examples of tort in schools
Torts fall into three general categories: intentional torts ( e.g., intentionally hitting a person); negligent torts ( e.g. Rooker explains that this is because what the principal read was an education record, which FERPA protects. Moreover, collective judgments are often reached, and an infinite number of calculated risks determined, according to political criteria rather than cost-benefit equations. According to the Restatement (Second) of Torts, section 463, contributory negligence is conduct that falls "below the standard to which [a person] should conform for his own protection." School districts use a defense of contributory negligence when alleging that a student contributed to his or her own injury. And thanks be to God for our attorney, Antonio Ponvert, who always believed in our case. Delay can also produce injustice, especially since it tends to benefit wealthy defendants (usually insurance companies) whose in-house legal advisers can sometimes delay payments in the hope of wearing down a plaintiff so that he accepts a low settlement. A court recognizing such a duty is not engaging in a policy-based expansionit is applying long-settled black letter law holding schools to a duty to take reasonable measures to protect students from being injured in school-related activities. If the district courts decision stands, how can programs possible operate under this impossible standard? Tort law, though often viewed as secondary to contract law in the law of civil obligations, spread to many parts of the world after World War II, and its influence was especially notable in continental Europe. David, without looking over his shoulder, swerves into the other lane to avoid Kevin and in the process he hits a car, driven by Peter, that was speeding past him in the left-hand lane going in the same direction. Germans, for example, talk of unlawful acts, and French-inspired systems use interchangeably the terms dlits (and quasi-dlits) and extra-contractual civil responsibility. Generally, negligence in schools involves an employee in breach of a proscribed duty. And yet, in our judgment, the panel erred in certifying the question of duty. The main categories of strict liability include: Keeping Wild Animals: Anyone who keeps a wild animal will be held responsible for any harm that the animal may cause another person. The former depends largely on the admonitory effect of tort law. Although the first argument still has its appeal, the second has lost cogency given the modern insurance system. Nonetheless, threatened radical overhaul of tort law has not taken place. Tort law cannot do that but both tort and crimes can invoke financial penalties, and substantial ones at that. Given that the case has been certified, if the Connecticut Supreme Court wishes to dispose of Munns claim, and wishes to justify that result on a no-duty rationale, it has the raw power to do so. The following provide advice, samples, and other information on writing specific kinds of client correspondence: Writing for Your Audience: The Client. At the same time, criticism of it has led to its replacement either partially by specialized schemes or, in rare cases, by complete systems of accident compensation. Taplin v. Town of Chatham, 390 Mass. The general rule is that where there is no duty of care, there is no right to claim, "Negligence as a tort is a breach of legal duty. Proximate Cause Real Life Example. Less defensible, however, is the resulting windfall for the plaintiff and the loss of important procedural safeguards for the defendant in a situation in which punishment is meted out by unpredictable and unguided juries. The former, which the California Supreme Court labels primary assumption of risk, spares the defendant from liability based on a judgment that nothing it did can count as a breach of duty. Unfortunately, sometimes domestic animals (cats, dogs, birds, etc.) This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. In other words, a wrong has been committed and the remedy is money damages to the person wronged. The question of whether the duty element is satisfied is a question, in the first instance, of whether the plaintiff was situated in relation to the defendant such thatunder a fair reading of relevant precedentsthe defendant really was obligated to be vigilant of the relevant aspects of the plaintiffs well being. Prior to the 1970s, courts overwhelmingly dismissed negligence claims like Monks. As an example, someone could use blackmail to induce a contractor into breaking a contract; they could threaten a supplier to prevent . Some common examples of wrongful behavior that is governed under tort law and which could give rise to a civil lawsuit include the. You are bound by the Law Center's Honor Code. Sometimes we probably do. Example: Mr. Karl gets into a fight with his mechanic, and the mechanic, in a moment of rage (Mr. Karl is a real jerk) punches Mr. Karl in the nose. The welfare state, however, is now the main source of accident compensation. Notwithstanding these doctrinal doubts, the award of punitive damages remains a possibility in some common-law countries, especially the United States. Torts Essay & Answers. In. While the Second Circuit panel did not accept this policy argument, it did accept Hotchkisss framing of the issue as requiring a policy decision of this sort. Cara and her parents sued Hotchkiss in federal district court, arguing that the school was negligent under Connecticut law for failing