Tort law worksheet with answers

Free printable Tort law worksheet: 8 problems from easy to exam level, with an answer key. Print it or save it as a PDF.

New worksheetPractise online with hints

For teachers: free to print, copy and use in class. Every new worksheet has new values and its own answer key. A link to ExamProblems on your course page is appreciated.

Name: ____________________   Date: ____________

1.Easy

Defamation protects a person's:

  1. APhysical safety
  2. BProperty
  3. CPrivacy of medical records only
  4. DReputation
2.Easy

In English law, who can normally sue in private nuisance?

  1. AOnly the local authority
  2. BAny visitor staying at the property
  3. CA person with a right to the land affected, such as an owner or tenant
  4. DAnyone who lives at the property, including family members and lodgers
3.Easy

An employer can be liable for torts committed by an employee during their work. This is called:

  1. AContributory negligence
  2. BStrict liability for all acts
  3. CVicarious liability
  4. DNovus actus interveniens
4.Medium

The Caparo test for a new duty of care requires:

  1. AForeseeability of harm, proximity and that it is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty
  2. BProof of criminal conduct
  3. CA contract between the parties, a breach of its terms and loss flowing directly from the breach
  4. DIntention, motive and damage
5.Medium

An occupier hires a reputable lift company to maintain a lift. The company's negligence causes an accident. Under Haseldine v Daw, the occupier is:

  1. ALiable, because maintenance is non-delegable
  2. BLiable only if the lift is new
  3. CLiable for any defect on its premises
  4. DNot liable, if it reasonably chose a competent contractor
6.Medium

A worker inhales silica dust from two sources, only one of which was due to the employer's breach. In Bonnington Castings v Wardlaw, the employer was liable because the guilty dust:

  1. AMaterially contributed to the disease
  2. BWas more than half of the total dust
  3. CWas easier to prevent than the other dust
  4. DWas the only cause of the disease
7.Hard

In Hedley Byrne v Heller, liability for negligent misstatement arose because:

  1. AThe defendant intended to deceive
  2. BThe statement caused physical injury
  3. CThere was a special relationship in which the claimant reasonably relied on advice given with skill
  4. DThere was a contract between the parties under which the bank was paid a fee for the reference it gave
8.Hard

A "novus actus interveniens" can:

  1. ATurn a civil claim into a criminal one when the intervening act is an offence
  2. BBreak the chain of causation between the defendant's breach and the harm
  3. CCreate a new duty of care
  4. DIncrease the damages owed

Answer key

  1. 1. D · Reputation
  2. 2. C · A person with a right to the land affected, such as an owner or tenant
  3. 3. C · Vicarious liability
  4. 4. A · Foreseeability of harm, proximity and that it is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty
  5. 5. D · Not liable, if it reasonably chose a competent contractor
  6. 6. A · Materially contributed to the disease
  7. 7. C · There was a special relationship in which the claimant reasonably relied on advice given with skill
  8. 8. B · Break the chain of causation between the defendant's breach and the harm

Full step-by-step solutions: practise this topic on examproblems.com.