The unofficial holiday of practical jokes has been celebrated worldwide for at least four centuries. With this age-old tradition around the corner, keep these tips and tactics in mind to navigate April First without being the April Fool.

Recalling the essential elements of a tort may seem more fit for a first-year law school classroom. However, it is important to consider the basics when understanding how quickly a “harmless” prank can become a liability.

False Imprisonment

The Scenario:

Bobby likes to keep his door closed at the office for some peace and quiet while working. Poking fun at Bobby’s busybody closed door, Anthony slides a heavy old desk in front of Bobby’s door, preventing Bobby from exiting his office. Unbeknownst to Anthony, however, Bobby has to drive to a crucial hearing in the next few minutes and furiously attempts to open his door. Anthony leaves the desk at Bobby’s door for fifteen minutes, only to return to a heated and racing Bobby.

The Elements:

• Anthony acted by sliding the chair in front of Bobby’s door
• Anthony intended to and actually did confine Bobby in Bobby’s office
• The confined must be aware of the confinement or harmed by it. Here, Bobby was aware of his confinement by trying to open the door, and the confinement likely harmed Bobby’s professional status by causing him to be late.

Note that Bobby can bring a claim of false imprisonment even though he was confined for only fifteen minutes — the length of confinement affects the extent of damages, not the viability of the false imprisonment claim.

Trespass to Chattels

The Scenario:

Chandler knows that Dylan leaves the office for lunch for about an hour each day. While Dylan is out, Chandler and his colleagues begin frantically gift wrapping every item in Dylan’s office. The team wraps everything, including Dylan’s glasses and his high-end laptop and headphones. In their haste to wrap everything before Dylan returned, Chandler’s crew left sticky tape residue on Dylan’s glasses lens, laptop port, and headphone speaker, damaging them all. It took Dylan some time to unwrap everything.

The Elements:

• Chandler acted by wrapping up Dylan’s personal items
• Chandler intermeddled with Dylan’s things by
  1. Depriving the items’ usefulness for some time, as it took Dylan a while to unwrap everything; and
  2. Injuring or otherwise limiting the usefulness of Dylan’s items by smudging his glasses and damaging his electronics.

After establishing these elements, Dylan may seek recovery for the cost of repairing or replacing his items.

These two scenarios are just examples of how a seemingly harmless practical joke can quickly go wrong. In addition to tortious liability, some pranks may have criminal consequences or result in harassment or breach of workplace conduct agreements. Importantly, the displeased employee may sue the office jokester and the employer to recover damages.

We can still enjoy the festive mood while being inclusive and mindful of everyone’s diverse perspectives or limitations. Employers should remind employees of appropriate workplace conduct and company culture. To encourage fun, yet appropriate, celebration, employers might send some funny (work-appropriate) riddles. Or, employers could provide a list of permitted pranks that have been cleared through legal and HR. Additionally, employers can host silly activities, such as a talent show, karaoke lunch, field day, trivia night, or other interactive icebreaking team-builders.

Above all, don’t be the April Fool because that unhappy employee might get the last laugh.