Active learning ideas
Negligence is the most significant area of tort law, dealing with civil wrongs that cause harm. Students learn to establish a three-part claim: that a duty of care was owed, that the duty was breached, and that the breach caused reasonably foreseeable damage. The unit focuses on the Caparo test for 'novel' situations and the established categories of duty, such as doctor-patient or driver-pedestrian.
Activity 01
Groups are given unusual scenarios (e.g., a rescuer injured at a scene). They must apply the three stages of the Caparo test, foreseeability, proximity, and 'fair, just and reasonable', to decide if a duty of care should exist.
How is a duty of care established using the Caparo test?
Activity 02
Stations feature different defendants: a learner driver, a specialist surgeon, and a child. Students move around to define the 'standard of care' for each, noting how the law adjusts the 'reasonable person' test for different roles.
What factors determine if a breach of duty has occurred?
Activity 03
Students read the facts of The Wagon Mound (No 1). They discuss in pairs whether it is fair that a defendant is only liable for the *type* of harm that was foreseeable, even if the *extent* was not, before sharing with the class.
How do the courts assess remoteness of damage?
A few notes on teaching this unit
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
The Caparo test is used for every single negligence case.
It is only used for 'novel' situations where no established duty exists. For common situations like car accidents, the duty is already established. A 'duty flowchart' helps students decide when to apply Caparo and when to use precedent.
A 'breach' means the defendant did something on purpose.
Negligence is about falling below the standard of a reasonable person, regardless of intent. Using a 'standard of care' checklist helps students focus on objective behavior rather than subjective mindsets.
Methods used in this brief
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8 methodologies
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