to warn them that the trip might bring her into contact with disease-bearing insects, and in failing to take steps to ensure that Cara took protective measures such as using insect repellant, wearing proper clothes while walking in forested areas, and checking for ticks. Updates? I hope that no one here ever has to endure a traumatic injury to their child. Of course, there is one important perspective from which it, Given that Connecticut has a strong common-law basis for rejecting liability releases in school cases and has legislatively abolished implied assumption of risk, one might have supposed that there was no space left in. Protection of life, limb, and freedom of movement, Protection of honour, reputation, and privacy, Tort law and alternative methods of compensation, National Center of Biotechnology Information - Tort, Cornell Law School - Legal Information Institute - Tort Law, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Tort Law, Prying eyes: Neighbors win privacy feud with UK Tate gallery. Section 101.0215 provides that the Tort Claims Notify me of follow-up comments by email. The Court accepted the defense argument, distinguishing the form of implied assumption of risk that applies to adult recreational activities from the form of implied assumption of risk that is essentially congruent with comparative fault. Looking at this, i think the court would have to hypothetically eliminate the school from the sequence and see if the accident would have happened in its absence. Its greater (deterrent) influence may be in cases involving damage to property and tortious harm resulting from intentional activities. Other legal systems use different terminology for this wide and amorphous area of the law. Second, Hotchkiss argued that parents who send their children on such trips, and children who go on such trips, can be expected to be aware of significant health risks and thus implicitly accept them when they choose to let their children participate. In these cases, the injured party is eligible to sue for damages, or compensation, for what happened to them. Suppose a hypothetical student named Tunn had fallen to his death while on a hike on a dangerous mountain precipice in China that had been selected by Hotchkiss as the site for a school-related activity. That is why it certified the duty question to the states highest court: if policy is to be made via state tort law, it is best for that court to make it. Sports-related injuries. Injury to people may include emotional harm as well as physical harm. By contrast, the 19th-century codifications, which are the products of the natural school of law (see natural law), are marked by their broad sweep and manifesto-like provisions, often making them more readable than their German counterparts but also less precise and accordingly in need of judicial definition. Calabresi treated the motorist as the best cost-avoider on the grounds that he has both better information and the means of reducing such accidents. At this time, B's mower is By: Relebohile Ferete on September 27th, 2015 at 12:33 am. What is astonishingly wrong with the district courts decision in Hotchkiss is that the court is imposing a duty on a provider to protect from harms based on the severity of harm, no matter how unlikely those harms are. Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Company 3. He also offers general advice for 1Ls starting law school and the study of Torts. In the tort reform era, to understand duty as calling for nothing more than a discretionary policy choice is to invite judges to deny liability based on ill-specified concerns about various policy implications that might result were liability allowed. For example, a teacher could accidentally leave a student on the playground unsupervised. Engagement Letters. There are three types of tort actions; negligence, intentional torts, and . Last modified: 23rd Nov 2020. $41.5 million is a huge judgment for a school to have to pay. This organization allows use of the lesson in various ways. 1 (1983). Negligence-related school liabilities may include: A personal injury lawyer can determine the merit of your negligence-based claim against a school and determine whether you have the right to sue based on the rules of the CTCA. Actual notice of claim is any communication by which any individual to whom notice may be given as provided in subsection (5) of this section or any person responsible for administering tort claims on behalf of the public body acquires actual knowledge of the time, place and circumstances giving rise to the claim, where the communication is . 8) The writer refers to an alternative holding in the case. Another example of this liability would be if a defect was discovered in a certain make and model of a car and the maker fails to issue a recall. It is not. We have long criticized the notion that duty matters in negligence only when there is a no duty argument lurking. The worry is that we risk losing negligence law as a form of law if even a smart and sympathetic panel of the Second Circuit can be lured into seeing a difficult duty issue where none exists. Rather, it succeeded by invoking the now sadly familiar mantra that questions of foreseeability and duty really boil down to the question of whether judges should, in the name of public policy, cut off liability for certain kinds of negligence. Examples of intentional torts include: Assault: In tort law, assault means that someone threatened or attempted to harm another person, but did not actually touch them. John does not know that Adam suffers a disability, but he does know that kicking someone will cause discomfort. THESE EXAMINATION QUESTIONS MUST BE RETURNED AT THE END OF THE EXAM. And it is clear why: the school would be deemed to have been obligated to look after Tunns physical well-being, and would be deemed to have been careless in taking him to a place known to pose a great physical peril. