Negligence | AQA A-Level Law (7162)
Negligence
- 72 questions
- 5 subtopics
- Paper 2: Tort
- Paper 2
Duty, breach and damage: the neighbour principle and the Caparo test, the objective standard of care, causation and remoteness, and the special rules for economic loss and psychiatric injury..
It covers establishing a Duty of Care, breach of Duty and the Standard of Care, causation and Remoteness of Damage, pure Economic Loss and psychiatric Injury: Primary and Secondary Victims.
Sample questions from Negligence
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Establishing a Duty of Care
In which case was the Caparo test established?
Show the answer
Caparo Industries plc v Dickman (1990). -
Establishing a Duty of Care
What is the 'floodgates argument' as a public policy factor in determining whether a duty of care is fair, just and reasonable?
Show the answer
The concern that imposing a duty could lead to excessive litigation. -
Breach of Duty and the Standard of Care
How does the social utility of the defendant's conduct affect the court's assessment of breach of duty?
Show the answer
Conduct with high social utility may justify taking greater risks; in Watt v Hertfordshire CC firefighters rushing to save a life were not in breach. -
Breach of Duty and the Standard of Care
Are learners and beginners held to a lower standard of care than experienced practitioners?
Show the answer
No, they are held to the same objective standard as a reasonably competent person performing that activity. -
Causation and Remoteness of Damage
What is the consequence if the harm would have occurred anyway regardless of the defendant's breach?
Show the answer
Factual causation is not established. -
Causation and Remoteness of Damage
What is the 'thin skull' rule (or 'eggshell skull' rule) in negligence?
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The defendant must take the claimant as they find them, including any pre-existing vulnerabilities that make the injury worse than expected. -
Pure Economic Loss
Under what circumstances may a duty of care arise for pure economic loss caused by negligent misstatements?
Show the answer
Where there is a special relationship between the parties. -
Pure Economic Loss
What must the defendant have known or ought to have known regarding the claimant's conduct for a special relationship in negligent misstatement?
Show the answer
The defendant knew or ought to have known that the claimant would rely on the statement.
The 5 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Establishing a Duty of Care | Recall questions on the neighbour principle and the case that established it, and on the first limb of Caparo and where it comes from. | 11 |
| Breach of Duty and the Standard of Care | Recall questions on the objective standard, whether inexperience counts, and how likelihood and severity of harm affect the assessment. | 17 |
| Causation and Remoteness of Damage | Recall questions on factual and legal causation, the test used for each and what follows if the harm would have happened anyway. | 11 |
| Pure Economic Loss | Recall questions on what pure economic loss is, whether a duty is owed for it, the distinction drawn in Spartan Steel and the policy behind the rule. | 13 |
| Psychiatric Injury: Primary and Secondary Victims | Recall questions on what a primary victim must show, what Page v Smith established and the Alcock control mechanisms for secondary victims. | 20 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
AQA A-Level Law Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 2,352 questions with their answers.