Week 5

Feb 8                 Continue Civil Procedure Work on Jamarillo v. Ford/ If finished start Torts Chapter in text

Feb 10                 Winter Carnival Break

WEEK 6 

  TORTS – Focus on Defamation and Immunties

• Read Text  Torts Chap XI pp 390-409;

Battery – Pratt (p. 393); Conversion Pickens p. 395; Trepass Olmstead p. 397; False Imprisonment Wesson v. Walmart p 399; Defamation Riddle p. 402; Malpractice 406

First Amendment Limits on Tort Liability  -

• Skim Linder Web Page Here)
• NYT v. Sullivan (media liability) (optional)
• Hustler v. Falwell (emotional distress) (skim over see Famous Trials for interesting background on Larry Flynt and Rev. Fallwell here) (disputed Campari ad here)

Statutory Protections for  ISP’s in the

Communication Decency Act (eg Section 230 Immunity)

• Communications Decency Act See 47 USC Section 230(c) (1) or the Wiki
• Goldman’s notes here (outline on 230 Immunity)
• Adam Therierr, Section 230 as a Utopia here
• Julie Hilden, “Defamation on Facebook”  Aug 17 2010 (Here) an Decision in Finkel v Dauber (NY Sup.  2010) here  (

Also - look at one of these case studies from Citizens Media Law Project:

• Discussion of Dan Snyder’s (Washington Redskins owner) defamation lawsuit here
• Or Reit v. Yelp here  (dentist suing over comments about smelly office)
• Apartmentratings.com suit here

Optional (background)

Citzens Media Law – 230 Background Materials here

Empircal Study on Sec 230 Immunity here

Hilden, Is Don’t Date Him Girl Legal?

Feb 17                 Torts Continued Read  413-429

                            Negligence and Proximate Cause

McDonalds Reading  - Andrea Gerling, “How the Jury Decided What the Coffee Spill was Worth,” St Louis Post Dispatch Sept 14, 1994

Week 7

Feb 22                 Feb 22:  Exam 1- In class