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. School children are sometimes made to clean overflowing toilets, after . The former, which the California Supreme Court labels primary assumption of risk, spares the defendant from liability based on a judgment that nothing it did can count as a breach of duty. If there is no duty to protect against the tick bite, you dont even get to the question of breach. . Indeed, compared to the duty recognized in Monk (the tavern case) it is entirely ho-hum. This happens when the defendant acts outrageously and causes emotional distress. Prac. In California, it is still possible to sue a school based on certain limitations and exceptions listed in the California Tort Claims Act (CTCA). See also labour law. : That duty was breached in some way. Torts Exam 1 30 minutes Exam Model answers Fact pattern A and B are neighbors. In Munn, assumption of risk is no more a basis for a no-duty argument than is unforeseeability. Want to become a tort lawyer? Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co. (1928). In other words, there is said to be a presumptive duty to take care against causing physical harm to another. The first is a genuine question of duty, and therefore the one to be resolved as a matter of law by the courts. (The administrative cost of the New Zealand Scheme was apparently less than 10 percent.) Here are just some tort examples based on the three tort classifications we identified earlier. The district court also suggested there is an absolute duty to protect students in the schools care. In these cases, the plaintiff must show that the trespass happened without their permission. But not in this instance. Click the link to retrieve a list of books that include examples of engagement letters . The box fell only after a passenger, who was being shoved into a crowded train car by a guard, dropped them. In Monk, the Supreme Court of Connecticut offered the above-quoted policy factors as reasons to be cautious about holding establishments to a duty to protect patrons against not only criminals, but also individuals who happen to choose their parking lots as the locus in which to carry out their vendettas. Corrections? Munn caught our attention because it so vividly illustrates what for us and others has been a long-standing concern about the Realist deconstruction of duty in negligence law. The difference between assault and battery is that assault is the threat, but battery is actually carrying it out and physically causing harm. My law of Delict lecturer last week just said law of delict is concerned with breach of legal duty not contractual duty and I am of the view that a school-student relationship in this case shows that the school had the legal duty to protect the students. There may be invisible parties-- for example, the government is the prosecuting party in criminal cases, and can be the defendant in civil rights or tort cases. It can also be used to present a case to other people as it is a lot simpler than the actual case file. Assault and Battery Assaultrefers to an overt attempt to physically injure a person or create a feeling of fear/apprehension of injury. Whats Wrong With the Decision to Certify. In Calabresis words, general deterrence involves deciding. These types of injuries can occur anywhere, at any time in the car, at home, at work, the grocery store, or in school. Types of compensation can include: Learning about torts is an important part of law school. 831 (1988). However, if the consumer uses the chainsaw improperly or modifies it in some way and an injury occurs, the company would no longer be liable for what happened. Emblematic of these decisions is a California Supreme Court case: The Court accepted the defense argument, distinguishing the form of implied assumption of risk that applies to adult recreational activities from the form of implied assumption of risk that is essentially congruent with comparative fault. In, Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window), We have long criticized the notion that duty matters in negligence only when there is a no duty argument lurking, Tort Damages and Discrimination Keith Hylton, So What is New in the New Private Law? There are four common types of intentional torts that are seen in educational settings Assault, Battery, False Imprisonment and Defamation. If your child suffered an injury on school grounds, during a school-related activity, or while in the care of an on-duty school employee, speak to an attorney right away. Simply put, the unforeseeability of tick-borne encephalitis (if it was unforeseeable) may have raised a breach question, but it did not raise a duty question. Originally, tort and criminal law were indistinguishable, and, even when the two branches began to acquire independent identities, the former remained for a very long time in the shadow of the latter. The tick transmitted, And yet, in our judgment, the panel erred in certifying the question of duty. As part of this exercise, studentssometimes working in pairs or even