Last Updated on December 10, 2022 by Anda Malescu
The importance of tort law in business in the United States is to have a way to defend against economic loss that is caused by the unlawful actions of other individuals or businesses against your business. In business, there are several forms of torts that can affect a company. When a civil wrongdoing has been inflicted on a person or business, it is called a tort. Tort is derived from the Latin word tortus, meaning wrong, and torts provide a legal way to remedy the wrong.
One of the main purposes of tort law is to provide a way to hold responsible the individuals or businesses that caused harm. This article discusses about the importance of tort law in business and also analyzes the impact of torts on businesses.
In the United States and other common law jurisdictions, the main objective of tort law is to restore the injured party to the condition they were before the infliction of an injury due to the actions of another. This is done by awarding monetary compensation to cover medical expenses, lost wages, profits, and compensation for mental pain and anguish. Tort law helps lessen negligence and misconduct by corporations or individuals who can cause harm through their actions.
While tort law deals with a variety of misconduct including negligence, malpractice, and injuries, business torts involve both intentional and improper interference with the interests of another business. This interference is seen as an injury to the business in relation to the actual or potential loss of clients, competitive edge, market share, new business opportunities, existing and new business partners and business relationships. Many business torts involve losses that may occur in the future, rather than losses that were experienced in the past. Because of this aspect, many business tort claims involve a complex determination of the plaintiff’s future or projected losses. Without tort law in business context a corporation, individual or company may choose not to be careful particularly when being careful requires the expenditure of money.
A few common examples of business torts include wrongful interference or tortious interference with contract or business relation, unfair competition, disparagement, computer torts, defamation and others
Remedies for business torts usually involve some form of monetary damages award for the plaintiff. The defendant will have to reimburse the plaintiff for any losses that their tortious conduct had caused. However, the damages must be calculable with reasonable certainty. In other words, the plaintiff must be able to show the court that their economic losses are quantifiable into a specific numeric figure. Monetary damages awarded for business torts are often calculated as future losses and determination of future losses can sometimes be rather complex and difficult. Another common remedy is for the court to issue an injunction ordering the defendant to cease their tortious conduct. For example, the proper remedy might require the defendant to remove all false advertisements and any disparaging statements about the plaintiff’s product or services.
Contact us, your international business attorney in Miami, Florida USA to assist you with your legal needs in business torts and help you better understand the importance of torts law in business, or schedule a consultation.
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