COURSE OUTLINE AND SYLLABUS 5418: SECTION 23576 UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON LAW CENTER FALL 2008

Professor Barbara J. Evans Office Hours: Office Location: TU-II 104F Wednesday: 8:00 – 8:30 p.m. Phone: (713) 743-2993 Monday: 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. E-mail: [email protected] (or by appointment)

Note: This outline and topics to be covered may be adjusted as the course progresses. Adjustments or revisions will be announced in class.

F&R = Franklin & Rabin Law & Alternatives, 8th ed. (2006)

OUTLINE

I. INTRODUCTORY ISSUES (Week 1)

A. Class Policies B. Context: Overview of Types of Torts C. When Should Unintended Injury Result in Liability? D. The Tort Litigation Process E. The Parties and

Readings for Week 1: Class Handouts provided on first day: READ THESE!! F&R pages 1 – 22 (Reading Unit No. 1 on Syllabus—see page 4)

II. THE PRINCIPLE

A. Breach: Historical Development of Fault-based Liability B. Breach: The Standard of Care/Calculus of Risk C. Breach: The D. Breach: Custom & Statutes E. Breach: Proof Issues and Res Ipsa Loquitor F. Breach: Medical – Special Issues Re: Standard of Care & Proof G. Breach: Medical Malpractice – Informed

III. THE DUTY REQUIREMENT – PHYSICAL INJURIES

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A. Duty: Obligation to Others and Nonfeasance B. Duty: Obligation to Protect 3rd Party C. Duty: 3rd Parties and Premises/Landowner Liability D. Duty: Governmental Immunities E. Duty: Federal Torts Claims Act

IV. THE DUTY REQUIREMENT – NONPHYSICAL HARM

A. Duty: Emotional Harm – Direct B. Duty: Emotional Harm – Bystanders C. Duty: ,Interference With Procreation and End-of-Life Decisions

V. CAUSATION

A. Causation: Cause-In-Fact, Proof, Partial Recovery B. Causation: Joint and Several Liability; Multiple Defendants C. Causation: Toxic Harms D. Causation: – Unexpected Extent & Unexpected Type of Harm E. Causation: Proximate Cause – Unexpected Manner of Harm & Unexpected Victim

VI. DEFENSES

A. Plaintiff’s Fault – Contributory & B. Avoidable Consequences C. Express D. Implied Assumption of Risk E. Preemption

VII.

A. Historical Origins B. Abnormally Dangerous Activities C. Theoretical Perspectives

VIII. PRODUCTS LIABILITY

A. Historical Origins B. Approaches in Restatements of Torts C. Manufacturing Defects D. Design Defects E. Failure to Warn

2 F. Defenses to Products Liability G. Work-Related Injuries H. Beyond Products

IX. INTENTIONAL TORTS

A. Intent B. , , , Infliction of Emotional Distress C. Defenses

X. & PRIVACY-RELATED TORTS

A. Basic concepts, causes of action, elements, and defenses B. Tension with First Amendment Protections

XI. INTENTIONAL ECONOMIC HARM

A. Basic concepts, causes of action, elements, and defenses

XII. THE ROLE OF INSURANCE; TORT ALTERNATIVES AND REFORM

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Introduction

1. F&R 1-24

2. F&R 24-30

Breach: Historical development of fault-based liability; the standard of care/calculus of risk; the reasonable person; the role of customs and statutes.

3. F&R 31-45

4. F&R 45 – 60 (Stop at Section C)

5. F&R 69 – 80 (through end of Tedla v. Ellman)

Breach: Proof issues and ; medical malpractice—special issues re. standard of care and proof; medical malpractice—informed consent.

6. F&R 86—110 (to start of Section E). 102 (start Ybarra) – 110

7. F&R 110-122

8. F&R 122-131 Supplement on Informed Consent (distributed via e-mail)

Duty: Obligations to others and nonfeasance

9. F&R 132-148 (before Randi W.)

Duty: Obligations to protect third parties

10. F&R 157 (start Tarasoff) – 168 (before Uhr)

11. F&R 172 (start at note 4) -- 175; 175 - 183 (before Reynolds);

12. F&R 183 (start Reynolds) – 188; 188 (start Vince v. Wilson) – 194;

Duty: Premises and Landowner Liability

13. F&R 195 (start Carter v. Kinney) - 208

14. F&R 209 – 218 (before Section E)

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Duty: Spousal suits and parent/child suits—brief summary

