects officials from damages for constitutional violations unless they have violated "clearly established" rights. Local governments enjoy no immunity, but they may not be sued on a vicarious liability theory for constitutional violations committed by their employees. Critics of the current regime would overturn these rules in order to vindicate constitutional rights and deter violations.

This Article argues that across-the-board abolition of these limits on liability would be unwise as the costs would outweigh the benefits. In some contexts, however, exceptions may be justified. Much of the recent controversy surrounding qualified immunity involves suits in which police officers …

From Automation To Autonomy: Legal And Ethical Responsibility Gaps In Artificial Intelligence Innovation, David Nersessian, Ruben Mancha

Michigan Technology Law Review

The increasing prominence of artificial intelligence (AI) systems in daily life and the evolving capacity of these systems to process data and act without human input raise important legal and ethical concerns. This article identifies three primary AI actors in the value chain (innovators, providers, and users) and three primary types of AI (automation, augmentation, and autonomy). It then considers responsibility in AI innovation from two perspectives: (i) strict liability claims arising out of the development, commercialization, and use of products with built-in AI capabilities (designated herein as “AI artifacts”); and (ii) an original research study on the ethical practices …

Jewish Law And The Concept Of Negligence, Steven F. Friedell

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Strictly Speaking, What Needs To Change? A Review Of How Statutory Changes Could Bring Strict Products Liability To Virginia, Ryan C. Fowle

Law Student Publications

Virginia remains one of five states that refuse to adopt strict products liability. To date, the Supreme Court of Virginia has declined to follow the path Justice Traynor set out nearly a century ago, as its recent decisions confirm its resistance to strict liability. However, given the change in control of the General Assembly following the elections of 2017 and 2019, the General Assembly is in new hands and may remain that way for some time. This new legislative majority, among its plans for new policies, may soon consider establishing strict products liability by statute. In doing so, Virginia would …

Held Accountable: Should Gun Manufacturers Be Held Liable For The Criminal Use Of Their Products, Benjamin Caryan

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This comment starts with a review of the most stringent laws currently enacted. After going over what is enacted, it will discuss the reasons given as to why gun manufacturers should be held liable and under what theories, including tort liability and public nuisance theories. Next, it will cover novel approaches to the strict liability, including arguments like negligent distribution, entrustment, and marketing. It will discuss similarities between the tobacco, automobile, and alcohol industry with the firearms industry. It will then go over how the recent push for gun legislation affected the sale and purchase of firearms. Lastly, to summarize, …

Strict Liability Upon Gunowners (Slug): A Proposed Balanced Approach, David Louis

St. Mary's Law Journal

Careless or apathetic gunowners, whose lost or stolen firearms are used in the commission of a violent crime, should be held strictly liable. Current tort law leaves victims of gun violence and their families without a mode of redress against an irresponsible gun owner whose actions played a pivotal role in the victim’s ultimate injury. Without effective liability principles to regulate gun ownership, gunowners are provided de facto immunity regardless of whether the harm suffered by the victim is intertwined with the gunowners careless behavior. This comment examines the efficacy of existing tort liability principles as provided in the Restatement …

Time For A Fresh Look At Strict Liability For Pharmaceuticals, Mary J. Davis

Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy

Part I provides a brief and basic explanation of pharmaceutical liability treatment. Part II explains the impact of federal preemption doctrine, which has dramatically limited the operation of tort law in pharmaceutical liability cases. Part I11 explains the parallel trends in the marketing and use of pharmaceuticals that increase the incidence of adverse drug events, affect prescribing practices, and fail to enhance informed practitioner and consumer choice in use of pharmaceuticals. Part IV provides support for the application of strict liability given the convergence of these trends. This Part also provides a theoretical justification for strict liability in tort for …

The Structure Of Torts, Thomas C. Galligan Jr.

Journal Articles

Tort law consists of a number of different causes of action which are seemingly unrelated except that all involve civil wrongs, other than mere breaches of contract. The various torts have different elements; some, like the nominate or intentional torts, very specific; others, like negligence, more general and vague. There is no apparent, coherent, or consistent structure applicable to all torts. This Article articulates just such a unified structure for all torts: one that arises out of and is based upon the elements of negligence. All torts involve the judicial delineation of the defendant's duty or legal obligation. All torts …

Strict Liability For Genetic Privacy Violations In The Age Of Big Data, Benjamin Sundholm

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

The ethical issues implicated by the misuse of genetic information have been smoldering for over half a century, and the age of big data has turned them into a five-alarm fire. In recent years, medical researchers and commercial enterprises have been using technological advancements to develop a variety of innovative ways to use genetic information. For example, it is becoming increasingly common for people to learn more about their health and family history by paying direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) companies to analyze their genetic data. DTC companies store the results of these tests electronically and often share them with pharmaceutical companies …

