Professor Han

Torts Fall 2015, LAW 654.03

Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays at 1:40pm-3:00pm
Classroom C
Contact Information
Professor David Han
Office 344
310-506-6274 (office)
617-620-6495 (cell)
david.han@pepperdine.edu
Office Hours
My office hours are:
Tuesdays:
Thursdays:

3:00pm 4:45pm
3:00pm 4:45pm

I am also available to meet with you at other times by appointment. If you would like to set up a
time to meet outside of my regular office hours, just send me an e-mail. You can also walk by
my office, and if my doors open, feel free to drop in.
Class Attendance
Consistent class attendance is critical to your understanding of Torts and your success in the
class. I will take attendance at the beginning of each class. Please do not be latebut if you
are, check in with me after class to make sure you were not marked absent. Any person missing
more than six classes may not be permitted to take the final examination. And it should go
without saying that each class you miss will diminish your ability to perform well on the final.
If you are unable to attend class, please inform me and let me know the reason in advance to the
extent that is practical. For any class that you are unable to attend, please obtain notes from a
classmate. Please note that audio and/or video recording of classes is not permitted as a matter
of class policy, absent highly exceptional circumstances. If you believe such circumstances
exist, please let me know.
Class Participation
The best way to prepare to become a good attorney is to immediately begin practicing the
professionalism that is expected of good attorneys. I will expect all of you to be prepared to
participate in classroom discussions of the reading every day. If you are unprepared, let me
know when I call on you, and I will move on to another person. I will then call on you again in
the next class or soon thereafter. This policy is not designed to embarrass you, but rather to
prepare you for the practice of law. Judges and supervising attorneys will not be interested in
excuses, and you will not want to develop a reputation for being unprepared as an attorney.
Developing professionalism and the habit of accepting responsibility for decisions is a key part
of your legal education. Of course, my concern for you as students goes beyond your

professional status, so please feel free to share any ideas, problems, and concerns with me,
either after class or at my office hours.
School of Law Program Learning Goals
Cognitive Apprenticeship Goals
1. Students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of substantive law. (CA1)
2. Students will demonstrate proficiency in legal analysis and critical reasoning. (CA2)
Moral, Ethical and Professional Identity Goals
1. Students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a lawyers moral, ethical, and
professional responsibilities. (ME1)
2. Students will demonstrate awareness of their responsibility to society. (ME2)
Student Learning Goals
By the end of the course, students will be able to:

Explain and critique the various theoretical rationales for establishing tort liability (CA2)

Analyze factual scenarios and cases under the leading tort laws and legal theories,
including intentional torts, negligence, and strict liability, to resolve issues of legal
liability for injuries (CA1, CA2)

Demonstrate a knowledge of the interrelationship between the various torts (CA1, CA2)

Evaluate and assess, from multiple perspectives, the legitimacy of tort claims and the
appropriateness of monetary awards (CA1, CA2)

Evaluate and assess moral, societal, and professional responsibility issues in the course of
classroom discussion and course readings (ME1, ME2)

Engage in the professional lawyering skill of oral advocacy and analysis (CA2)

Demonstrate written legal analysis ability in final examination (CA2)

Rules of Engagement
Everyone and his or her respective views will be treated with respect at all times in the
classroom. For the sake of exploring and testing the limits of arguments and reasoning, I will
sometimes adopt positions that do not align with my own personal opinions and I expect and
encourage you to do likewise. At all times, I expect courtesy and respect with respect to all
comments made and directed at others. In-class electronic communication with one another (via
e-mail, IM, or other means) is strictly prohibited.
Laptops may be used for purposes related to class (note-taking, reading notes, etc.). Use of
laptops for other purposes or to access the internet, other than for class-related purposes, distracts
both the user and those nearby. So please refrain from misusing laptops in class. I reserve the
right to impose a ban on laptops, if necessary, to preserve the classroom environment.

