2) Astha, who is a very good painter, is also a patient in a mental asylum, who, at intervals, is of
sound mind.
During one of these intervals, she entered into a relationship with Lopamudra to paint a picture of
her for a specified amount. She, however, asked Lopamudra to pay her the entire amount in
advance. One month later, on the day of delivery of the painting, Astha refused to perform the
contract saying that she suffers from insanity. Can Lopamudra force performance?
Principle: A person is said to be of sound mind for the purpose of making a contract if, at the time
when he makes it, he is capable of understanding it and of forming a rational judgment as to its
effect upon his interests.
3) Principle: Mere silence as to the facts likely to affect the willingness of a person to enter into a
contract is not a fraud, unless the circumstances of the case are such that, on close examination it
is found to be the duty of the person keeping silent to speak, or unless his silence is, in itself,
equivalent to speech.
Facts: X sells by auction to Y, a horse which X knows to be of unsound state of mind. X says
nothing to Y
4) Agni enters into a contract with Tanuj whereby Tanuj will supply Agni with 10 grams of cocaine for
a specified amount. Is the contract void?
Principle: If the consideration or object of an agreement is forbidden by law, or is of such a nature
that would defeat the provisions of any law, or is fraudulent, or is injurious to the person or property
of another or, the Court regards it as immoral, or opposed to public policy, then the object or
consideration shall be deemed unlawful. Every agreement of which the object or consideration is
unlawful is void.
22) Astha, who is a very good painter, is also a patient in a mental asylum, who, at intervals, is of sound mind.
During one of these intervals, she entered into a relationship with Lopamudra to paint a picture of her for a specified amount. She, however, asked Lopamudra to pay her the entire amount in advance. One month later, on the day of delivery of the painting, Astha refused to perform the contract saying that she suffers from insanity. Can Lopamudra force performance?
Principle: A person is said to be of sound mind for the purpose of making a contract if, at the time when he makes it, he is capable of understanding it and of forming a rational judgment as to its effect upon his interests.
23) Principle: Mere silence as to the facts likely to affect the willingness of a person to enter into a contract is not a fraud, unless the circumstances of the case are such that, on close examination it is found to be the duty of the person keeping silent to speak, or unless his silence is, in itself, equivalent to speech.
Facts: X sells by auction to Y, a horse which X knows to be of unsound state of mind. X says nothing to Y.
24) Agni enters into a contract with Tanuj whereby Tanuj will supply Agni with 10 grams of cocaine for a specified amount. Is the contract void?
Principle: If the consideration or object of an agreement is forbidden by law, or is of such a nature that would defeat the provisions of any law, or is fraudulent, or is injurious to the person or property of another or, the Court regards it as immoral, or opposed to public policy, then the object or consideration shall be deemed unlawful. Every agreement of which the object or consideration is unlawful is void.
43) Whoever induces or attempts to induce a candidate, or voter, to believe that he, or any person, who he is interested in, will become, or will be rendered, an object of divine displeasure, or spiritual censure, commits the offence of:
44) Sajjan Singh, advanced money to his step-son, Ghantilal while Ghantilal was a minor. Ghantilal, however, looks upon Sajjan Singh as his own father. When Ghantilal came of age, Sajjan Singh obtained, by misuse of parental influence, from Ghantilal, a bond for a greater amount than the sum due in respect of the advance. The contract clearly appears to be unconscionable. Upon whom will the burden of proof rest to prove the element of undue influence?
Principle: A contract is said to be induced by undue influence where the relations subsisting between the parties are such that one of the parties is in a position to dominate the will of the other and uses that position to obtain an unfair advantage over the other.
46) The Government imposed a cap on the number of text messages sent per day, from every sim card, to 20, with immediate effect. These restrictions are to remain in force for 15 days. This action was taken against the backdrop of the exodus of north-eastern people from major cities of the country following a tide of rumours spread by text and multimedia messages that people hailing from the north-eastern states would be attacked to avenge a recent ethnic violence in one of the north-eastern states. Companies that were completely dependent upon this mode of communication for customer outreach protested against this cap on messages saying that it was infringing upon their freedom of speech and expression. Decide if it is an infringement on the freedom of speech and expression of the citizens.
