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Documentation:Torts/Content and style guide

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TORT LAW
CASEBOOK
Introduction
Dignitary Torts
Defamation • Discrimination • Harassment • Intentional infliction of mental suffering • Invasion of privacy • Trespass to the person
Property Torts
Interference with goods • Interference with land • Non-natural use of land • Private nuisance • Public nuisance
Negligence Tort
Duty of care • Breach of duty • Damage • Causation • Remoteness
Negligence Categories
Employment • Environmental pollution • Harmful products • Hosting patrons and guests • Infliction of mental injury • Misrepresentation • Occupation of premises • Professional services • Public authorities • Pure economic loss • Relational economic loss • Rescuers • Shoddy goods or structures • Treatment of indigenous children • Unborn children
Dishonesty & Abuse of Position Torts
Abuse of process • Breach of confidence • Conspiracy • Fraud • Inducing breach of contract • Injurious falsehood • Intimidation • Malicious prosecution • Misfeasance in public office • Passing off • Spoliation • Unlawful interference with economic interests
Strict Liability
Keeping dangerous animals • Non-natural use of land • Ultrahazardous activities • Vicarious liability
Defences
Apportionment of liability • Consent • Defamation defences • Defence of property • Denials • Excuses • Illegality • Legal authority • Limitation • Necessity • Self-defence
Remedies
Apologies • Damages • Injunctions • Insurance • Legal costs • Mitigation • Proprietary
Tort Law & Legal Systems
Charter values • Class actions • Concurrent actions • Constitutional torts • Indigenous dispute resolution • No-fault compensation schemes
Tort Theory
Instrumental theories • Constructive theories • Critical theories • Reflexive theories
Study Resources
1L strategy • Answer exercises • Quizzes • Beswick's course site • Opening Up Tort Law Project
Index
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Content and style guide

Please format & edit contributions in accordance with the rules set out below.

Creating a new page

If you want to create an entirely new page, please use this template.

At the bottom of the template page, you will be able to create a new page by typing the name in the box. Ensure you delete this box on your own page after you have created it.

When naming a page, please follow sentence case and include spaces.

  • Example: Invasion of privacy
  • NOT: invasionofprivacy, Invasion Of Privacy, etc.

New pages should follow the general order of other page.

  • Example: Discussion questions, Case reading exercises, Quiz
  • This does not mean all above sections must be included. Rather, IF they are included, they should follow a consistent order.

Formatting for page body

Headings

Headings should be capitalized using sentence case.

Photos

Ensure photos have alternative text for accessibility purposes.

Sections

When adding new sections, they should follow the general order of other pages.

  • Example: Discussion questions, Case reading exercises, Quiz
  • This does not mean all above sections must be included. Rather, IF they are included, they should follow a consistent order and use the same naming conventions (ex. Quiz NOT Quiz Questions)

Tables

When you are creating a new page or adding resources to an existing page, please do so in accordance with the following guidelines. If what you wish to add does not clearly fit into one of the below categories, use whatever is closest.

All table widths should be set as a percent of page width—not as a pixel measurement. Width, colours, and alignment must be set in Wikitext as the settings are not available in the visual editor. See these pages to learn about how to edit these attributes in Wikitext:

In many cases, it may be easiest to copy an existing table from the template, this page, or one of the 'content' pages while in edit mode rather than creating one from scratch as this will ensure the correct formatting is in place.

The colour scheme for this wiki is based on the Wikipedia colour scheme, found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Using_colours#Wikimedia_colour_schemes

Elements & tests

When providing elements of tests, please try to directly quote as much as possible, preferably to case law.

This can also be adapted for lists of factors or similar uses.

Accepted tests

  • Background colour of header row: #E0CEF2
  • Heading: "Elements of [tort]" or "[Name of Test]" with a footnote citation for the source of the test
  • The name may also include the jurisdiction, if appropriate
    • Ex) "Elements of harassment in Alberta"

Iterations of tests

  • Background colour of header row: #E0CEF2
  • Heading: "Elements of [tort] as proposed in [Case Name]" with a footnote citation for the source of the test
  • The table should be collapsible and should be collapsed initially

Rejected proposals of tests

  • Background colour of header row: #E0CEF2
  • Heading: "Rejected elements of [tort] per [Case Name]" with a footnote citation for the source of the test & where it was rejected
  • The table should be collapsible and should be collapsed initially

Examples

Elements of defamation[1][2]
1. "[T]he impugned words were defamatory"
2. "[T]hey referred to the plaintiff"
3. "[T]hey were published, meaning that they were communicated to at least one other person"
Elements of the tort per Wainwright v. Home Office[3]
1. Defendant wilfully did an act;
2. Calculated to cause the plaintiff harm, or is reckless as to it; and,
3. Caused plaintiff harm, specifically "recognized psychiatric injury".
Rejected elements for harassment as proposed in Merrifield v. Canada[4][5]
1. "Was the conduct of the defendants toward [the plaintiff] outrageous?"
2. "Did the defendants intend to cause emotional stress or did they have a reckless disregard for causing [the plaintiff] to suffer from emotional stress?"
3. "Did [the plaintiff] suffer from severe or extreme emotional distress?"
4. "Was the outrageous conduct of the defendants the actual and proximate cause of the emotional distress?"

