Tort is concerned with civil wrongs caused by individuals and other legal entities.

Tort has two main objectives.

One is to offer compensation to the victims of civil wrongs for the loss, damage or injury that they have suffered.
The most common remedy for tortious conduct is money, referred to as damages. Tort also acts as a deterrent,
and aims to reduce the harm caused by making the tortfeasor responsible for providing a remedy.
Another type of remedy is an injunction, where the court orders a person not to do something, for example, not to
publish an article in a newspaper. It may also be used to compel a person to do something, although this is less
common.
There are three main elements to a tort claim. First, it must be proved that there was a wrongful
act or omission (=failure to act) by the defendant. Second, that the claimant suffered loss, damage or injury as a
result. Third, that the defendant had a duty to act in a certain way but didnt, meaning he was at fault.
The most litigated tort is the general tort of negligence, where As careless act or omission causes damage to B.
Other torts include defamation, where A suffers as a result of Bs spoken or published lies; trespass, where B
wrongfully goes onto As land; and nuisance, where B disturbs As enjoyment and use of his land (for example, by
allowing dogs or cats to run freely there).
In certain cases, such as defective products that cause harm to consumers, strict liability is used. This means that
the defendant will be found liable regardless of fault.
There are some overlaps between tort law and criminal law, and sometimes the same set of facts may lead to both
a criminal prosecution and an action in tort. A famous example of this was the US case of The People v. Orenthal
James Simpson. This criminal trial involved the former American football star and actor O. J. Simpson, and was
heard at the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, California. Simpson was charged with
two counts of murder following the deaths of his ex wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman
in June 1994. Simpson was eventually acquitted. However, the Brown and Goldman families then sued Simpson
for damages in a civil suit. The jury unanimously found there was a preponderance of evidence to find
Simpson liable for damages in the wrongful death of Goldman and battery of Brown.
The standard of proof in civil cases, the preponderance of the evidence, is much lower than in criminal cases, the
facts of which have to be proved beyond reasonable doubt.
Another difference between civil law and criminal law are the consequences of a finding of liability and a finding
of guilt. Damages are awarded in tort cases, and are meant to compensate the injured party for wrongs caused, and
to deter others from acting negligently. A finding of guilt can subject the defendant to a number of
different punishments, including imprisonment and fines (=a sum of money exacted as a penalty by a court of law
or other authority). Some jurisdictions are also able to award punitive damages, which can be extremely high, in
addition to compensatory damages, where the tort in question has been particularly serious.