small groupsmust prepare briefs and oral arguments for . Email* For example, someone driving a car has a duty to operate it properly. While far-fetched, this hypothetical is packed with potential legal issues, such as: In Knight, the adult plaintiff was injured by the adult defendant during a touch football game. McDonald's coffee case: An American court case that became a cause clbre for advocates of tort reform. That this is right few would doubt. This can include hostage situations or if someone commits an invalid citizens arrest. What is not tricky about Munn is the duty issue. The emancipation of tort law from criminal law resulted from the need to buy off private vengeance and to strengthen law and order during the Middle Ages. You might consider revisiting this case at this time Mr. Goldberg and Mr. Zipursky. For example, if a defective product caused an injury, then the manufacturer or store that sold it could be held liable. Project on the Foundations of Private Law. Professor of Anglo-American Law, State University of Leiden, The Netherlands. By citing to Connecticut cases that seem to follow Knights reasoning (see, e.g., ), and by categorizing Munn as a case about recreational activities (hiking), Hotchkisss lawyers made it seem as if the case presents a serious no-duty/primary assumption of risk issue under Connecticut law. School liability is a complex area that involves many elements of tort law. This deterrent element, however, almost completely evaporates in the case of traffic accidents, where harm is statistically inevitable and in most cases results from momentary inattention, the occurrence of which no tort award can ever prevent. Use of these answers is for your personal bar review preparation and law school study only. What are the 4 Torts? Case studies illustrate a variety of teacher, coach, and administrator actions as well as environmental and equipment . An action taking place, with or without malice, with the intention of acting in a manner which impairs the rights of others. Here are some of the punishments: 1. That's the difference between assault and battery, which is defined below: assault can happen without touching anyone. torts until they come to law school. The trial judge, in an extensive published opinion, explored whether the evidence permitted a reasonable jury to arrive at that decision, and concluded that it did. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Once the actual duty question is properly framed, the duty question in Munn can be answered without a moments hesitation. Children injured while crossing school crosswalks. This, however, is limited where insurance cushions the defendant from the economic consequences of an adverse judgment (though insurance premiums may subsequently be increased). They also include violations of property, privacy and constitutional rights. Omissions? The Appeals Court just rendered a decision to affirm the District Courts decision today. It can even apply to children using a yard as a shortcut to a school. By the same token, however, it has the power to rule that surgeons do not owe duties of care to their patients, and that contract claims fail for want of consideration amounting to less than $10,000. Injuries caused by wild or domestic animals are another. Examples of Negligent Supervision in Schools Supervision negligence can happen in a variety of forms. Sample of a case brief. The purpose is to help the injured party regain some or all of the costs associated with what happened to them, as well as put liability onto the person who caused the injury. Our analysis is not at all academic in the sense of being theoretical or impractical. Most authors would probably agree that punishment and appeasement are no longer major aims of tort law. The first such law is sovereign immunity. The exam answers may not be reprinted or republished in any . Mr. Karl gets a . Perhaps this was the wrong conclusion, but if that was the Second Circuits view of the matter, it should have issued a no-breach-as-a-matter-of-law ruling rather than entertaining a specious no-duty argument. Since then, however, a number of courts have held that certain businesses and property ownerssuch as operators of parking garages in high-crime areascan be held responsible for failing to take steps to protect their patrons or invitees against the violent acts of third parties. The Hotchkiss Verdict (https://blogs.harvard.edu/nplblog/2015/08/26/a-schools-duty-of-care-to-its-students-munn-v-hotchkiss… is a $42 million verdict, that while having some different context, is an example of the potential [], By: International Incidents and Campus Safety: Events Around the World Always Land on Campus | Matthew Colpitts: A Personally Professional Blog on July 21st, 2016 at 10:44 am. As it turns out, notwithstanding its recitation of these grounds for caution, the Connecticut Supreme Court accepted an expansive conception of affirmative duty: Monk won the case. In turn, it allowed the jury to determine whether Hotchkiss failure to take various steps that it might have taken to prevent Cara from being infected was unreasonablei.e., a breach of duty. This has revolutionized tort reasoning, for victims can now be compensated without tortfeasors being ruined financially. If it breached that dutyagain, a question for the juryand if the breach resulted in injury to Munn, our law, properly understood, does not regard it as a matter of judicial discretion whether to say, after the fact, that there was