[Solved] BUS 012A: Taylor v. Baseball Club of Seattle(Ch. 6) Case Brief

Fact: A tort is a civil wrong that is inflicted on one person by another person, business, or entity. And since a tort is a “civil” wrong (as opposed to a wrong that rises to the level of a crime) the remedy for someone who has been harmed typically comes in the form of financial compensation. The basic tenets of tort law — that a wrongdoer should be held liable for damages stemming from a civil wrong — form the basis for everything from an injury-related insurance claim to a civil court jury trial after an accident.

Issue: How was the federal tort claims act working?

Rules: creating an apparent conflict between the modern regulatory state and the common law of torts. Although the common law originated in medieval times, the modern tort system did not fully emerge until the writ system was abolished in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Due to the limited number of regulatory alternatives at that time, “courts had become the American surrogate for a more fully developed administrative apparatus.” With time, the administrative state fully developed, but courts seemed unwilling to cede their historic regulatory authority. Instead of relying on health and safety regulations to determine the safety decisions required by tort law, courts routinely obligated defendants to comply with the judicially defined tort standard of reasonable care.

Application: The main purpose of criminal liability is to enforce public justice. In contrast, tort law addresses private wrongs and has a central purpose of compensating the victim rather than punishing the wrongdoer.

Conclusion: Tort law is state law created through judges (common law) and by legislatures (statutory law). Many judges and states utilize the Restatement of Torts (2nd) as an influential guide. The Restatement is a publication prepared by the American Law Institute whose aim is to present an orderly statement of the general law of the United States.