BUSL250 – Mid-semester Notes
Liabilities
* Harm may be caused deliberately or carelessly * One person’s single harmful act to another person (deliberately or carelessly) can give rise to one or more legal liabilities * Legal Liabilities * Tortious Liability: harmful act can be a tort (civil wrong), other than breach of contract, remedy is compensation (commenced through litigation) * Vicarious Liability: Liability for harmful act caused by another * Statutory liability: harmful act by breach of statute, prosecution is punishment * Contractual liability: harmful act by breach of contract, remedy is compensation * Criminal liability: harmful act and harmful act is a crime, incurs criminal liability, prosecution for punishment * A harmful act may incur one or more legal liabilities * Tortious vs. contractual liability: tortious liability can incur in the absence of contract but contract liability can only incur if a contract exists. * Difference between tortious liability and criminal liability

* Consequences of causing harm

Tort of trespass * Trespass is actionable per se, which means that there is no need for the plaintiff to prove actual loss or damage in order to commence a civil action against the trespasser. It is, however, necessary to prove that the interference was either intentional or negligent. * Types of trespass

* You commit the tort of trespass to land if you directly and intentional interference with land in the rightful possession of X without X’s consent of other excuse. Lord Bernstein of Leigh (Baron) v Skyviews & General Ltd [1978] 1 QB 479 * * Doesn’t need to be physical trespass of airspace * A tenant in rightful possession of land has the right to sue for trespass, including the right to sue the landlord if the landlord enters the land