Incidental damages are compensatory damages awarded to an injured party based on costs associated with the loss in the value of the other party’s failed or deficient performance. Incidental damages are primarily a civil law concept and are...
standards of tort liability
infancy
Criminal Law
Infancy is an affirmative defense offered by a defendant in a criminal proceeding that the defendant did not have the mens rea necessary to be charged with the crime on account of their age. In other words, the defendant was...
informed consent doctrine
The informed consent doctrine is a legal principle that holds healthcare providers accountable for ensuring that their patients are fully informed about any medical procedures or treatments before they agree to them. The idea behind this...
intentional interference with contractual relations
Intentional interference with contractual relations is a cause of action under tort law, upon which a defendant may be liable for damages from interference with the plaintiff’s contractual relations with a third party. Mere breach of contract...
intentional tort
An intentional tort is a type of tort that can only result from an intentional act of the defendant. Depending on the exact tort alleged, either general or specific intent will need to be proven. Common intentional torts are battery, assault...
intervening cause
An event that occurs after a party's improper or dangerous action and before the damage that could otherwise have been caused by the dangerous act, thereby breaking the chain of causation between the original act and the harm to the injured person,...
joint and several
Joint and several is when two or more defendants acting in concert or independently injure the plaintiff and the resulting damage cannot be allocated to a particular defendant; therefore, all of the defendants are liable for the entirety of...
joint and several liability
Overview
When two or more parties are jointly and severally liable for a tortious act, each party is independently liable for the full extent of the injuries stemming from the tortious act. Thus, if a plaintiff wins a money judgment against...
judgment-proof
The term judgment-proof or judgment proof is an adjective for persons against whom enforcing a judgment is not feasible, or not worth the costs of pursuing litigation. The term is used in situations where a plaintiff would be no better off...
last clear chance
The last clear chance doctrine is used in tort law for cases involving negligence and is applied when both the plaintiff and defendant are responsible for an accident that resulted in harm. When applied in states with contributory negligence laws, it...