While criminal charges are brought by the government and can result in a fine or jail sentence, tort charges are filed by a plaintiff seeking monetary compensation for damages that the defendant must pay if they lose.

Select all examples of Strict Liability Torts.

Select all examples of Negligence Torts.

Strict, or “absolute,” liability applies to cases where responsibility for an injury can be imposed on the wrongdoer without proof of negligence or direct fault.

In Strict Liability lawsuits involving a defective product case, the injured consumer only has to establish that their injuries were directly caused by the product in question in order to have the law on their side. The fact that the company did not “intend” for the consumer to be injured is not a factor.

In tort lawsuits, the injured party —referred to as the “plaintiff” in civil cases (comparable to the prosecutor in a criminal case)— seeks compensation, through the representation of a personal injury attorney, from the “defendant” for damages incurred (i.e. harm to property, health, or well-being).

Tort law determines whether a person should be held financially, not legally, accountable for an injury against another, as well as what type of compensation the injured party is entitled to.

A wrongful act may never be both a criminal and tort case.

There is a specific code of conduct which every person is expected to follow and a legal duty of the public to act a certain way in order to reduce the risk of harm to others. Failure to adhere to these standards is known as negligence.

Although it may seem like an intentional tort can be categorized as a criminal case, there are important differences between the two. A crime can be defined as a wrongful act that injures or interferes with the interests of society. Intentional torts are wrongful acts that injure or interfere with an individual’s well-being or property.