Principle: All citizens shall have the right
(i) to freedom of speech and expression;
(ii) to assemble peacefully and without arms;
(iii) to form associations or unions;
(iv) to move freely throughout the territory of India;
(v) to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and;
(vi) omitted;
(vii) to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.
However, the exercise of these rights is subject to reasonable restrictions imposed by the State.
50) Valkatamma was suffering from a health condition in her stomach which required her to go through a surgery that involved cutting her stomach open as per the advice of her doctor, Dr. Chembunarayan. Though the operation was successful, after a few weeks, she started suffering from an infection which was a result of her stomach being cut open for the surgery though all the reasonable precautions to avoid any such infection had been taken by the group of surgeons who operated upon her. She visited another doctor, Dr. Kuttalalingam, after the development of this infection, and he told her that even a laser surgery could have cured her stomach ailment without exposing her to the risk of infection. However, as a matter of fact, there were many doctors in the country who supported the advice given by Dr. Chembunarayan to cure her health condition, and there were many others who were of the same opinion as that of Dr. Kuttalalingam. Nevertheless, Valkatamma sued Dr. Chembunarayan. Decide.
Principle: A person is liable for the tort of negligence if he breaches a legal duty of care he owes to the plaintiff, and the plaintiff suffered a damage resulting from this breach.
51) Nitin started to drive his Tata Nano in the highway after gulping down two bottles of whiskey. Isaac was driving his Reva NXR with the headlights turned off. They collided resulting in an injury on Isaac's head. Nitin, who was highly intoxicated, had only a narrow chance to avoid the collision, but because of the high levels of alcohol in his blood, he was unable to do so. Isaac sued Nitin for negligence. Will he succeed?
Principle: A person is liable for the tort of negligence if he breaches a legal duty of care he owes to the plaintiff, and the plaintiff suffered a damage resulting from this breach.
53) Ranveer, a con-man by profession, was sitting in his lawn with some stolen books by William Shakespeare. Suddenly, his neighbour, Anushka, entered and tried to snatch away those books from him saying that they belong to her. As it turns out, she was right. Still, Ranveer sues Anushka for trespass to goods. Will he succeed?
Principle: Interference with someone's possession or enjoyment of movable property constitutes the tort of trespass of goods.
56) Principle: A principal is liable for all the acts of the agent which he does in his capacity as an agent.
Facts: A Bollywood actor turned producer Balwan Khan makes a movie 'MAA ONE', he takes loan from a money lender Mr. Danjay Sutt, the film releases and as expected is a flop, the producer could not return the money, Danjay Sutt does not goes through the legal channel but asks Kancha Cheena to recover the debt on his behalf. In the process of recovery Kancha Cheena damages the property and manhandles Balwan Khan. Balwan Khan files case against Danjay Sutt. The money lender says he was ignorant of the collection tactics of Kancha Cheena, Is he liable in case?
57) Prateek, who is Prakha's younger brother, under the influence of madness, attempts to kill Sachan, who is Prakha's boyfriend. Prakha, not knowing howto react, and seeing Sachan helpless and on the verge of being murdered, hits on Prateek's head with an antique metal vase. Prateek dies on the spot. Can Prakha claim the right of private defence of body?
Principle 1: Every person has a right to defend his own body, and the body of any other person, against any offence affecting the human body. Nothing is an offence which is done in the exercise of the right of private defence
Principle 2: The right of private defence of the body extends to the vo??uritary causing of death or of any other harm to the assailant, if the offence reasonably causes the apprehension that death, or grievous hurt will otherwise be the consequence of such assault. Also, if the assault is with the intention of committing rape, gratifying unnatural lust, kidnapping or abducting, or wrongfully confining a person under circumstances which may reasonably cause him to apprehend that he will be unable to have recourse to the public authorities for his release, he will have the right of private defence of the body extending to causing of death.
Principle 3: Nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act.
59) Avantik gives his gold chain to Nikhil, a jeweller, for repairs. Nikhil carries it to his shop. After the gold chain have been repaired, Avantik defaults on the payment. Nikhil refuses to deliver back the gold chain, retains them lawfully as a security for the debt. Avantik, who was aware that Nikhil was retaining the gold chain as a security for his debt, enters the shop openly, and takes the gold chain by force out of Nikhil's possession, and takes it away. Has Avantik committed theft?
