CILEx L3 Tort Law Basics 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is a 'tort'?
- A civil wrong that gives rise to liability, typically compensated by damages (Correct answer)
- A criminal offence involving violence
- A breach of a contractual obligation
- A wrong committed by a public body
Correct answer: A civil wrong that gives rise to liability, typically compensated by damages
A tort is a civil wrong (other than breach of contract) that causes loss to another, for which the law provides a remedy, usually damages. Examples include negligence, nuisance, and defamation.
Question 2: What are the three elements of the tort of negligence established in Donoghue v Stevenson [1932]?
- Duty of care, breach of that duty, and damage caused by the breach (Correct answer)
- Intention, act, and harm
- Foreseeability, proximity, and fairness
- Carelessness, injury, and knowledge
Correct answer: Duty of care, breach of that duty, and damage caused by the breach
Lord Atkin in Donoghue v Stevenson established that negligence requires: (1) a duty of care owed to the claimant, (2) breach of that duty, and (3) damage caused by the breach.
Question 3: What is the 'neighbour principle' from Donoghue v Stevenson?
- You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions that you can reasonably foresee would injure your neighbour (Correct answer)
- You owe duties only to people living near you
- You must warn neighbours of any risks on your property
- Neighbours must settle disputes without going to court
Correct answer: You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions that you can reasonably foresee would injure your neighbour
Lord Atkin's neighbour principle states that a duty of care is owed to those persons so closely and directly affected by your acts that you ought reasonably to have them in contemplation when directing your mind to the acts in question.
Question 4: What test is used to determine breach of duty of care?
- The objective standard of the reasonable person (Correct answer)
- The subjective standard of the particular defendant
- What a law professor would consider reasonable
- What the claimant expected of the defendant
Correct answer: The objective standard of the reasonable person
Breach of duty is assessed objectively against the standard of the reasonable person (or reasonable professional where the defendant holds themselves out as having special skills) — not against the defendant's subjective beliefs.
Question 5: What does 'res ipsa loquitur' mean in negligence?
- The thing speaks for itself — negligence is inferred from the facts without specific proof (Correct answer)
- The defendant must disprove negligence
- The claimant automatically wins when injured on another's premises
- Contributory negligence is irrelevant
Correct answer: The thing speaks for itself — negligence is inferred from the facts without specific proof
Res ipsa loquitur ('the thing speaks for itself') allows a court to infer negligence from the circumstances of an accident where it would not have occurred without negligence and the defendant was in control of the situation.
Question 6: What is 'contributory negligence'?
- Where the claimant's own negligence contributed to their damage, reducing their damages award (Correct answer)
- Where multiple defendants share liability
- Where the claimant was partly responsible for causing the accident to occur
- Where the defendant was negligent but the claimant assumed the risk
Correct answer: Where the claimant's own negligence contributed to their damage, reducing their damages award
Contributory negligence under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 reduces the claimant's damages by the extent to which their own negligence contributed to the damage suffered.
CILEx L3 Tort Law Basics 1
What is a 'tort'?