1. Aaron Midgette
05/02/2014
Professor Bridgette De Gyarfas
PLA 2273-12 week 3 Individual Work
For this homework assignment, assume that you are a paralegal at a successful firm specializing
in tort claims.
One day a client Murray McDonald, walks into your office.
You accomplish an intake interview and discover the facts as provided in the “Practical”
Ponderables” on page 61 of the textbook.
1) What potential torts do you think were committed against Murray?
2) What information would you have to gather before the complaint can be filed?
Practical Ponderables page 61:
Murray was attending a bachelor party for his friend Steve at Steve’s house. Sometime
during the party Murray made a derogatory comment about the professional football
team—a comment to which many took great umbrage.

2. About a half hour after he made the comment, Murray found himself surrounded by at
least six men.
While he was trying to figure out what was happening, one of them grabbed his glasses.
Murray was extremely nearsighted and virtually blind without his glasses.
The men started tossing Murray’s glasses around like a football, making snide
comments about Murray’s “nerdiness” in the process.
Eventually someone dropped the glasses and in the process of trying to recover them,
they were smashed. Murray who said he became nervous as this “game” went on, tried to
extricate himself from the circle the men had created, but they would not let him pass.
They were standing near the pool when the incident began, and one of the men decided it would
be fun to push Murray into the pool.
Murray who was terrified of going underwater, frantically struggled to get away but was
eventually thrown into the deep end of the pool.
Not being able to swim, Murray panicked when he felt himself hit the bottom of the pool.
The men allowed him to sink under the water several times before anyone attempted to help him.
Murray estimates he spent twenty terrifying minutes in the pool, during which time he was
certain he was going to drown before he was dragged out on the pool deck.
He lay there exhausted for about an hour until his friend Willard, who had been cowering in
the bushes, got the courage to gather him up and take him to an emergency room, where they
treated him for mental trauma and physical exhaustion.

3. Murray was unable to go to work for several days after this incident, and he is currently
undergoing psychotherapy.
This experience triggered some longstanding fears and phobias, which his psychiatrist indicates
may take several months to years to complete.
Murray continues to have nightmares in which he relives this experience, having lost
considerable weight because of being unable to eat much and he experiences panic attacks and is
unable to work.
One of his coworkers John who attended the party stopped by to apologize. And Murray told
him to get out of his house.
And John said to Murray don’t think about filing a lawsuit or me and my boys are going to
finish what we started at the party.
With respect to the first question.
1) What potential torts do you think were committed against Murray?
The first potential tort that was committed against Murray was the tort of Battery.
Battery is defined at the intentional infliction of a harmful or offensive contact upon a
person. (reference) Tort Law Fifth Edition Chapter 3 page 33.
Example: About a half hour after Murray had made the comment he found himself
surrounded by at least six men. While he was trying to figure out what was happening,
one of them grabbed his glasses.
Murray is extremely nearsighted and virtually blind without his glasses.

4. The men started tossing Murray’s glasses around like a football, making snide comments
about Murray’s “nerdiness” in the process.
Murray who said he became increasingly nervous as this “game” went on, tried to
extricate himself from the circle the men had created, but they would not let him pass.
A second potential tort that was committed against Murray was the tort of False
imprisonment. False imprisonment is committed when a person intentionally confines
another. (reference) Tort Law Fifth Edition Chapter 3 page 35.
Example: Murray who was terrified of going underwater, frantically struggled to get
away but was eventually thrown into the deep end of the pool.
Not being able to swim, Murray panicked when he felt himself hit the bottom of the
pool. The men allowed him to sink under the water several times before anyone
attempted to help him.
A third potential tort that was committed against Murray was the Transferred-intent
doctrine. The Transferred –intent doctrine is the defendant’s intent toward one person is
transferred to the person who is actually injured as a result of the defendant’s conduct.
(reference) Tort Law Fifth Edition Chapter 3 page 32.
Example: Murray estimates he spent twenty terrifying minutes in the pool, during which
time he was certain he was going to drown before he was dragged out on the pool deck.

5. He lay there exhausted for about an hour until his friend Willard, who had been cowering
in the bushes, got the courage to gather him up and take him to an emergency room,
where they treated him for mental trauma and physical exhaustion.
Murray was unable to go to work for several days after this incident, and he is
currently undergoing psychotherapy.
This experience triggered some longstanding fears and phobias, which is psychiatrist
indicates may take several months to years to complete.
2) What information would you have to gather before the complaint can be filed?
Some of the information that has to be gathered before the complaint can be filed are The
Interrogatories, Request for admission, Request for production of documents, and the
Request for medical and psychological examinations. (reference) Tort Law Fifth Edition
Chapter 1 page 9.
(reference) Tort Law Fifth Edition J Stanley Edwards Patricia Wells J.D.