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The complex and fluid nature of business torts

On Behalf of | Mar 12, 2021 | Complex Civil Litigation

An authoritative Colorado legal source duly notes the close interplay among diverse factors relevant in one especially complicated commercial law sphere.

It notes for starters “multiple parties, complex subject matter and numerous expert witnesses.” And then it couples that designation with reference to “large assets at stake, multiple jurisdictions and especially technical areas of law.”

That offers up a swirling mix, doesn’t it? And it spells a combination of things that recurrently interact in various ways where complex civil litigation is concerned.

Business torts: economic wrongs linked with financial loss

The above-cited Colorado business law overview prominently calls out one specific subset of wrongful acts in the commercial universe that can yield egregious consequences.

Namely, those are business torts, which comprise a basket of wrongs that is both myriad and fluid.

Notwithstanding the instant complexity and case-to-case variance that attaches to business torts, though, all such acts share strong commonality. An in-depth online primer on business torts stresses that they are all “wrongful acts committed against business entities … that cause (or are likely to cause in the future) some kind of financial loss.”

A commercial actor can commit a business tort solely through careless or negligent conduct. Conversely, behavior that detrimentally affects a business rival is also often intentional as well.

An initial point to note concerning economic torts is that they are generally not classified as criminal conduct. Rather, an attorney well versed in complex civil litigation can help diverse and valued clients either pursue maximum money damages (and sometimes injunctive relief) against a committed tort or alternatively defend against an allegation.

Frequently cited business torts address broad-based harms

The aforementioned primer notes that “the list of specific business torts if relatively fluid.” Here are some common inclusions:

  • Tortious interference (one party’s purposeful actions that interfere with a contract or relationship between a harmed entity and a third party; e.g., a defendant’s conduct that induces contractual breach)
  • Trade secret theft – unlawful taking of an entity’s guarded proprietary data for economic gain
  • Restraint of trade (another form of contractual/business interference, with some restraints – such as reasonably drafted noncompete pacts with select employees – being lawful)
  • Fraudulent misrepresentation (an instance where willful bad faith induces another party’s reliance and ultimate economic injury)

Questions or concerns regarding a business tort reasonably invite help from a practiced business law attorney commanding a deep background in complex civil litigation.

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