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==== 3) Causes of action to see a lawyer about ==== | ==== 3) Causes of action to see a lawyer about ==== | ||
*'''Assault''' – Contrary to its criminal law equivalent, civil assault is defined as intentionally causing the claimant to have reasonable grounds to fear immediate physical harm. Mere words or verbal threats are | *'''Assault''' – Contrary to its criminal law equivalent, civil assault is defined as intentionally causing the claimant to have reasonable grounds to fear immediate physical harm. Mere words or verbal threats are not sufficient; there must be some sort of act or display that suggests the defendant intends to carry through with his or her threat; banging on a door or raising a fist may suffice. | ||
*'''Battery''' – Battery is defined as any intentional and unwanted touching, including hitting, spitting on the claimant or cutting his/her hair. | |||
**'''Defences:''' | |||
#'''Lack of Intent:''' Battery is an intentional tort which means that the plaintiff must prove the defendant acted with intent in committing battery. The defendant need not intend to cause the plaintiff harm. Rather intent refers to the desire to engage in whatever act amounts to battery. If the defendant can show that he/she did not act with intent, the claim for battery will unlikely be successful.. For example, if the physical contact was involuntary or an accident | |||
#'''Self-defence:''' The defendant can defeat a battery claim if he/she can show that the battery was an act of self-defence. There are three basic elements to self-defence which the defendant must prove: | |||
##You honestly and reasonably believed that you were being or about to be subject to battery; | |||
##There was no reasonable alternative to the use of force; and | |||
##The use of force was proportional to the actual or perceived threat. | |||
*'''Breach of Privacy''' – Privacy rights are governed by the ''Privacy Act'', RSBC 1996, c 373. Two common law causes of action are codified under this act: | |||
**Intrusion upon seclusion: includes spying upon, observing or recording a person where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy. | |||
**Appropriation of likeness: where a person’s personal image, including portraits, caricatures, photos or video footage, are used for commercial gain without their consent. | |||
Breach of privacy is outside the jurisdiction of Small Claims Court. | |||
*'''Defamation''' – Defamation, libel and slander are outside the jurisdiction of Small Claims. Detinue– Detinue occurs when the defendant possesses goods belonging to the claimant and refuses to return them. There is some overlap between detinue and conversion, but conversion still applies where the defendant no longer has goods, while detinue generally does not. The remedy for detinue may be the return of the goods or damages for the value of the goods and possibly for losses incurred by the detention of the goods. The value of the goods is assessed at the time of the trial.False Imprisonment/False Arrest– Where a person is illegally detained against their will. Peace officers have broad authority to arrest. Private citizens, including security guards, have limited authority to arrest in relation to a criminal offence or in defence of property. Usually, a party who is detained and is not convicted of the offence for which (s)he is detained has grounds for a claim in false imprisonment/arrest unless the defendant is a peace officer or was assisting a peace officer in making the arrest.Negligence –Negligence is a complicated but frequently litigated area of law. Put very simply, it is based on the careless conduct of the defendant resulting in a loss to the claimant.Claims in negligence may be for personal injury or for economic loss. Claimants are advised to consult a lawyer before bringing a claim in negligence. Negligence consists of the following components: 1.Duty of Care– the claimant must prove that the defendant owed them a duty of care arising from some relationship between them. Many duties of care have been recognized, including but by no means limited to the following: a.Duty towards the intoxicated b.Peace officer’ s duty to prevent crime and protect others c.Negligent Infliction of Psychiatric Harm/Nervous Shock | |||
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