Assault and Battery

Assault and battery are two of the most basic common law intentional torts. These two torts are among the first that every law student learns and they are considered extremely basic. As intentional torts, assault and battery both require that the defendant or perpetrator of the harm had intent at the time of the harm. Assault is the common law intentional tort that is meant to protect a person's interest in being able to live life without apprehension or fear. When a person accuses another of assault in a civil suit, they mean that the defendant intentionally caused them to have apprehension of imminent harm. This does not mean that the harm actually occurred or even that the defendant had the ability to follow through with the harm. It just means that the person that filed the suit was apprehensive of harm.

Battery, on the other hand, does require that actual contact took place. It is the intentional tort that protects a person's interest in being or right to be free from harmful or offensive contact. Battery, unlike assault, actually requires that there be contact between something on the plaintiff and the defendant. The contact does not have to be hand to hand but can be object to object or object to person. Because it is an intentional tort, battery also requires that the defendant had some form of intent.

Contact an Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyer

If you have been injured by someone's intentional or negligent actions, contact the Indianapolis personal injury lawyers of the Charles D. Hankey Law Office at 317-634-8565 to discuss your situation and to determine your legal options.