Insurance, operational liabilities and compliance

Responsibility to Prevent Injury

Companies have a responsibility to prevent causing injury to others. Employers have a duty to their employers as well as third parties such as vendors. Professional service providers are required to take appropriate precautions. Similarly, landlords must guarantee the well-being of their tenants. Conducting oneself in an orderly way is aided by standards of conduct. Inflicting harm on others results in expensive litigation as a result of neglect. Natural occurrences are not covered by the responsibility of treatment (Bagley 348-352).

Negligence Fault

Negligence fault is not entirely punitive. The theory of contributory guilt prevents a complainant from recovering damages if they are themselves liable. Comparative negligence permits the plaintiff to offset the portion of the loss that was due to the defendant’s negligence. Damages are irrecoverable in situations where the plaintiff is more negligent than the defendant (Bagley 353).

International Tort

The global nature of today businesses has led to international tort. It arises where there is intent to harm a plaintiff, their property, or economic interests and relationships. Torts that safeguard individuals from physical and mental harm include; battery, false imprisonment, deliberate affliction of emotional distress, defamation, and invasions of privacy (Bagley 354-355).

Torts Protecting Property and Business Interests

Torts that protect the interest of property include land trespass, nuisance, conversion, and trespassing personal property. It protects the rights of individuals to their property. Economic interests and business relationship are protected. Fraudulent misrepresentation, hampering contractual relations, impeding with prospective business advantage and unfair competition helps ensure ethics in business (Bagley 356-359).

Strict Liability and Toxic Tort

Strict liability arises where negligence or intent was absent. It is imposed in cases of product liability and ultrahazardous activities despite maintaining a high standard of care. Closely related to it is the toxic tort. It arises when injury is caused by exposure to harmful or poisonous materials mostly by manufacturers (Bagley 361).

Employer Liability and Tort Remedies

The doctrine of respondent superior makes the employer eventually liable to torts of their employees. The law further protects the employer from cases of frolic but not detour. The doctrine of aided-in-the-agency-relation makes the employer still responsible if they enabled the staff to perpetrate the tort while the staff was acting outside the scope of their work(Bagley 362-363).

Tort remedies compensate for the harm. Actual damages restore one to the position before the injury. Punitive damages deter the defendant and others from causing such injury. Equitable relief is given where a monetary award cannot compensate for the loss incurred. Liabilities are either joint or several in cases with multiple defendants. The doctrine of contribution and indemnification mitigates the harsh effects by allowing for sharing of responsibility proportionately (Bagley 363-366).

Laws Protecting Businesses

Other laws that protect business include antitrust violations that protect against price fixing, market divisions, monopolization, and group boycotts. Environmental protection imposes liabilities that arise from the unsustainable use of natural resources. Briberies and foreign corrupt practices act have made business play fairly when going for government contracts (Bagley 366-377).

Government Regulations and Insurance

The government has made violations of internal revenue code to lead to tax liability. It uses the wire and mail fraud to further aid in investigations. Obstruction of justice and retaliation against whistle-blowers is criminal thus making investigations faster and more successful (Bagley 377-379).

Business use insurance to transfer the risk. Use of first-party, third-party, product recall, data breach, and cyber insurance has aided in managing the risks. Non-compliance with laws can result in significant fines or close of the business. Compliance entails being ethical at the top management level and understanding of duties and exposure to risk. It then leads to the creation of a robust compliance program to protect the business (Bagley 382-389).

Work Cited

Bagley, Constance E. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Law and Strategy. 5th ed. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning, 2017. Print.