Also known as: tortious acts · tort · wrongful act
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An act that constitutes a tort.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Theo Thomas tells Tabitha Taylor he will strike her unless she signs a supply agreement. Tabitha signs under fear of immediate physical harm. The threat constitutes a tortious act that renders the agreement voidable for duress.
Thomas Thompson tells Tori Taylor he will harm her children unless she changes her will to leave him her estate. Tori executes the new will out of fear. The threatened tortious act procures the donative transfer by duress.
Tidal Energy, based in State X, posts false statements online accusing Tonya Takahashi, a State Y resident, of fraud. The statements are designed to damage her business reputation in State Y, where she suffers economic loss. The intentional tortious act supports personal jurisdiction in State Y under the effects test.
Twin Rivers Bank attempts to perfect a security interest in a commercial tort claim arising from Threshold Capital's negligent misrepresentation. The claim is not goods under the statute because it is a right to payment arising from a tortious act rather than movable property.
A general partner of Trailblazer Airlines negligently pilots a flight, causing passenger injury through a tortious act performed in the ordinary course of partnership business. The limited partnership is liable for the resulting loss or penalty.
A partner at Tessa Takahashi's firm commits a tortious act of fraud while negotiating a client contract in the ordinary course of partnership business. The partnership is liable for the loss or penalty caused by that conduct.
A threat to commit a tortious act, such as battery or assault, is an improper means of obtaining assent. When the threat coerces the victim into entering an agreement the victim would not otherwise have made, the resulting contract is voidable.
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Under the effects test, an intentional tortious act expressly aimed at the forum state that causes harm the defendant knows will be suffered there supports jurisdiction even without extensive physical contacts.
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A partnership or limited partnership is liable for loss or injury caused by a partner's tortious act when the partner acts in the ordinary course of business or with actual or apparent authority of the partnership.
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…in narrowly defined situations and except when the rights are contingent upon live birth. For example, the traditional rule of tort law denied recovery for prenatal injuries even though the child was born alive.[^maj-63] That rule has been changed in almost every jurisdiction. In most States, recovery is said to be…