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Torts & Consumer · Unit 16

Vicarious and State Liability

Unit 16 of Law of Torts, Motor Accident Claims and Consumer Protection (syllabus: Vicarious and State Liability). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.

What this unit covers

  • What makes a man a servant rather than an independent contractor?
  • Course of employment: an authorised act done in an unauthorised way
  • When is the State liable for the torts of its servants?
  • Compensation for a violated fundamental right: the constitutional tort

Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.

Provisions

  • Law of Torts (common law), s. Article 300(1) of the Constitution

Leading cases

  • Dharangadhara Chemical Works Ltd v State of Saurashtra
  • Century Insurance Co. Ltd v Northern Ireland Road Transport Board (1942)
  • State of Rajasthan v Vidhyawati
  • Nilabati Behera v State of Orissa (AIR 1993 SC 1960)

Exam questions on this unit