Qualified Immunity And Fault, John F. Preis

Law Faculty Publications

As a general rule, liability correlates with fault. That is, when the law declares a person liable, it is usually because the person is, in some sense, at fault. Similarly, when the law does not declare a person liable, it is usually because the person is not deemed to be at fault. There are exceptions, of course. A storekeeper who unwittingly sells a product that harms another may be held liable under the doctrine of strict liability, despite her blameless conduct. Similarly, a website owner who knowingly permits others to post defamatory statements on her website is not liable, despite …

The Road To Autonomy, Michelle Sellwood

San Diego Law Review

[T]his Comment discusses the background of AI and robotics, the technology behind the autonomous vehicle, and the evolution of products liability laws. Part III examines current regulations, the benefits of autonomous technology, and the need for a definitive liability framework. Part IV discusses why current tort liability laws will be ineffective in governing autonomous vehicle liability by examining the shift in liability from the driver to the owner and manufacturer. Part V proposes a short-term solution by attributing liability to the programmer, while software is still hard-coded. Finally, Part VI explores legal personhood, and proposes that the autonomous vehicle be …

"The Wrong Approach At The Wrong Time?": Maine Adopts Strict Liability For Abnormally Dangerous Activities In Dyer V. Maine Drilling And Blasting, Inc., Matthew M. Cobb

Maine Law Review

In 2009, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, held in Dyer v. Maine Drilling and Blasting, Inc. that strict liability should be applied to abnormally dangerous activities in accordance with the Restatement (Second) of Torts §§ 519-20. In doing so, the court expressly overruled its decision in Reynolds v. W.H. Hinman Co., which had rejected a strict liability approach to blasting cases in favor of a negligence-based standard. In Dyer, a majority of the Law Court vacated the trial court’s grant of summary judgment for Maine Drilling and Blasting, Inc. (Maine Drilling) and held that strict …

Toward The Search For The Proper Liability Rule For Harms Resulting From Sources Of Risk: A Different Approach To The Choice Between Strict Liability And Fault-Based Regime, Wen-Hsuan Yang

Maurer Theses and Dissertations

An important issue in Taiwan today concerns the rising tension between strict liability and negligence. Article 191-3 of the Civil Code of Taiwan imposes a fault-based standard of liability on persons conducting dangerous activities. On the other hand, the majority of scholars believe that to afford greater protection, this rule should be changed into a strict liability rule.

Traditionally, three arguments make it preferable to impose strict liability under certain circumstances. First, strict liability induces more safety incentives on the part of the defendant. Second, fairness requires that one who benefits from conducting dangerous activities should bear the risk of …

Industrial Accidents, Natural Disasters And "Act Of God", Michael Faure, Liu Jing, Andri G. Wibisana

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Recent Development: Toms V. Calvary Assembly Of God, Inc.: Noise Resulting From Legally Permissable Fireworks Does Not Constitute An Abnormally Dangerous Activity, And The Application Of Strict Liability Is Inappropriate., Jason C. Parkins

University of Baltimore Law Forum

The Court of Appeals of Maryland held that noise emitted from a lawful fireworks display did not constitute an abnormally dangerous activity; therefore, the parties were not subject to strict liability. Toms v. Calvary Assembly of God, Inc., 446 Md. 543, 569, 132 A.3d 866, 881 (2016).

Driverless Cars And The Much Delayed Tort Law Revolution, Andrzej Rapaczynski

Faculty Scholarship

The most striking development in the American tort law of the last century was the quick rise and fall of strict manufacturers’ liability for the huge social losses associated with the use of industrial products. The most important factor in this process has been the inability of the courts and academic commentators to develop a workable theory of design defects, resulting in a wholesale return of negligence as the basis of products liability jurisprudence. This article explains the reasons for this failure and argues that the development of digital technology, and the advent of self-driving cars in particular, is likely …

Products Liability - Strict Liability In Tort - Measure Of Proof: Defectiveness Of Product - Unreasonably Dangerous Test Abandoned: Cronin V. J.B.E. Olson Corp., Stanley M. Schultz

Akron Law Review

Thus the issue facing the court was whether California's concept of strict liability necessarily requires a showing that the defective, injury causing product was also unreasonably dangerous." They held that it does not. In arriving at this decision the court relied heavily on the language used in its landmark decision in Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc.

Manufacturer And Professional User's Liability For Defective Medical Equipment, Rosemary Rubin

Akron Law Review

One particular area of product liability, however, has been slow to accept strict liability. In the field of medical devices and equipment the courts seem reluctant to find liability without a clear showing of negligence, whether the defendant is the doctor, the hospital, or the manufacturer of the product. In this paper the focus will be on the emerging law in this area regarding medical equipment made only for use by experts, including nurses, doctors, dentists, anesthesiologists, emergency personnel and hospitals. The discussion will exclude blood and drug cases for these lead to conclusions of their own. The concentration will …

Strict Liability Comes Of Age In Ohio: Almost, Stephen J. Werber

Akron Law Review

In June 1977 the Ohio Supreme Court decided Temple v. Wean United, Inc., and adopted the doctrine of strict liability for product liability litigation, thereby following a national trend. Earlier decisions had discussed a theory similar to strict liability and had engendered considerable confusion as to the substantive theory supporting possible recovery. Temple apparently ended the confusion.