9,075
edits
Difference between revisions of "Tort Actions"
From Clicklaw Wikibooks
→Summary of the law
Drew Jackson (talk | contribs) |
Drew Jackson (talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
== Summary of the law == | == Summary of the law == | ||
[[File:Consumer_Law_and_Debt_-_Tort_Actions.jpg|thumb|275px|right| link=| <span style="font-size:50%;">Image via www.istockphoto.com</span>]] | [[File:Consumer_Law_and_Debt_-_Tort_Actions.jpg|thumb|275px|right| link=| <span style="font-size:50%;">Image via www.istockphoto.com</span>]] | ||
Torts are civil wrongs committed by one person against another for which the law will give a remedy. Torts have developed over many centuries through common-law court decisions. Torts have some parallels with, but are separate from, criminal law. For example, intentionally hitting someone can be a criminal offence of assault, but also a tort of battery. As a criminal matter, the person committing the act may be prosecuted. As a civil matter, the person who was hit may be able to sue the person who did the hitting for damages. This section introduces areas of tort law particularly relevant in consumer or debt situations. | Torts are civil wrongs committed by one person against another for which the law will give a remedy. Torts have developed over many centuries through common-law court decisions. Torts have some parallels with, but are separate from, criminal law. For example, intentionally hitting someone can be a criminal offence of assault, but also a tort of battery. As a criminal matter, the person committing the act may be prosecuted. As a civil matter, the person who was hit may be able to sue the person who did the hitting for damages. | ||
This section introduces areas of tort law particularly relevant in consumer or debt situations. | |||
=== Assault === | === Assault === | ||
| Line 67: | Line 69: | ||
In ''Millar v. Sumo Engine Co. (Canada) (1989) Ltd.'', a bailiff, acting on the direction of a creditor who claimed a repairer’s lien over a debtor’s car, repossessed it from a locked apartment garage by sneaking in behind another tenant who had activated the garage door. The court held that the locked garage was part of the debtor’s dwelling house. Since there was no consent to entry, both the entry and the repossession were unlawful, and the court ordered the car returned. However, in [http://canlii.ca/t/1dtzt ''Shane v. Kazakoff''], the court said it was not unlawful to peacefully repossess a car from the driveway of private property. | In ''Millar v. Sumo Engine Co. (Canada) (1989) Ltd.'', a bailiff, acting on the direction of a creditor who claimed a repairer’s lien over a debtor’s car, repossessed it from a locked apartment garage by sneaking in behind another tenant who had activated the garage door. The court held that the locked garage was part of the debtor’s dwelling house. Since there was no consent to entry, both the entry and the repossession were unlawful, and the court ordered the car returned. However, in [http://canlii.ca/t/1dtzt ''Shane v. Kazakoff''], the court said it was not unlawful to peacefully repossess a car from the driveway of private property. | ||
The [http://canlii.ca/t/84mr ''Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act''], section 122, prohibits bailiffs (but not sheriffs, who are exempted by the [http://canlii.ca/t/85bb Debt Collection Industry Regulation], section 2(1)) from repossessing chattels unless the debtor, a spouse, the debtor’s agent, or an adult resident in the debtor’s dwelling is present. So, if a bailiff entered a debtor’s house while no one was home and took secured goods, the debtor would have a cause of action for damages resulting from a breach of the statute. This right would likely arise in common law and certainly arises specifically under the ''Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act'', section 171. | The [http://canlii.ca/t/84mr ''Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act''], section 122, prohibits bailiffs (but not sheriffs, who are exempted by the [http://canlii.ca/t/85bb Debt Collection Industry Regulation], section 2(1)) from repossessing chattels unless the debtor, a spouse, the debtor’s agent, or an adult resident in the debtor’s dwelling is present. So, if a bailiff entered a debtor’s house while no one was home and took secured goods, the debtor would have a cause of action for damages resulting from a breach of the statute. This right would likely arise in common law and certainly arises specifically under the ''Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act'', section 171. | ||
== Information gathering == | == Information gathering == | ||