Legislation

If you wish to include a section of a piece of legislation, follow the below formatting:

  • Background colour of header row: #CEF2E0
  • Heading: Any relevant title
  • Second row: Full hyperlinked citation of legislation (does not need casebook section) as well as a footnote citation (including the casebook section if applicable)
  • The table should be collapsible and should be collapsed initially

If you provide a section of the Criminal Code, we strongly recommend also linking to the relevant portion of the Criminal Law Notebook somewhere in the body text.

Example

British Columbia
Law and Equity Act, RSBC 1996, c 253, s 57.[6]
57. Recovery of property

(1) In an action for the recovery of specific property, other than land, the court may, if it considers it just and on any terms as to security or otherwise it considers just, order the person from whom recovery of the property is claimed to surrender it to the claimant pending the outcome of the action.

(2) If an order is made under subsection (1) and the action is dismissed,

(a) the claimant must
(i) return the property to the person who surrendered it, and
(ii) compensate that person for any loss suffered or damage sustained by that person because of that person’s surrender of the property or compliance with another order respecting the property, and
(b) the court may order that any security provided by or on behalf of the claimant under subsection (1) be applied in payment of the compensation for loss or damage.
In the news
Tate Modern and nuisance
In 2016, the Tate Modern was sued by the residents of the Neo Bankside flats because "visitors to the viewing gallery [of the Tate] can see straight into the living areas of their flats."[7]

This video, created by Quastels LLP featuring Daniel Blake, provides an overview of the case.[8]

News

If you wish to include a section of a piece of legislation, follow the below formatting:

  • Background colour of header row: #F2CEE0
  • Heading: In the news
  • Second row should be set as a header cell with italics
    • Second row background: #FFF5FA
    • Second row text: Relevant title for the news source
  • Typically, the table should be aligned on the right

News tables can, and if possible, should, include relevant embedded videos or images.

Example

See on the right.

Other Resources

If you wish to include another external resource please follow these guidelines, as well as the content specific guidelines below

  • Background colour of header row: #CEE0F2
  • Heading: Relevant title for the resource

It is permissible to include more than one resource in a box, provided that they are on the same topic.

Podcasts

The reasonable person with Professor Mayo Moran
This McGill Law Journal podcast featuring Professor Mayo Moran discusses "the shortcomings and limitations of the reasonable person standard."[9]

In this Western University lecture, Professor Mayo Moran challenges "the purported fairness and objectivity of tort law’s reasonable person standard and counselled its rejection in favour of a more robust standard of moral fault."[10][11]


If you wish to include a podcast, embed it via the Iframe template, which can be found by navigating to "Template" under "Insert" and searching "Iframe". In the template, ensure width is set to 100% so that it fills the table and adjusts with it.

  • Note: in the past, the Iframe template has become unavailable, but it is still functional if you copy an existing Iframe

In addition to the embed, use the Website citation template to provide a citation to the podcast's web page.

Where possible and appropriate, hyperlink to the creator of the podcast or to anyone notable who is featured in it in the blurb introducing the podcast.

Videos

If you wish to include a YouTube video, embed it via the YouTube template, which can be found by navigating to "Template" under "Insert" and searching "YouTube". In the template, ensure width is set to 100% so that it fills the table and adjusts with it.

In addition to the embed, use the Website citation template to provide a citation to the YouTube page.

Where possible and appropriate, hyperlink to the creator of the video or to anyone notable who is featured in it in it in the blurb introducing the video.

Other

In addition to these specific resources, reports, links to videos that cannot be embedded, or other useful resources should be included in this type of table.

Example

See on the right.

Quizzes

If you would like to embed a quiz, create it in H5P. You can then embed it using the H5P template, which can be found by navigating to "Template" under "Insert" and searching "H5P". In the template, ensure width is set to 100% so that it fills the table and adjusts with it.

For consistency, ensure your quiz follows these guidelines:

  • Ensure quiz answers are not set to randomize (as it makes explanations for correct answers confusing)
  • Include an explanation of the correct answer
    • The explanation should appear under the correct answer whether or not it was selected
  • Do not include "a, b, c, d"
  • Type "yes" in the box that asks if you want the quiz to be responsive

Citation standards

Jurisprudence

Citations for this Wiki should generally conform to the Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation, 10th Edition (The McGill Guide), with several noted deviations. The Queen's University Library provides an interactive legal citation tutorial which provides an overview of the basic rules.

