By
Ramki D, III year of B.A.,LL.B.
Introduction
The word 'Torts' has originated from the Latin word 'Tortum' which means twisted or crooked or wrong. The term 'Torts' is referred from the French word, which is similar to the English word 'Wrong' and Roman law term is 'Delict'. The people are presumed to commit a tort in an uncomplicated manner which is drafted from the straight pathway. In English law, civil injury or wrong is the special meaning of the torts. The torts is not only civil wrong but also an unliquidated damages.
Meaning of torts
● The torts is the act/conduct that is twisted or crooked. It is one of the civil wrongs, including every wrongful act or infringement of a right leading to legal liability. The torts is the law of damage. There are two types, liquidated and unliquidated damages.
● The legal maxim, Ubi jus ibi remedium where there is a wrong, there is a remedy.
● The violation of the legal rights is the torts or in other words, it is a breach of a legal duty which the wrongdoer awed towards the victim. The rights to constitute tort take place in the presence of legal rights and absence to obey the legal duty to protect.
● The torts is a civil wrong but all civil wrongs have not come under the torts. One person commits a civil wrong to another person that came under the ambit of torts.
Definition
In the discharge of torts, the liability is the circumstances and it may exist but remedy doesn't exist.
Salmond
The torts is the civil wrong, violation of the legal rights, independent of contract and it is the form of unliquidated damages as a remedy.
John Locke
John said that the crime is an ill bargain to the offender.
Winfield
Tortious liability arises from the breach of a duty primarily fixed by law and then the duty is towards the normal person, the action of unliquidated damage is the mode by the breach of redress-able.
Crime Torts
Crime is considered as the Torts is consider as the public wrong or private wrong civil wrong.
Private wrong are the Civil wrong belong to the individuals
privation of private
Crime is the violation of the law Torts is the violation of the rights and duties.
Crime is the hampers on the Tort is a wrongdoing which happens in social orders of the individual or his property.
society for
the wrongdoing person
The crime happens mostly intention Torts happen by the negligence of the of the person person
Crimes are performed in the Torts are performed in the criminal court
criminal court
Crime impact well being of society Tort impact the well being of the in general individual.
Discharge of torts
There are seven methods of discharge of torts and there is no remedy that will lie for torts. It is a process through which the torts comes to an end. The wrongdoer no longer remains liable for his action.
● Death of the parties
● Accord and satisfaction
● Release
● Judgement
● Law of limitation
● Waiver
● Acquiesce
Death of the party
Death of the party concept is based on this maxim 'actio personalis moritur cum persona' which means if the person dies his rights of action dies with him.
There are two types of circumstances in case of death of parties.
● Death of the person whose legal right has been violated.
● Who has committed the tort is the death of the person.
Illustration
If 'A' files a case against 'B' for the act of tort, if 'A' dies during trial find the cases pending before the court. Due to the death of ‘A’, the tort gets discharged, the right of action of a dies with him only.
Accord and satisfaction
The agreement between two peoples one of whom is the wrongdoer and the other against whom the wrong has been committed to resolving the dispute. Such an agreement is called an accord.
It means nothing but resolving the issue by accepting some consideration in the right of action. Satisfaction means that the actual payment of the consideration in done.
Illustration
If A, a son of a businessman and then the brutally hit is one of his servants, he trespasses to the body and ‘A’ tries to make his servant enter into accord by using some type of influence on him. Due to the influence, the servant gave his consent, this is not considered as free consent and the accord and satisfaction are not valid.
Release
A release means giving up the rights to the action. The person by his own choice discharged the torts. This right is only provided to the person against whom done the wrong.
Illustration
A person is a police inspector, by his position to commit a tort against another person and give the threat to take the consent of the injured person and release himself from the liability, that release is not valid.
Judgement
This method, the discharge of tort happens by the judgement given by the court. If the court gives the judgement at once, then the tort gets discharged, there is no appeal for the act and the tort can be claimed for the same remedy in the court of law.
Illustration
If a person A commits the tort of trespass against B at 1st and he is held liable by the court of law. Again he commits the same crime against B the A plea defence that the court cannot punish him for the same offence 2nd time. The defence is not valid because it is considered as a new one.
Law of limitation
In this method, the tort gets dismissed due to the limitation. The tort gets dismissed when the prescribed time is limited to file the case then get over and no one to enforce his rights.
Like that only, there is a limit of one year for the false imprisonment or libel to file the case in case of trespass to immovable property, the limit set in 3 years etc after the time limit gets over, no one enforces his rights.
Illustration
B committed a trespass to the property against the A. if A fails to apply against him within 3 years in the court of law; he cannot apply his right of limitation.
By waiver
The second method of discharge of the tort is the waiver. The main concept of the waiver is like more than one remedy available to him, as a result, the person has to elect to one of them. He cannot apply for both the defamation and assault except the remedy.
Illustration
If A files a case against B then B has committed a tort against A. If A has right to get more than one remedy he has to choose any one of them, if he has the remedy in both tort and contract law, then he has to choose one between them.
In the doctrine of waiver, there are two principles
The only remedy has been chosen by the person. The person who chooses the remedy gets fail then the court of law does not allow him to choose an alternative remedy.
Acquiescence
In this method, the torts get its Church because of the incapacity of the plaintiff. He has no time to go to court, no money to pay the court fee or any other incapacity. When any person is enforced his right, he does not enforce his right for a long time. This can make the other party waived from his liability.
Illustration
If A has to enforce his right against B and A neglects to enforce his right for a long time, it automatically waived B from his liability.
Conclusion
The torts is the act/conduct that is twisted. It is the means of a violation of the legal rights of a person by the act of the other person and the breach of legal rights of the other person. The rights of action of the party can become discharged. In a certain condition like the death of any other party, by waiver, by accord and satisfaction, by release or by the judgement of the court of law.