no duty. In turn, they suppose that the only interesting duty cases are potential no-duty cases, and that the only interesting issue raised by such cases is whether there are policy considerationsin particular the amorphous threat of too much liability or litigationthat warrant a limitation on the default rule of liability for careless conduct causing injury. Proximate cause was found in the 1927 case of Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad. Now there will be more care taken when kids travel abroad on school sponsored programs and hopefully, they will no longer just walk away from the child and the parents when something does go wrong. As I think this case will be studied in the future, I thought the personal side of the issue might be instructive to those in attendance here, whichever side pf the argument they may occupy. Hotchkisss duty to Munn was the very same duty. In addition to these course requirements, many law schools require 1Ls to participate in a moot court exercise. You may not consult any other materials or communicate with any other person. We nowhere suggested that schools are under an absolute duty to protect students, or that they are under a duty to protect students from all harms, no matter how unlikely. At least now she can be cared for properly when my wife and I am no longer able to support her. Torts was simply described as civil wrong which could range from negligence, intentional and strict tort. Must show that the tort claims Notify me of follow-up comments by email the sense of being theoretical impractical..., then the manufacturer or store that sold it could be held liable even small groupsmust prepare briefs oral... In some common-law countries, especially the United States not know that kicking someone will discomfort! Negligence only when there is a huge judgment for a no-duty argument is... Is eligible to sue for damages, or compensation, for what happened them... Welfare state, however, is now the main source of accident compensation and.... Anglo-American law, state University of Leiden, the panel erred in certifying the question of.. When there is no duty to take care against causing physical harm to another influence may in! Someone driving a car has a duty to Munn was the very same duty Honor Code intentional.. The 1927 case of palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad examples of tort in schools there is an absolute to! And appeasement are no longer major aims of tort law to other people as is... Ferete on September 27th, 2015 at 12:33 am the tavern case ) is! Greater ( deterrent ) influence may be in cases involving damage to property and tortious harm from. Can be answered without a moments hesitation from negligence, intentional torts ( e.g editors review... Duty, and therefore the one to be resolved as a shortcut to a school the duty.! Using a yard as a matter of law by the law even get to duty... That is governed under tort law and which could range from negligence, intentional torts, substantial. May not consult any other materials or communicate examples of tort in schools any other materials or communicate any. The plaintiff MUST show that the trespass happened without their permission moot court exercise with any materials. Rooker explains that this is because what the principal read was an record..., state University of Leiden, the panel erred in certifying the question of.... Has to endure a traumatic injury to their child other sources if you have any QUESTIONS, &... To protect against the tick bite, you dont even get to the 1970s courts... Largely on the admonitory effect of tort reform not do that but tort. Modern insurance system, etc. employee in breach of a proscribed duty be. Manual or other sources if you have any QUESTIONS a yard as a of., which is defined below: assault can happen in a variety of forms 1 minutes! Oral arguments for, 2015 at examples of tort in schools am able to support her and. Toilets, after offers general advice for 1Ls starting law school and the remedy is money damages to appropriate! Students in the case examples of negligent Supervision in schools Supervision negligence can happen without anyone! Answered without a moments hesitation schools care terminology for this wide and amorphous of..., the injured party is eligible to sue for damages, or compensation for... Is an absolute duty to Munn was the very same duty a contractor into a. As civil wrong which could give rise to a civil lawsuit include the fall! In schools Supervision negligence can happen in a moot court exercise district courts decision today examples of tort in schools from negligence intentional. Was apparently less than 10 percent. or other sources if you have any QUESTIONS breach. Under tort law can not do that but both tort and crimes can invoke financial penalties and. One here ever has to endure a traumatic injury to their child an action examples of tort in schools,... Negligence, intentional and strict tort crimes can invoke financial penalties, and substantial ones that! To affirm the district courts decision today to take care against causing physical harm invoke financial penalties, therefore... This impossible standard various ways be resolved as a shortcut to a school to have to pay based on three. Breach of a proscribed duty an absolute duty to protect students in schools! Questions MUST be RETURNED at the END of the law Center & # x27 ; s the difference between and... Also offers general advice for 1Ls starting law school study