Use the "basic" citation function.

Deviations from the McGill Guide

Examples

Please note these examples are not meant to be exhaustive. They are simply meant to exemplify the above deviations.

Legislation

Citations for this Wiki should generally conform to the Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation, 10th Edition (McGill Guide), with noted deviations. Use the "basic" citation function.

Deviations from the McGill Guide

  • If possible, hyperlink the title of the legislation to an online source
  • If the legislation is included in the accompanying casebook, include the relevant section in round brackets with a hyperlink at the end of the citation
  • Introductory signals are not required (though they may be used if they are helpful)

Example

Please note these examples are not meant to be exhaustive. They are simply meant to exemplify the above deviations.

Secondary sources, news, and websites

For secondary sources, news, and websites, where possible, use Wiki's embedded citation formats for Wesbites, Books, News, and Journals. If a source you want to cite does not easily fit into one of these categories and you feel you cannot appropriately adapt one of these templates for your purpose, defer to the McGill Guide.

For journal articles, add the issue number field where applicable.

Cases quoting secondary sources

Although secondary sources are generally cited using the Wiki templates, when a case cites to a secondary source, defer to the McGill Guide for how to cite the secondary source. Use the "basic" citation function in Wiki.

  • Example: Wilson v. New Brighton Panelbeaters Ltd, [1989] 1 NZLR 74 (HC) (§8.1.1) at para 7 citing John W Salmond, RFV Heuston & RA Buckley, Salmond and Heuston on the Law of Torts, 19th ed (London, UK: Sweet & Maxwell, 1987) at 104.

Secondary sources also in the casebook

If a secondary source is also found in the casebook, still use the Wiki template for consistency. However, edit using the "basic" citation template to add the hyperlinked casebook section to the end of the citation.

Sources not addressed here

If a source is not addressed here, or is not clearly analogous to one that is, defer to the McGill Guide.

Editing checklist

When contributing, please edit your work according to the following checklist.

Fact checking

  • Verify sources
    • In cases of scholarly articles, verify if the idea is fact or a scholar’s position on a topic (err on side of presuming it is a scholar’s position)
  • Check that claims are backed up by a source (add source when necessary)
  • Update to include more direct quotes if necessary—especially in element lists/legal tests

General editing

  • Typos & grammatical correctness
  • Check heading & URL capitalization are in sentence case
  • Clarify language
  • Make more succinct when possible
  • Adjust structure when appropriate
    • General order should follow other pages (ex. Discussion questions, Case reading exercises, Quiz)
    • Make sure the title of repeated sections are consistent with other pages (ex. Discussion questions, Case reading exercises, Quiz)
    • Pull information into side boxes if appropriate (such as "In the news")
  • Delete unused template elements

Photos

  • Check for alternative text

Quizzes

  • Ensure the correct answer is selected
  • Ensure explanations appear correctly
  • Ensure answers do not appear in a randomized order

Style-guide consistency

  • Check citations are consistent with the style guide
    • Include hyperlinks to online versions of the judgements whenever possible
    • Ensure your citation conforms to the appropriate jurisdiction (see section 7 of the McGill Guide)
  • Check tables are consistent with our style guide
    • Corresponding colour & heading format
    • Width set as a percent
  • Check capitalization in headings (sentence case)

Additional information

  • Check for possible hyperlinks to add throughout the page
  • Check the accompanying casebook (including further materials) if the casebook contains a topic that is relevant to your contribution
  1. ↑ Lu v. Shen, 2020 BCSC 490 (§5.1.3) at para 174.
  2. ↑ Weaver v. Corcoran, 2017 BCCA 160 at para 34.
  3. ↑ Wainwright v. Home Office, [2003] UKHL 53 (§3.1.2) at paras 44–45, 47.
  4. ↑ Merrifield v. The Attorney General, 2017 ONSC 1333 at para 719.
  5. ↑ Merrifield v. Canada (AG), 2019 ONCA 205 (§5.2.2).
  6. ↑ Law and Equity Act, RSBC 1996, c 253, s 57 (§8.4.1).
  7. ↑ Fearn and others v Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery, [2023] UKSC 4 at paras 1–2.
  8. ↑ Quastels LLP. "What Happened In Tate Modern Vs Fearn - LAW REVIEW". YouTube.
  9. ↑ McGill Law Journal (23 March 2022). "Deconstructing the Reasonable Person".
  10. ↑ Western Law. "Mayo Moran Lectures on Tort Law's Reasonable Person".
  11. ↑ Western University (9 February 2017). "Mayo Moran, 'Rethinking the Reasonable Person". YouTube.
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