Civil Law

Civil Wrongs
There are 2 types of civil wrongs

Breach of Contract
Tort
Breach of Contract
Arises when one party to a contract fails to honour a
condition of it
A person may enter a contract to receive goods immediately and
agree to settle the account in 30 days. When the individual fails to
pay within those 30 days, a breach of contract will occur
Law of contract is a branch of private law concerned
with providing remedies to aggrieved parties to a
contract
Torts
A tort is a civil wrong that is not a breach of contract.
The law of tort is designed to protect the rights and
interests of individuals
These rights and interests may include:
Reputation [Defamation]
Personal Freedom [Trespass to person]
Enjoyment of Property [Nuisance]
Title to Property [Conversion/Trespass to
goods/land]

Law of Tort
A branch of private law concerned with providing
monetary compensation to aggrieved parties
Reasons for monetary compensation may
include: personal injury or property damage
caused by negligence or another tort
Most torts can only have action taken against
them if they cause damage
Some torts are designed to protect interests
rather than compensate for damage
Civil Liability
All people must accept civil responsibility for the
consequences of their actions
An aggrieved individual could sue anyone
irrespective of that persons age, sex or other
factor
In normal circumstances, an individual would not
take legal action against another individual if that
person has no means of providing a monetary
remedy
Law of Negligence
Negligence is the most common actionable tort in
Australia. The law of negligence offers civil remedies
to people who are injured or who have their property
damaged by the careless behaviour of others
Elements of Negligence
There are 3 rules a plaintiff must prove
to be successful in a case of negligence
1. The defendant owed the plaintiff a
duty of care
2. The defendant breached that duty of
care
3. Damages that were foreseeable to a
reasonable person occurred as a
direct breach of the duty of care
Duty of Care

The legal obligation everyone has to take reasonable care when going about their
business

This prevents their actions from injuring other people or causing damage to their
property
Legal Neighbour

This is any person (the plaintiff) who is likely to be affected by the defendants
careless behaviour

All individuals must take the impact of their acts on other people into consideration
when going about their business
Foreseeability

A defendant is only liable to pay damages for negligence if the injuries/damage
caused to the plaintiff/property was reasonably predictable

If the possibility of injury or damage is small and the harm could not be predicted,
then the defendant would not be liable in tort for negligence
Reasonable Person Test

The measure used to determine whether or not an act was negligent
The standard is not the same in all circumstances
A lower standard would be expected of a child compared to an adult, for example
Contributory Negligence

A common law defence where injury suffered/damage caused by the plaintiff was
partly his/her own fault
Contributory negligence is often raised in civil claims concerning motor vehicle
accidents
Vicarious Liability

The legal liability placed on a person for the tort of negligence committed by an
agent or employee
Employers are liable for torts committed by his/her employees

Burden of Proof
The party who instigates the civil action has the
responsibility of proving the truth of that
allegation
The burden is proved by the plaintiff calling
witnesses to give evidence to provide sufficient
information of the case so that the truth will be
revealed and a just outcome will come about
Standard of Proof
On the balance of probabilities
For a plaintiff to win their case against, he/she
must prove on the balance of probabilities that
the defendant was in the wrong
It is an easier standard to prove compared to
criminal trials, because there is no risk of an
individuals rights or liberties
Civil Remedy
Is a legal consequence of being found liable by a
court of committing a civil wrong
Unlike in criminal law, a wrongdoer can admit
liability without a court intervening and volunteer
a civil remedy
Types of Civil Remedies
There are two types of civil remedy: Damages and
Injunctions
Damages
Are a sum of money granted to the plaintiff as a result of
his/her civil claim. Damages are designed to return the
plaintiff to the same position he/she was in before the
civil wrong took place

There are two types of Damages:

Special Damages
Claims for economic loss
The dollar amount can be calculated precisely
Example: medical bills
General Damages
Claims for non-economic loss
The dollar amount cannot be calculated
Compensate for pain and suffering
Injunctions
An injunction is a court order which either restrains a
party from doing something or compels him/her to do
something
Preventative Injunction
Prohibits certain behaviour, for example: a restraining order

Compulsory Injunction
Directs/requires the defendant to do a particular thing, for
example: remove dangerous machinery from a particular location

Interlocutory Injunction
Temporary in nature than can perform the functions above
An interim injunction is usually granted before a trial to maintain
the existing state of affairs until the dispute has been resolved