Required Texts
The required textbook is Victor E. Schwartz, Kathryn Kelly & David F. Parlett, PROSSER, WADE
& SCHWARTZS TORTS (12th ed. 2010). I also recommend Dan B. Dobbs, THE LAW OF TORTS as a
reference source. This reference source, called a torts hornbook, is on reserve in the library.
Copies of the Dobbs hornbook may be purchased in the bookstore, but most students find using
the librarys reserve copies sufficient (the book is quite expensive).
If you are interested in outside reading addressing the historical, moral, and economic values that
influence tort law, a good collection of essays and law review articles is available in R.L. Rabin,
PERSPECTIVES ON TORT LAW. Economic analysis is becoming increasingly influential in tort law;
a collection of writings exemplifying the law and economics school of thought is available in S.
Levmore, FOUNDATIONS OF TORT LAW. Finally, as you do your reading, dont forget the very real
human drama underlying the cases; for an interesting look at the background of some of the most
famous tort cases, see R.L. Rabin and S.D. Sugarman, TORTS STORIES (2003).
Grading
You will take a practice midterm examination in late September or early October. The midterm
will not count toward your class grade; it is intended to give you a taste of what is to come and to
allow you to gauge the effectiveness of your study habits and techniques. Your final
examination will likely consist of approximately two hours of essay questions and one hour of
multiple choice questions. I reserve the option to add or subtract up to three discretionary points
based on class participation. Other than these potential discretionary points, your entire grade
will be based on the final examination. Exam grading is completely anonymous.
Disability Statement
Any student with a documented disability (physical, learning, or psychological) needing
academic accommodations should contact the Disability Services Office (Malibu Campus, Tyler
Campus Center 225, 310-506-6500) as early in the semester as possible. All discussions will
remain confidential. Please visit http://www.pepperdine.edu/disabilityservices/ for additional
information.
Reading Assignments
Your reading assignments for the semester are provided below. We will generally cover one
reading assignment per day, although some of the assignments may take two days to cover. If
we do not cover a full assignment in a class period, review the remaining portion of the
unfinished assignment and prepare the next assignment.
For each page range, where you should start/stop reading should be apparent (e.g. the beginning
or end of a case, the end of a notes section, etc.). Where it isnt, Ive tried to provide clarifying
information. If anything is unclear to you, please let me know.
I will usually provide reading assignments in roughly two-week chunks. This is so I can adjust
assignments based on the speed at which we are going through the material in class. You will
always have plenty of notice beforehand of what your assignments will be down the road.

READING ASSIGNMENTS
Class

Topic

Assignment

Key Cases

Intentional Torts
1
(8/24)

Introduction
Tort Theory
Intent

2
(8/25)

Intent
Battery
Assault

3
(8/27)

False Imprisonment
IIED

29-30 (notes 1-4), 41-47, 49-55

4
(8/31)

False Imprisonment
IIED

55-68 (plus review pp. 43-55)

5
(9/1)

Trespass to Land
Trespass to Chattels
Conversion

68-85

6
(9/3)
7
(9/8)

Conversion
Consent
Consent
Self-Defense
Defense of Others
Defense of Property
Recovery of Property
Necessity
Intro to Negligence

85-100

8
(9/10)

Supp. #1 (Abraham 1-5, 16-19)

1-2 (up to Historical Origins); 12 (notes
1-3); 17-20 (incl. notes 1-5); 34
(Restatement 13, 18).
22-23 (notes 1-3); 31-41
Supp. #2 (Vosburg and notes 1-2)

Garratt

100-114

Wallace
Vosburg
Fisher
Hill
Newman
Parvi
Siliznoff
Parvi
Siliznoff
Harris
Slocum
Dougherty
Herrin
Glidden
CompuServe
Pearson
Hackbart
Mohr
Katko

114-119 (through note 3), 133-135

Supp. #3 (Vincent v. Lake Erie and notes
1, 3)

Hodgeden
Bonkowski
Vincent

Negligence

9
(9/14)
10
(9/15)

11
(9/17)

History
Elements
Hand Formula
Duty and Breach:
Reasonable and Prudent
Person
Duty and Breach:
Reasonable and Prudent
Person
Professional Standards

Duty and Breach

135-143, 145-150

150-163

163-79

Pipher
Krayenbuhl
Carroll Towing
Vaughan
Delair
Trimarco
Cordas
Roberts
Robinson
Breunig
Heath

12
(9/21)

Duty and Breach:

Professional Standards

183-201 (through note 3)

Boyce
Morrison
Scott
Moore

13
(9/22)

Rules vs. Standards

Duty and Breach:
Statutory Violations

Supp. #4 (Goodman)
208-214
Supp. #5 (Schlag article)

Goodman
Pokora
Osborne

14
(9/24)

Duty and Breach:

Statutory Violations

214-218, 224-238

15
(9/28)

Duty and Breach:

Circumstantial Evidence
Res Ipsa Loquitur

238-249, 255-58

Stachniewicz
Perry
Martin
Zeni
Goddard/Anjou/Joye
Ortega/Jasko/Butt
Byrne
Larson

16
(9/29)

In-Class Exercise

Handout + 4 cases (all on Courses site)

Causation

Causation in Fact
Causation in Fact
Proximate cause
Proximate Cause
Proximate Cause:
Intervening Cause
Proximate Cause:
Intervening Cause
Midterm Examination
(tentative)
Damages
Compensatory Damages
Compensatory Damages
Punitive Damages
Punitive Damages
Wrongful Death
Survival
Duty Revisited
NIED
Failure to Act
Wrongful Birth/Life
Wrongful Conception
Duty of Land Owners
and Occupiers
Defenses
Contributory Negligence
Comparative Negligence
Assumption of Risk
Statute of Limitations
Family Immunity

Multiple Parties
Joint Tortfeasors
Joint Tortfeasors
Vicarious Liability
Strict Liability
Ultrahazardous
Activities
Ultrahazardous
Activities
Products Liability
Products Liability
Products Liability
Defenses
Products and Services
Additional Topics
TBD
TBD
TBD