Intentional Tort - How To Tell The Difference

How To Tell The Difference

The key difference between intentional torts and negligent torts is that the plaintiff must prove the additional element that the defendant acted with the specific intent to perform (i.e. acted with a mental state of intentionally performing) the act which was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injuries. "The concept of 'intention' in the intentional torts does not require defendants to know that their acts will result in harm to the plaintiffs. Defendants must know only that their acts will result in certain consequences". Under doctrines such as transferred intent, the plaintiff need not always prove that the defendant acted with the intent to bring about the specific injury that actually occurred.

Not every intentional action qualifies as an intentional tort. Suppose an investor holding more than half of a corporation's stock votes on changes the other stockholders find detrimental. If the other stockholders suffer damages as a result, this is not a tort, as the powerful investor had a right to vote whichever way he liked. Thus, the other stockholders cannot sue the aforementioned investor for damages. If, on the other hand, John Doe physically attacks a passerby in the street, John is liable for these costs, as he is guilty of the tort of battery. Actual damages are not required for a prima facie case of battery.

To successfully sue a defendant liable for an intentional tort, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant performed the action leading to the damages the plaintiff alleges, and that the defendant acted with purpose, or that he had knowledge with substantial certainty that an act would result in a tortious result. A famous case in the 1800s involved a hemophiliac child (Vosburg) who was kicked by another child (Putney) at school, resulting in severe disability of the leg. Although the kicker could not have reasonably foreseen that the kick would cause severe disability, he certainly could have foreseen that it would cause discomfort, and was found liable.

For example, a plaintiff attempting to prove that a defendant committed the intentional tort of battery must fulfill several elements: intent, an act, cause, and harmful or offensive contact.

Here, "intent" means either purpose or "knowledge with substantial certainty," as elucidated in Garratt v. Dailey. "Cause" in an intentional tort need only be "actual cause;" that is, but for the defendant's action the tortious result would not have occurred. The plaintiff need not allege or prove proximate cause, which would indicate that the result of the defendant's actions was reasonably foreseeable.

Common law intentional torts include the following:

• Assault
• Battery
• Conversion
• False imprisonment
• Trespass to land
• Trespass to chattels (Personal property)
• Intentional infliction of emotional distress
• Fraud
• Invasion of privacy

An assault is the immediate intentional creation of apprehension of another without consent or privilege. A battery is the intentional harmful or offensive touching of another without consent or privilege. A conversion is the intentional exercise of dominion and control of another's property without their consent or privilege. False imprisonment is the intent to confine or bound someone without a means of egress. Trespass to land is the intentional interference with the land of another without consent or privilege. Trespass to chattel is the intentional interference with the personal property of another without consent or privilege.