Phoenix Eth/321 Torts and Intellectual Property

Purpose of Assignment 

The purpose of this assignment is to identify the form of intellectual property outlined, and to examine the different types of torts committed. 

Assignment Steps 

Scenario: Sam is an employee of ABC Paper Corp. He signed a non-disclosure agreement as a condition of his employment with ABC. Sam is approached by XYZ Paper Co. with an offer of employment, but only if he brings his client list with him. Sam was fully responsible for creating his client list, so he agrees to provide it to XYZ. When Sam downloads his client list onto an external flash drive, he is caught in the act by his boss Natalie. Sam grabs the flash drive and runs out of his office, shoving Natalie aside when she attempts to stop him. Natalie falls and hits her head against the doorknob, suffering a concussion. 

Develop a 1,050-word analysis using the information posed in the scenario.

· Identify if there is an intellectual property at issue here. If so, what type?

· Discuss if Sam's actions are ethical. Why or why not?

· Discuss the types of tort, if any, Sam committed. Did any of the other parties in this scenario commit a tort?

· Discuss if any of Sam's actions subject him to criminal liability.

Cite a minimum of three peer-reviewed references, one of which must be the textbook.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Need to use this source from my textbook for one of the three peer reviewed references, with one citation from this text. The following is for the reference:

Pagnattaro, M. A., Cahoy, D. R., Magid, J. M., Reed, O. L., & Shedd, P. J. (2016). The legal and regulatory environment of business (17th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.

Breach of Contract

LO 9-5

A party that does not live up to the obligation of contractual performance is said to breach the contract. There are several remedies or solutions available for a breach of contract. One party may, of course, attempt to reach a voluntary, negotiated settlement with the other party. The parties may also agree to arbitration, as outlined in Chapter 5, and have a neutral third party decide a fair outcome. In many cases, however, a court’s intercession is required to determine the appropriate remedy. Options include the following:

•Damages awards, including compensatory, consequential, and liquidated damages

•Equitable remedies including specific performance, injunction, and rescission

Figure 9.2 provides a summary of these remedies for breach of contract. Note that the choice of one remedy may exclude others. For example, if one chooses rescission, one cannot also make a claim for damages.

You contract with P to paint your house for $2,000. P does not complete the job, and you hire R and pay $3,000. You are entitled to $1,000 from P as compensatory damages.

Awarding money damages is the more common way courts provide remedies to nonbreaching parties. The theory behind such an award rests in putting the damaged person in the same financial position as if the contract was fully performed. Usually compensatory damages suffice to achieve this objective of making a party whole. Compensatory damages may be calculated in a variety of ways, depending on the losses the defendant suffered:

•Contract price—if a defendant fails to pay for goods or services provided.

•Lost profits—if a defendant fails to pay but plaintiff makes a replacement sale for a lower price.

•Difference in market price versus contract price—if a/defendant fails to deliver product or service and it must be secured from a higher-priced source.

Occasionally courts will add consequential damages to create a fair outcome. Such damages reflect the downstream impact of the breach, such as having to close your restaurant because a new refrigerator does not arrive. Consequential damages are awarded only if the consequence was foreseeable.

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Figure 9.2 Remedies for breach of contract.

figure

Liquidated, or agreed-upon, damages can simplify disputes when a breach occurs. However, it is important to understand that liquidated damages cannot constitute a penalty for breach; they must be a reasonable attempt to assess actual damages in the face of uncertainty when the contract is formed.

The victim of a contract breach must mitigate damages when possible. Mitigating damages requires the victim to take reasonable steps to reduce them. For example, when a tenant breaches a house lease by moving away before the lease expires, the landlord must mitigate damages by attempting to rent the house to another willing and suitable tenant if such a person is available.

Mitigation is the purposeful reduction of damages; it usually is the responsibility of the nonbreaching party.

At times, money damages are not satisfactory as a remedy. Instead, the nonbreaching party might desire either a return of the value given, which involves the equitable remedy of rescission or restitution. Or a party might request an order that the breaching party specifically perform the contractual promise made, which is known as specific performance. In some cases, a party may desire an injunction to compel another party to do something or not do something agreed to under the original contract. Case 9.3 involves a court’s consideration of specific performance as a remedy in a case involving subject matter that has no certain market value.

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