15. F&R 218 (read introduction to Section E on this page only)

Duty: Governmental Immunities and Federal Tort Claims Act

16. 229 (start Section F) – 238 n.5; 251 (start Federal Tort Claims Act) - 263

Duty: Nonphysical harm

17. F&R 264 – 280 (including note 7)

18. F&R 285 (start at note 7) through 298

Duty: Loss of consortium; economic harm

19. F&R 301 – 305; F&R 305-306 (before Nycal)

Duty: Procreation

20. F&R 326 – 338

Causation: Cause in Fact

21. F&R 339 – 369

Causation: Joint and several liability; multiple defendants, toxic harms

22. F&R 369 – 400

Causation: Proximate cause

23. F&R 401-413 note 6; 416-437

Defenses: Contributory and comparative negligence; avoidable consequences

24. F&R 440 - 455. Think about problem on p. 447, parts a,b,c. 459 – 466 (before Section B: Assumption of Risk). See also, Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code, Ch. 33 (Proportionate Liability) at http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/cp.toc.htm

Defenses: Assumption of risk

5 25. F&R 466 – 490 (before Levandoski)

Defenses: Preemption

26. Supplemental Readings on Preemption: - ERISA Preemption Supplement (distributed via e-mail) - Excerpts from Torline & Teeter, Federal Preemption in Products Liability Cases, Journal of the Kansas Bar Association (July/August 2007) Westlaw Citation: 76- AUG JKSBA 32 [relevant excerpts will be distributed via e-mail] F&R 496 - 505

Strict liability, generally; Products liability

27. F&R 506 - 509, 534 – 540 (King article—scan this to understand policy goals of strict liability); 545 – 549 (Posner article); 550 – 554 (McPherson); 556- 560 (Escola) . 28. F&R 560 (notes after Escola) – 595 (to start of Section D)

29. F&R 595 (Section D) – 620 (to start of Section E) Supplemental reading on Learned Intermediary Doctrine (distributed by e-mail)

30. F&R 620-637 (Section E and Jones v. Ryobi and Liriano cases in Section F); 648 – 653 (to end of Note 6).

Intentional torts

31. Supplement on Intentional Torts (distributed by e-mail)

F&R 884 -898 (to middle of page 898); 902 – 906 (from start of Section 3 to end of Note 4 on page 906); 908 – 915 (from start of Section 4 to end of Note 8).

32. F&R 931 (start Section 5) -942

Defamation & Privacy-related torts

33. Supplement on Defamation and Privacy Torts (distributed by e-mail)

F&R 972 – 976 (to end of Romaine v. Kallinger); read notes 1, 3, 4, 5 after the Romaine case. Read Matherson v. Marchello on pages 983-84 but skip the notes afterward. In the “Of and concerning” section on page 987 – 989 read ONLY the parts on Identification and Group Libel but skip the Corporations material. Read from the start of “Strict Liability” on 989 to then end of the Liberman case on page 996. Read from the start of the “qualified privileges discussion in the middle of page 1000 to the end of the Liberman case on page 1002. Read notes 3 and 4 on 1003-4.

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34. [If you have not already read NY Times and Gertz in your Constitutional Law class, you should familiarize yourself with these cases]: F&R 1027 – 1038 (to end of NY Times); read “Private Plaintiffs” starting on 1051 to 1063 (to the end of Gertz case)

35. F&R 1121 – 1128 (including Haynes v. Knopf); notes 4 & 5 on 1130 – 32; 1149-51 (read the privacy count only in Humphers; do not read the breach of confidence count).

On , read 1158-62 (the Cantrell case); note 3 p. 1163; note 5 p. 1164.

On intrusion, read Nader v. GM on 1167 – 73 (focus on first two pages—understand the fact pattern of the alleged intrusive behaviors). On p. 1188, read the fact patterns of the Schulman case, and on p. 1192-93, focus on the discussion.

Intentional Economic Harm

36. Supplement on Harm to Economic Interests (distributed by e-mail)

F&R: On deceit and negligent misrepresentation, read 1236 – 1234 (Ollerman v. O’Roarke), and notes 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12 on 1245 – 1252 (skip other notes); on with , read 1253 – 1255 (Imperial Ice v. Rossier) and notes 1, 4, 6, 10 on 1255-59; on interference with prospective advantageous relations, 1260-64 (court’s opinion only in Della Penn v. Toyota); read notes 7 & 8 on 1269-73.

Role of insurance; alternatives to tort; tort reform

37. Excerpts from Albert C. Lin, Beyond Tort: Compensating Victims of Environmental Toxic Injury, 78 SCALR 1439 [Relevant excerpts to be distributed]

38. Excerpts from F. Patrick Hubbard, The Nature and Impact of the Tort Reform Movement, 35 HOFLR 437 [Relevant excerpts to be distributed]

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