Exam 30: Liability of Principals, Agents, and Independent Contractors

What is the effect on the tort liability of an agent when it is determined that an intentional tort was committed within the scope of the agency?

Pat is the owner of Tarantula Skiwear of Boulder,Colorado.Tarantula is a new company that makes top-of-the-line products.Angela is the salesperson whose territory is the state of Utah.In an ordinary week,Angela,a Boulder resident,goes to the company office on Monday morning,takes care of paperwork,and in the late morning takes off for Utah.She stays in Utah until sometime on Friday,the exact time changing from week to week.Sometimes,she will stay in Utah for the weekend to ski and save the drive to Boulder and back.More often,she will drive partway back to Boulder on Friday evening,stopping to ski at one of the larger Colorado resorts,and return to Boulder on Saturday or Sunday.In order to make a sale,Angela must often negotiate a discount from the standard wholesale prices. Tarantula wants to maintain the exclusivity of its line in Vail,thus the company has a policy of selling at full wholesale list price in Vail and not negotiating.The salesperson,who covers Vail,follows the policy rigidly and,as a result,Tarantula Skiwear is available in only two Vail stores.Angela thinks she could make a large sale by only cutting the list price slightly.One Thursday she drives from Salt Lake City to Vail.Friday morning she called on a large retail outlet in Vail.The owner said he would love to have the Tarantula line,but just couldn't pay the full wholesale price.Angela takes the owner skiing,with both,of course,wearing Tarantula wear.Angela is demonstrating how good Tarantula Skiwear looks at high speed when she skis into someone just beginning to snowboard.The snowboarder sues Angela and Tarantula Skiwear.Assuming that Angela was,in fact,negligent,can the plaintiff recover from Tarantula? Discuss the likely issues to arise and their likely resolution.

An agent can be held liable on any contract negotiated by the agent on behalf of the principal.

Eric works for a construction company.He drives his own vehicle to a job-site that is designated by the company on a daily basis.While driving to work one morning,he is dancing to music on the radio and spills coffee on his lap.As a result,he swerves his truck into an oncoming car,which causes significant physical injuries to the occupants of the other vehicle.The injured parties sue Eric and the construction company.Will the case be successful?

An agent has been hired to buy land for the principal for use as a factory site.The agent finds a good parcel for the purpose,and proposes it for purchase to the principal.The principal declines to purchase the property because it is too far from the interstate highway.The agent then buys this land for himself as an investment.What,if anything,has the agent done wrong?

Edward is an employee of Huge Corporation who works in one of the company's stores.One day Edward sees one of his ex-girlfriends,who jilted him,in the store.He is still mad at her for this,so he goes over and slugs her in the face.She sues Edward and Huge Corporation.If the state applies the motivation test,which of the following is true?

Tim played first base for a minor league baseball team,the Salamanders.During a home game,a fan for the visiting team was seated near first base and heckling Tim.The fan said that Tim's mother wore army boots,and that Tim played like he was in Little League.Finally,Tim had had enough,and threw his right shoe at the fan,injuring him.An hour after the game in a nearby bar,a drunk fan was threatening the Salamanders' right fielder,also their star hitter.Although this person was too drunk to have inflicted injury,Tim punched him a couple of times in order to protect his friend and star.Discuss the liability of the Salamanders for these injuries.

Bob sells real estate in Knoxville for a real estate sales company.One afternoon,he shows a client two homes in Knoxville and the client tells Bob that there is a great cabin for sale in Gatlinburg,about 40 miles from Knoxville.Bob drops the client off in Knoxville and goes to Gatlinburg to check out this property because he wants a place for his family to go on weekends.As he is entering Gatlinburg,he accidentally hits and injures a pedestrian.In determining whether Bob's employer can be held liable,a court will:

Paul,who collects old cars,hires Andy to find and purchase a 1965 Ford Mustang on his behalf.Andy sees a car advertised that might be what Paul has in mind.Andy examines the car and falls in love with it.He decides to purchase it himself.Andy has:

In an undisclosed agency,both the principal and the agent are liable on the contract with the third party.

When an agent negotiates a contract on behalf of the principal,the liability of the principal will depend on if:

The frolic and detour rule states that an agent is liable to the principal for damages resulting from the agent going on a frolic and detour.

If an agent's motivation in committing an intentional tort is to promote the principal's business,the principal is relieved of liability for any injury caused by the tort.

Generally,a principal is liable for the acts of her agents while on the way to and from work if the principal supplies a car to the agent.

A third party can assume that if he tells something to an agent,the information is forwarded to the principal.

When an agent is acting partly for himself or herself and partly for the principal,the agent will be held totally liable if the agent injures someone while on such a mission.

In which of the following circumstances can a principal be held liable for the torts of an independent contractor?

The "motivation" test and the "work-related" test are used to determine whether:

The degree to which an agent disclosed the agency relationship affects:

When is an agent liable for a tort committed by the principal?