Basic Flashcards
7 cards from real LNAT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Basic flashcards as text
A passage describes a case where a court ruled against the plain meaning of a statutory word, citing legislative intent. This approach to interpretation is called:
Answer: Purposive or intentionalist interpretation.
Purposive interpretation looks beyond the literal words of a statute to the underlying purpose or intention of the legislature when enacting it.
In LNAT comprehension, a question asks what can be 'inferred' from a passage. This means you should:
Answer: Draw a conclusion that is logically supported by the passage but not explicitly stated.
Inference requires reading between the lines—identifying what the passage implies but does not state outright.
Which of the following arguments commits the 'false dichotomy' fallacy?
Answer: 'Either we abolish all drug laws or society will collapse into chaos.'
Presenting only two extreme options while ignoring moderate or alternative positions is the false dichotomy (or false dilemma) fallacy.
A passage claims that the presumption of innocence is undermined by pre-trial detention. The strongest objection to this view is that:
Answer: Pre-trial detention ensures defendants appear at trial and protects the public, without legally adjudicating guilt.
The strongest objection is that pre-trial detention serves legitimate procedural goals (ensuring court attendance, public safety) rather than punishing or implying guilt.
What is the primary purpose of the 'Section A' multiple-choice component of the LNAT?
Answer: To assess verbal reasoning, comprehension, and the ability to analyse written arguments.
Section A tests aptitude for reading, reasoning, and argumentation through comprehension passages, not legal knowledge or numerical skills.
A law school uses LNAT scores to compare applicants from different countries and educational backgrounds. This comparative use is valid primarily because the test is:
Answer: Designed to measure general intellectual aptitude rather than acquired subject knowledge.
The LNAT measures innate aptitude for reasoning rather than learned content, making it a fair comparator across diverse educational backgrounds.
In a passage debating euthanasia, the author argues that legalising assisted dying respects individual autonomy. Which principle from legal philosophy does this argument most closely reflect?
Answer: The harm principle — acts are permissible unless they harm others.
The autonomy-based argument aligns with Mill's harm principle: if an act harms only the consenting individual, the state should not prohibit it.