Tort

A civil or private wrong; an injury not involving a breach of contract. Tortious: having the qualities of a tort; unlawful and injurious to individuals; wrongful. The word tort is especially used to signify a civil, actionable vfrong, such as libel, assault, trespass, &c. An action for such a wrong is called an action of tort. Torts are such wrongs as are in their nature distinguishable from mere breaches of contract, and are often mentioned as of three kinds; viz. nonfeasance, being the omission to do some act which a person is bound to do; misfeasance, being the improper doing of some act which he may lawfully do; or malfeasance, being the comm.ission of some act which is positively unlawful. Actions founded upon tort are sometimes described as actions ex delicto, in distinction from actions ex contractu, which are founded upon contract. The commonlaw forms of action generally founded upon tort are trover, detinue, trespass, trespass on the case, and replevin; whilst debt, assumpsit, and covenant belong to the class of actions founded upon contract. The general modem law upon torts, which has become one of the most important branches, will be found compactly and lucidly summed up in Bigelow on Torts. Addison adopts Justice Bayley's statement (8 Barn. §• C. 362) of the essential elements of a tort: To constitute a tort, two things must concur, — actual or legal damage to the plaintifE, and a wrongful act committed by the defendant. Actual loss sustained by plaintifE is not, upon modern views, invariably necessary to sustain an action; if the plaintiff's legal right is clear, and defendant has unlawfully violated it, the law will prequestion of an allowance in damages to the sound judgment of a jury. Thus a recovery may be had on the ground of tort, although no actual, mensurable damage has ensued. But the converse cannot be asserted. A wrongful act or omission, a violation or neglect of a legal right, is an essential element; if no legal right is infringed, no action is maintainable, however great the loss. A loss sustained through a rightful or innocent act or omission of another, is damnum sine injuria.

Add. Torts, 2.

According to the explanations of Collett, tort is a term of art in English law, and means that which is wrested or crooked; consequently, that which is contrary to right. The word has been described as a wrong independent of contract; an invasion of rights, either of person, property, liberty, or reputation. The civil law called such wrongs delicts, and defined them as spontaneous; that is, free or voluntary actions or omissions contrary to law. The wrong being an act which is against right or law, the obligation to make reparation for the damage arises from the fault and not from the intention; and conversely, a thing which is not a legal injury or wrong is not made actionable by being done with a bad intent. In many cases, to constitute an act a legal wrong or injury, the existence of a malicious intent is essential. The principle pervading the law of torts is, that all persons are responsible for all the natural and legal consequences resulting from acts or omissions by them in violation of the rights of others. Thus there are two ingredients in a tort: the injury or legal wrong, which is always necessary; and the damage, which is generally present, and sometimes said to be essential. Damage without injury is never actionable. But injury, though without damage, is actionable; or rather an injury imports damage, though there is no pecuniary loss, and actual perceptible damage is not indispensable as the foundation of an action. It is sufficient to show the violation of a right, in which case the law will presume damage. Colleit Torts, 1. or injury is properly called tort, because it is something wrested or crooked, and contrary to that which is right and straight. {Co. Lit. US.) Jacob. Tortious operation of a feoffment. When a tenant for life made a feoffment in fee of the lands of which he was tenant for life, a freehold of inheritance passed to the feoffee, but it was a freehold by wrong, devesting the person in reversion or remainder of his estate, and leaving him a right of entry, of which he might avail himself at once. But feoffments by tenants in tail (or discontinuances, as they were called) operated to take away not merely the estate of the party entitled in remainder, but also his right of entry without action; so that he was driven to his action to recover his estate when the time came. This effect of a discontinuance was abolished, in 1833, by Stat- 3 & 4 Wm. IV. ch. 27. § 39; and such meaning as was left in the doctrine of the tortious operation of a feoffment was abolished, in 1845, by section 4 of the act to amend the law of realproperty (8 & 9 Vict, ch. 106). Modey ^ W. Tort-feasor. A vfrong-doer; onevfho has committed a tort.