71) Legal Principle: Any agreement in restraint of trade, whether partial or total, is void.
Factual Situation: Mr. A joins Prima Info Corp Ltd. in June 2012 under an employment agreement for three years. One of the clauses of the agreement stipulates that the employee shall not join any other rival corporation for a period of three years. However, in the month of December 2012, Mr. A is found guilty of sexually harassing Ms. B, who is also an employee at Prima Info. The management of Prima Info terminates Mr. A’s employment for violation of the Office Conduct and Protection against Sexual Harassment guidelines. He subsequently sought a job with Bona Systems Corp Ltd. However, Prima Info came to know of Mr. A’s intention to join Bona Systems and sued him for an injunction in court citing the employment agreement.
Decide whether Mr. A would be able to secure his job opportunity?
72) Legal Principles:
I. The tort of conversion is an act, of willful interference, without lawful justification, with any chattel (goods) in a manner inconsistent with the right of another, whereby that other is deprived of the use and possession of it.
II. Whoever intending to take any moveable property out of the possession of any person without that person’s consent, moves that property out of his or her possession, is said to commit theft.
Factual Situation: A loads his perishable goods on a ship (owned by B) for transit from London to Kolkata. For many months, nothing was heard of the ship and it was presumed to be wrecked. However, it was later discovered that the ship had developed some problems and had got lost in high seas and finally reached a port in India and the goods were unloaded in B’s warehouse in Chennai. B did not care to inform A about it and over the period of time, the goods perished.
What is B liable for?
73) Legal Principles:
I. The tort of conversion is an act, of willful interference, without lawful justification, with any chattel (goods) in a manner inconsistent with the right of another, whereby that other is deprived of the use and possession of it.
II. Whoever intending to take any moveable property out of the possession of any person without that person’s consent, moves that property out of his or her possession, is said to commit theft.
Factual Situation: A owns a Gran Torino 1972 model. It is stolen by the local neighborhood boys which include B, C and D. They further sell it to E, who lives in the neighboring town, who is unaware of the theft and is a bona fide purchaser. F, a friend of A, and E’s neighbor immediately recognizes the Gran Torino to be A’s and on finding an opportunity, he drives the Gran Torino off E's garage. However, he meets an accident on his way to A’s house in which the car is also severely damaged and rendered useless.
What remedies can E avail?
74) Factual Situation: In a situation similar to the one in the movie Delhi Belly, three young men accidently happen to possess a purse full of diamonds. They visit a jeweler to ascertain the diamonds' value. The jeweler takes the diamond to an ante-room for examination. Taking advantage of the young men’s inadequacy of knowledge, he tells them that he could offer Rs. 10 lakh for the diamonds, whereas the actual worth of the same could have been Rs. 30 lakh or more. For a moment, the men take Rs. 10 lakh from the jeweler but'then seem to gather the actual worth of the diamonds may be much more than Rs. 10 lakhs and thus proceed to return the money and claim the diamonds back, which the jeweler refuses to return.
Which situation in law are we dealing with?
76) Legal Principle: Whoever enters into or upon the property in the possession of another, with intent to commit an offence or to intimidate or annoy any person in possession of the property and remains there with intent thereby to intimidate or annoy another person or with intent to commit an offence is guilty of criminal trespass.
Factual Situation: Samir enters into the house of Sarita, an unmarried major girl, to carry on intimate relations with her on her invitation and information that her family members are absent. However, while escaping, he was caught by her uncle who accused him of criminal trespass.
Is Samir liable for criminal trespass?
81) Legal Principle: Whoever dishonestly takes away any property from the possession of another, with an intention of such taking away, without his permission, is liable for theft.
Factual Situation: Kabir, a famous gangster, moves into an apartment in Pearl district in Mumbai. There he discovers that the previous owner of the apartment had left behind a pair of beautiful ivory handled dressing table. He decides to retain it since he was in a confusion as to whom he should give it to. After 3 days, the previous owners of the dressing table got to know this and registered an FIR against Kabir for stealing their property.
Is Kabir liable?
