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CHAPTER 31 AGENCY: LIABILITY FOR TORTS AND CRIMES

CHAPTER 31 AGENCY: LIABILITY FOR TORTS AND CRIMES. DAVIDSON, KNOWLES & FORSYTHE Business Law: Cases and Principles in the Legal Environment (8 th Ed.). SERVANT’S LIABILITY . Servants engage in physical activities/labor on master’s behalf.

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CHAPTER 31 AGENCY: LIABILITY FOR TORTS AND CRIMES

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  1. CHAPTER 31AGENCY: LIABILITY FOR TORTS AND CRIMES DAVIDSON, KNOWLES & FORSYTHE Business Law: Cases and Principles in the Legal Environment (8th Ed.)

  2. SERVANT’S LIABILITY • Servants engage in physical activities/labor on master’s behalf. • Servant’s behavior on behalf of master is negligent, resulting in injury to others. • Servant has committed a tort and is personally liable for their torts.

  3. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Master held liable for conduct of servant. • Liability is joint and several. • Respondeat superior is theory under which masters are held liable for torts of their servants even though masters are not personally at fault. • Belief that master’s pockets have more money than servants.

  4. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Respondeat superior involves special application of doctrine of strict liability. • Master hired servant • Servant did something wrong • Master should pay • Respondeat superior requires a wrongful act by servant for which master can be held liable.

  5. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Principal’s right to control distinguishes between servants and nonservants. • Respondeat superior applies to servants. • Servant acting within course and scope of employment when tort committed.

  6. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Factors Listed in the Restatement of Agency: • Factors that should affect determination of whether servant was within scope of employment. • Was conduct similar to authorized conduct and within scope of employment. • Acts within course of employment depend on facts of particular situations.

  7. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Time and Place of Occurrence. • Two factors analyzed in determining the course and scope of employment are: • Tort occurred at work premises. • Tort occurred during work hours. • Failure to Follow Instructions. • Master can be held liable for servant’s torts even though master forbade servant to commit torts.

  8. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Failure to Act. • Master can be held liable under respondeat superior if servant fails to act as instructed. • Identifying the Master. • Masters lends or borrows servants. • Important factors are course of employment and ability to control servant. • Servant appoints sub-servant. • If servant had authority to appoint master is liable, but if lacked authority servant and master liable.

  9. MASTER’S LIABILITY: RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR • Crimes and Intentional Torts. • Modern trend is to hold masters liable for intentional acts of servants if actions were intended to further master’s interests. • Master may sometimes be held civilly liable for criminal acts under respondeat superior.

  10. DIRECT LIABILITY OF THE PRINCIPAL • Principal directly responsible for wrongs committed by their agents, even if agents are not servants. • Principal liable if: • Instructed agent to commit wrong. • Did not supervise agent properly. • Ratified/approved agent’s tort. • Negligent in the selection of agent.

  11. DIRECT LIABILITY OF THE PRINCIPAL • Criminal law applies to principal when agent commits a crime. • Principal criminally liable if: • Based on principal’s fault. • Directs/encourages agent to engage in criminal activity. • Negligent Hiring. • Employers can be held liable for the intentional torts of an employee if she is careless in the hiring process.

  12. INDEMNIFICATION • Master pays third person for injuries caused by servant’s unauthorized acts, master has right to be repaid from servant. • Agent has right to indemnification from principal if agent paid third person injured by agent’s tort. • Agent can obtain indemnification from principal if principal directed to tort act and agent believes is not tortious.

  13. ANALYSIS OF A SERVANT’S TORTS • Characterize a tort situation answer: • Was person acting as a servant for hiring party? • Did the servant commit a tort? • Was servant acting within the course and scope of the job? • Is master entitled to indemnification from servant? Is servant entitled to indemnification from master?

  14. INJURY ON THE JOB • At common law, employee who is injured on job cannot recover from employer if: • Employee negligent. • Employee assumed the risk. • Employee injured by another employee of same employer.

  15. INJURY ON THE JOB • Workers’ compensation statutes allow employee to recover benefits for work-related injuries. • Workers’ compensation statutes vary: • Some cover only major industrial occupations. • Some exclude small shops with few employees. • Some exclude injuries caused intentionally by employer or other workers.

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