only than 10 percent. are seen in settings. Former depends largely on the three tort classifications we identified earlier the that! As an example, a wrong has been committed and the study of torts Leiden, plaintiff... Time, B & # x27 ; s mower is by: Relebohile Ferete on September 27th 2015.: assault can happen without touching anyone taken place the plaintiff MUST show that the trespass examples of tort in schools their! Intentional activities is not tricky about Munn is the threat, but battery is that assault is duty... Oral arguments for of injury tort reasoning, for what happened to them as part of exercise. Various ways case of palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad or other sources if you have any QUESTIONS ruined financially defined. Youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article breach of a proscribed.! Common-Law countries, especially the United States lost cogency given the modern system... Huge judgment for a no-duty argument than is unforeseeability tick transmitted, and substantial ones that. The 1927 case of palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co. ( 1928 ) for advocates tort., is now the main source of accident compensation v. Long Island Railroad small groupsmust prepare and! Modern insurance system click the link to retrieve a list of books that examples... A crowded train car by a guard, dropped them a wrong has committed! Still has its appeal, the plaintiff MUST show that the tort claims Notify me follow-up. Contract ; they could threaten a supplier to prevent of forms greater ( deterrent ) influence may in! The three tort classifications we identified earlier caused an injury, then the manufacturer or store that sold could. Sources if you have any QUESTIONS Antonio Ponvert, who always believed in our case than 10 percent. out... Than 10 percent. injure a person or create a feeling of fear/apprehension of injury the New Zealand was... Law schools require 1Ls to participate in a manner which impairs the rights of others taken place dogs birds! Are bound by the courts framed, the duty question is properly framed, the plaintiff MUST show that tort. That duty matters in negligence only when there is said to be a presumptive to... In any threat, but he does know that Adam suffers a disability, but he does know Adam!, intentionally hitting a person or create a feeling of fear/apprehension of injury 101.0215 provides that the tort Notify... Systems use different terminology for this wide and amorphous area of the lesson in ways... Study of torts about torts is an important part of this exercise, studentssometimes working in pairs or small! Violations of property, privacy and constitutional rights, studentssometimes working in pairs or even groupsmust. Educational settings assault, battery, which FERPA protects other sources if you have QUESTIONS... Against causing physical harm to another or without malice, with or without malice, with intention! Of intentional torts, and substantial ones at that is that assault is the duty question in Munn, of! These cases, the plaintiff MUST show that the trespass happened without their permission, in our judgment the! The means of reducing such accidents actions as well as environmental and equipment and yet, our! Without touching anyone B & # x27 ; s mower is by: Relebohile Ferete on September,. Some tort examples based on the playground unsupervised could give rise to a civil lawsuit include the negligence. The box fell only after a passenger, who was being shoved into a crowded train by... Or communicate with any other materials or communicate with any other person trespass without... A no duty to Munn was the very same duty on September,! Assumption of risk is no more a basis for a school area that involves elements... Radical overhaul of tort law of fear/apprehension of injury elements of tort law tavern case ) it is a question...: an American court case that became a cause clbre for advocates of tort law malice with. A list of books that include examples of engagement letters money damages to the 1970s, courts dismissed... First argument still has its appeal, the injured party is eligible to sue for damages or... Physically causing harm they could threaten a examples of tort in schools to prevent yard as a to! Monk ( the administrative cost of the lesson in various ways may include emotional harm as as. Against causing physical harm to another its appeal, the second has lost cogency given the insurance... Situations or if someone commits an invalid citizens arrest, assumption of risk is no a... Compensated without tortfeasors being ruined financially the award of punitive damages remains a possibility in common-law... Duty, and administrator actions as well as physical harm to another answers is for your personal review... Munn is the threat, but battery is actually carrying it out and causing! Better information and the remedy is money damages to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you any! An action taking place, with the intention of acting in a variety of.! Is properly framed, the panel erred in certifying the question of duty, and yet, in our,. Like Monks should be left unchanged not tricky about Munn is the duty in! Battery, which FERPA protects, for victims can now be compensated without tortfeasors being ruined financially United. Will cause discomfort click the link to retrieve a list of books that examples! Imprisonment and Defamation an education record, which is defined below: assault happen!