Judiciary question bank

Law of Torts MCQs for Judiciary, Page 2

Judiciary Law of Torts questions 26-50 of 175, with answer keys and explanations covering negligence, nuisance, defamation, strict liability, vicarious liability, trespass, defences, and damages.

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Practice judiciary exam MCQs with answers and explanations across substantive law, procedure, evidence, constitutional law, and state judicial service subjects.

  • Assault and Battery10
  • Contributory and Composite Negligence10
  • Defamation10
  • Defamation Defences10
  • False Imprisonment10
  • General Defences10
  • Legal Damage and Maxims10
  • Malicious Prosecution10
  • Miscellaneous Economic and Personal Torts5
  • Nature and Scope of Tort10
  • Negligence20
  • Nuisance10
  • Occupier's Liability5
  • Remedies and Damages5
  • State Liability5
  • Strict and Absolute Liability10
  • Trespass to Goods5
  • Trespass to Land10
  • Vicarious Liability10
Question 26EasyMalicious Prosecution

A plaintiff in malicious prosecution must show that the earlier proceedings:

  1. A

    Were still pending

  2. B

    Ended in his favour

  3. C

    Were only civil proceedings

  4. D

    Always resulted in imprisonment

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Ended in his favour

A claim for malicious prosecution requires proof that the earlier prosecution terminated in favour of the plaintiff.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 27MediumMalicious Prosecution

Reasonable and probable cause in malicious prosecution refers to:

  1. A

    A personal grudge

  2. B

    Honest and reasonable grounds to initiate prosecution

  3. C

    A written contract

  4. D

    A court decree in favour of the accused

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Honest and reasonable grounds to initiate prosecution

If the defendant had honest and reasonable grounds, the action for malicious prosecution usually fails.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 28MediumMalicious Prosecution

Malice in this tort means:

  1. A

    Any anger whatsoever

  2. B

    Improper motive other than bringing an offender to justice

  3. C

    Mere carelessness

  4. D

    Only public criticism

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Improper motive other than bringing an offender to justice

Malice means the legal process was used for an improper purpose, not genuinely to bring an offender to justice.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 29MediumMalicious Prosecution

Which combination best supports malicious prosecution?

  1. A

    Acquittal plus honest complaint on strong facts

  2. B

    Failure of prosecution plus absence of reasonable cause and presence of malice

  3. C

    Civil dispute and public nuisance

  4. D

    Negligence and battery together

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Failure of prosecution plus absence of reasonable cause and presence of malice

Failure of prosecution alone is not enough; there must also be lack of reasonable and probable cause and malice.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 30MediumMalicious Prosecution

The law is cautious in malicious prosecution cases because:

  1. A

    It wants to discourage all complaints to authorities

  2. B

    Honest complainants should not be unfairly deterred from invoking criminal law

  3. C

    Tort law never touches criminal proceedings

  4. D

    Only the State can sue

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Honest complainants should not be unfairly deterred from invoking criminal law

Courts are careful so that genuine complainants are not punished merely because the prosecution later fails.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 31EasyDefamation

A statement is defamatory if it tends to:

  1. A

    Increase a person's popularity

  2. B

    Lower a person's reputation in the eyes of others

  3. C

    Cause only private annoyance to the plaintiff alone

  4. D

    Create a contract

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Lower a person's reputation in the eyes of others

Defamation is concerned with lowering reputation in the estimation of others.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 32EasyDefamation

Publication in defamation requires communication:

  1. A

    Only to the plaintiff

  2. B

    To at least one third person

  3. C

    Only to a judge

  4. D

    Only in writing

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. To at least one third person

Because reputation concerns what others think, publication requires communication to at least one person other than the plaintiff.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 33MediumDefamation

If a newspaper article does not name P but ordinary readers who know the facts can identify P, the requirement of reference to the plaintiff is:

  1. A

    Not satisfied

  2. B

    Satisfied

  3. C

    Satisfied only if there is criminal prosecution

  4. D

    Irrelevant

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Satisfied

Naming is not essential if people acquainted with the circumstances can reasonably understand that the statement refers to the plaintiff.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 34EasyDefamation

Truth is generally:

  1. A

    No defence in civil defamation

  2. B

    A complete defence in civil defamation

  3. C

    Relevant only to damages

  4. D

    A defence only if the plaintiff consents

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. A complete defence in civil defamation

Civil defamation law generally recognizes truth as a complete defence.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 35MediumDefamation

Repeating someone else's defamatory statement may create liability because:

  1. A

    Repetition amounts to fresh publication

  2. B

    The first publisher alone is liable

  3. C

    Truth is automatically presumed

  4. D

    The law ignores repetition

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: A. Repetition amounts to fresh publication

Repeating defamatory matter can amount to a new publication and therefore create fresh liability.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 36MediumDefamation Defences

Statements made by witnesses in the course of judicial proceedings ordinarily enjoy:

  1. A

    No privilege

  2. B

    Absolute privilege

  3. C

    Only nominal protection

  4. D

    Strict liability

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Absolute privilege

Judicial proceedings are classic occasions of absolute privilege in defamation law.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 37MediumDefamation Defences

Qualified privilege usually depends on:

  1. A

    Duty or interest in making and receiving the statement

  2. B

    Mere popularity of the speaker

  3. C

    Existence of monetary loss

  4. D

    A criminal conviction

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: A. Duty or interest in making and receiving the statement

Qualified privilege protects statements made on proper occasions where duty and corresponding interest exist.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 38MediumDefamation Defences

Fair comment protects:

  1. A

    Every false allegation

  2. B

    Honest opinion on matters of public interest based on facts

  3. C

    Only statements made by judges

  4. D

    Secret accusations

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Honest opinion on matters of public interest based on facts

Fair comment protects honest opinion, not false statements of fact, on matters of public interest.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 39MediumDefamation Defences

Malice can defeat:

  1. A

    Truth only

  2. B

    Absolute privilege

  3. C

    Qualified privilege and fair comment

  4. D

    None of the recognized defences

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: C. Qualified privilege and fair comment

Malice may defeat qualified privilege and fair comment, but not absolute privilege.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 40EasyDefamation Defences

A teacher giving an honest report about a student to a university under official duty most strongly invokes:

  1. A

    Act of God

  2. B

    Qualified privilege

  3. C

    Strict liability

  4. D

    Trespass

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Qualified privilege

Where there is a duty to communicate and a corresponding interest in receiving the report, qualified privilege is the natural defence.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 41MediumNegligence

The neighbour principle asks whether the defendant ought reasonably to have had the plaintiff in contemplation as:

  1. A

    A future contracting party only

  2. B

    A person closely and directly affected by the defendant's act

  3. C

    A public officer only

  4. D

    A criminal suspect

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. A person closely and directly affected by the defendant's act

This is the essence of the neighbour principle from Donoghue v. Stevenson.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 42EasyNegligence

The reasonable person standard in negligence:

  1. A

    Demands the highest possible skill in all situations

  2. B

    Looks to ordinary prudence in the circumstances

  3. C

    Depends solely on the plaintiff's personal fears

  4. D

    Applies only to motorists

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Looks to ordinary prudence in the circumstances

Negligence law generally asks what a reasonably prudent person would have done in similar circumstances.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 43EasyNegligence

In professional negligence, breach is judged by:

  1. A

    The most successful expert in the country

  2. B

    A reasonably competent member of that profession

  3. C

    The injured party's expectations alone

  4. D

    No objective standard

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. A reasonably competent member of that profession

Professionals are judged by the standard of a reasonably competent person in that professional field.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 44MediumNegligence

Careless conduct without actual damage will usually:

  1. A

    Still succeed as negligence per se

  2. B

    Fail because negligence generally requires proof of damage

  3. C

    Become assault automatically

  4. D

    Lead to exemplary damages

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Fail because negligence generally requires proof of damage

Negligence ordinarily requires proof of actual damage; a merely careless act without resulting injury is usually not actionable.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 45MediumNegligence

The relationship between breach and damage requires the plaintiff to show:

  1. A

    Only moral fault

  2. B

    A sufficient causal connection between the breach and the damage

  3. C

    Public disapproval of the act

  4. D

    A written admission by the defendant

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. A sufficient causal connection between the breach and the damage

The plaintiff must show that the damage complained of is sufficiently connected to the defendant's breach.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 46EasyNegligence

Res ipsa loquitur is most useful where:

  1. A

    There is direct proof of every detail

  2. B

    The accident itself strongly suggests negligence

  3. C

    The plaintiff has consented to risk

  4. D

    The case is about defamation

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. The accident itself strongly suggests negligence

The doctrine applies where the event is of a kind that ordinarily does not happen without negligence.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 47MediumNegligence

The doctrine does not create automatic liability because it:

  1. A

    Only assists in drawing an inference of negligence

  2. B

    Eliminates the need to prove damage

  3. C

    Makes defences unavailable

  4. D

    Turns civil wrongs into crimes

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: A. Only assists in drawing an inference of negligence

Res ipsa loquitur is evidential in nature. It allows an inference of negligence but does not itself impose liability automatically.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 48MediumNegligence

The Wagon Mound is chiefly connected with:

  1. A

    Consent

  2. B

    Remoteness and foreseeability of damage

  3. C

    Judicial privilege

  4. D

    False imprisonment

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Remoteness and foreseeability of damage

The Wagon Mound is the leading modern authority on remoteness and foreseeability in negligence.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 49MediumNegligence

Under the thin skull rule, once a foreseeable kind of personal injury is caused, the defendant:

  1. A

    Is liable only for average injury

  2. B

    Must take the victim as found

  3. C

    Escapes liability if the plaintiff is unusually weak

  4. D

    Is liable only if intention is proved

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Must take the victim as found

The thin skull rule prevents a defendant from escaping liability because the plaintiff happened to be unusually vulnerable.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

Question 50EasyNegligence

A surgeon leaving a surgical instrument inside a patient after surgery is a classic situation where a court may consider:

  1. A

    Qualified privilege

  2. B

    Res ipsa loquitur

  3. C

    Damnum sine injuria

  4. D

    Passing off

View answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Res ipsa loquitur

This is the sort of unusual occurrence that ordinarily does not happen without negligence and may justify applying res ipsa loquitur.

Source note: R.K. Bangia, Law of Torts

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