91) Legal Principle: Whoever by words, either spoken or intended to be read, or by signs or by visible representation, makes or publishes any imputation concerning any person intending to harm, or knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm, the reputation of such person is said to defame that person.
Factual Situation: Anand posted some objectionable content on a popular social networking website. His friend Akash saw such posts and asked him about it. On such confrontation by Akash, Anand replied, "Rahul did it, I didn’t.” and expressly refused his involvement in the said act. Later, Akash informed Rahul regarding such act and Anand’s reply to his confrontation. Rahul, who was unaware of such act prior to Akash’s information found Anand’s action as defaming.
Is Anand liable for defamation?
92) Legal Principle: Whoever causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description of a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or both.
Factual Situation: Ankit was standing on the foot board of a bus while travelling to his office in Mumbai. The bus driver, Mani knew about this and took a sharp turn without slowing down. Due to this, Ankit fell off from the bus and died instantly on the road. Police charged Mani under above principle for committing death of Ankit.
Decide whether Mani is liable under above for the death of Ankit.
97) Legal Principles:
I. A careless person becomes liable for his negligence when he owed a duty of care to others.
II. Volenti non fit injuria is a defence to negligence.
Factual Situation : R and S are friends. R is a professional horse-riding trainer. One day, S visits R and requests R to teach him how to ride a horse. R agrees, and tells S about the dangers of such an activity, such as the danger of falling off the horse, the possibility of not fastening the saddle properly, etc. S agrees to be careful and conveys to R that he has understood the risks. One fine day, while R is in the process of teaching S, a horse which has not been secured in its stable properly bolts towards S. S starts panicking and screams, and issharply kicked in the face by the horse. S falls down and fractures his leg as well. S sues R on account of the latter’s alleged negligence.
Is R liable for S’s injuries?
98) Legal Principles:
I. An unlawful interference with a person's use or enjoyment of land or some right over or in connection with it is a nuisance in tort.
II. The fact that the plaintiff "came to the nuisance" by knowingly acquiring property in the vicinity of the defendant's premises is not a defense to nuisance.
III. However, an act cannot be anuisance if it is imperatively demanded by public convenience. Thus, when the public welfare requires it, a nuisance may be permitted for special purposes.
Factual Situation: B buys a plot of land in 2010, and by the year 2012, he constructs a house on the land and takes possession of the house. Adjoining the plot, there are railway tracks. For the first few years of his possession, he is satisfied with the surroundings, and even though two trains pass by his house every day, he grows accustomed to the noise that accompanies them. In 2014, a new government is established at the centre, and the Ministry of Railways sanctions a number of new trains across the entire country to facilitate transportation for the masses. By late 2015, a total of 6 trains cross by B’s house every day, and the accompanying noise becomes unbearable for him. B is greatly aggrieved by the same and sues the Ministry of Railways for the nuisance caused to him.
Will his action against the Ministry succeed?
99) Legal Principles:
I. Employers/principals are vicariously liable, under the respondeatsuperior doctrine, for negligent acts or omissions by their employees /agents in the course of employment/agency.
II. A servant/agent may be defined as any person employed by another to do work for him on the terms that he, the servant/agent, is to be subject to the control and directions of his employer/principal in respect of the manner in which his work is to be done.
Factual Situation: X is Y’s secretary, and Z is Y’s driver. Y makes a Comprehensive list of office supplies needed for that month, and hands it over to X. He directs X to visit suppliers and procure the requisite items, and directs Z to drive X to the various required locations. X and Z are given a day to complete the job and leave the office. On the way, X convinces Z to take a break, and both of them take a detour to a nearby pub. The two.spend almost an hour, enjoying themselves with drinks, dance and music. After consuming a sizeable amount of. alcohol, they realise that they are running late and rush to complete the purchases. However, Z is quite inebriated and in an attempt to hasten the journey, he crashes his car into a hapless pedestrian B, severely injuring him.
Who is the person liable in the given situation?
100) Legal Principle: The communication of a proposal is complete-when it comes to the knowledge of the person to whom it is made.
Factual Situation: At KFC, X tells his friend, Y that he’ll pay Rs. 1000 to whoever finishes the largest chicken bucket all by themselves. Later that day, Z finishes the chicken bucket after which, K, one of the employees at KFC, tells him about X’s proposal.
