Client - Berlingua Language School (Joanna Staines) Other party - Simon Burnett, Burnett TV Supplies

Facts

Ms Staines (Director of Studies, Berlingua) bought a new satellite system (including built-in hard drive) at 50% of the normal price from Burnett TV Supplies for educational use. She mainly wanted to use it to record foreign-language TV programmes for use during lessons.

When she first set it up and tried to record, she realised that the timer function was broken. This means someone has to physically press 'record' and 'stop' whenever they want to record something.

Ms Staines has asked for a replacement, but was told that she couldn't expect it to work perfectly at such a cheap price. They have refused to replace it, but have offered to repair it at a cost of £130.

Legal issues

Defect not pointed out at time of purchase; if reduction due to imperfections, seller MUST inform client (Sale of Goods Act).

Advice/Action

Ms Staines is entitled to either a full refund or a replacement system (her choice). I outlined the options, Ms Staines is considering which to go for. I'm pretty sure that it will only take one letter from us before Burnett backs down - he'd have no chance in the small claims court!

!l»

Now turn to Case Study 1: Contract lawon page 118.

2 PrepositionsComplete the following sentences about contract law using the prepositions in the box.

against for for in mte to to under

1 An individual or a business may enter.......... into........ a contract.

2 Anyone who is not a party....................... the contract is considered a third party

and cannot be obligated to do anything required.......................... the contract.

3 If one of the parties breaches a contractual obligation, the non-breaching party may file a lawsuit the breaching party.

4 Furthermore, a party will not be required to perform its contractual obligations if another party is breach.

5 Damages are awarded...................... a party........................ any loss that the party

has suffered as a result of a breach of contract.

6 However, a party will not always be able to recover all losses when suing
..................... damages.

3 Language functionsUnscramble the following phrases for asking for clarification.

1 that What mean? does What does that mean?

2 I you follow don't

3 that I understand don't

4 I means don't what that know word

5 make That sense to doesn't me

4 Verb-noun collocationsChoose the correct verbs.

1 My client has requested me to make /(f\\e)/ award a lawsuit against you for breach of contract.

2 You accepted / awarded / admitted the offer my client made to you.

3 When you signed the contract, legal rights were called / claimed / created which are enforceable under the law.

4 Since you have not carried out your obligations under the contract, you have clearly assigned / rejected / breached the contract.

5 My client intends to claim / accept/ enforce damages for all of the losses incurred as a result of the breach.

Tort law

THE STUDY OF LAWLead-in

The word fort is usually unfamiliar to learners of English. As with other legal English terms, many native speakers of English who do not work in the law would not know the word either. What do you think it means?

1 a The area of tort law covers a wide range of cases. Match these case

descriptions (1-3) with the case names (a-c).

1 A civil case for wrongful death which followed an unsuccessful criminal prosecution for murder

2 An urban legend about a woman who sued a company for damages because the instruction manual for her microwave oven gave no warning against the way she used it

3 A 1994 case in which $2.7m in damages were awarded

a Liebeck v. McDonald's Restaurants b The People v. OJ Simpson c Hubbard v. Speedicook

b What do these cases have in common?

2 Complete the definition below using the words in the box.

act damages harm party

Tort:a wrongful 1)................................ that causes 2)................................... to

another person for which the injured 3).................................. may request

4)...................................

Reading i: Tort law

3 Read the text on page 29 on tort law and answer these questions.

1 According to the text, what are the two main objectives of tort law?

2 An injured party can sue for damages or for an injunction. According to the text, what types of loss can be compensated by an award for damages?

3 What does the term injunction mean? Use the Glossary if necessary.

4 A manufacturer produces a dangerous toy train. What category of tort is this?

4 Match the adjectives (1-6) with the nouns (a-f) they collocate with in the text.

1 civil a damages

2 contractual b wrong

3 injured c misrepresentation

4 fraudulent d party

5 medical e relations

6 monetary f expenses

A tortis a civil wrongthat can be remediedby awarding damages (other remedies may also be available). These civil wrongs result in harm to a person or property that forms the basis of a claim by the injured party. The harm can be physical, emotional or financial. Examples of torts include medical negligence, negligent damage to private property and negligent misstatementscausing financial loss.

There are many specific torts, such as trespass, assaultand negligence.Business torts include fraudulent misrepresentation, interference in contractual relationsand unfair business practices.

Torts fall into three general categories: intentional torts(e.g. unfair competition), negligent torts(e.g. causing an accident by failing to obey traffic rules) and strict liability torts(e.g. liability for making and selling defective products).

Why some wrongs are dealt with by tort law (or the law of torts) and others considered criminal offences is the subject of some debate. However, there are certainly overlaps between tort law and criminal law. For example, a defendant can be liableto compensate for assault and battery in tort and also be punished for the criminal law offence of assault.

Differences between tort law and criminal law include: the parties involved (the state brings an action in crime, a private individual brings an action in tort); the standard of proof(higher in criminal law); and the outcomes (a criminal action may result in a convictionand punishment, whereas an action in tort may result in liabilityon the part of the defendant and damages awarded to the claimant¹).

The primary aims of tort law are to provide relief for the harm suffered and deter other potential tortfeasorsfrom committing the same harms. The injured person may sue forboth an injunctionto stop the tortious conductand for monetary damages.

Depending on the jurisdiction, the damages awarded will be either compensatory or punitive. Compensatory damagesare intended, as far as it is possible, to put the victim in the position he or she would have been in had the tort not occurred. Punitive damagesare awarded to punish a wrongdoer. As well as compensation for damage to property, damages may also be awarded for: loss of earnings capacity, future expected losses, pain and sufferingand reasonable medical expenses.

(US) plaintiff

5Use the collocations you formed in Exercise 4 to complete these sentences.

1 While a crime such as murder or shoplifting is a wrong committed against society, a tort is a............................................................. committed against an individual.

2 Torts are handled in the civil courts, where the..................................... brings an

action against the wrongdoer.

3 In most cases, the injured party is entitled to remedies under the law, such as

4 In medical malpractice cases, the damages awarded to the injured party may include lost wages and........................................................

Unit 3 Tort law

5 The tort of................................. occurs when one of the parties to a contract

makes a false statement about a fact and knows it is not true, and this fact is acted upon.

6 When a person stops parties from entering into a contract, for example, this
person is said to interfere in......................................

6 What do you think these types of tort mentioned in the text mean: assault
negligence, trespass'? What kinds of acts do they cover? Give examples of
what someone has to do to be liable for each of these torts in your country.

Date: 2015-12-24; view: 5021