The Occupiers' Liability Act 1984 The Occupiers' Liability Act 1984 (OLA 1984) covers situations where a person enters land or property without permission (a trespasser). The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984 provides occupiers with a limited duty of care to non-visitors (trespassers). The 1984 Act recognises that occupiers may still owe a duty of care to those who enter their premises without permission. This duty is far more restrictive than that under the 1957 Act, only person

Engage Students at Your Next Open Event with the TeachLaw Legal Trail. Free Open Event Resource at the end of this blog page. Law open events are a key opportunity to inspire potential students, showcase your law department, and demonstrate what studying law is really like. But we know they can also be hectic, busy, and challenging to manage, especially when you want to give visitors a meaningful experience. That is why we have created the TeachLaw Legal Trail, a ready to use

Occupiers' Liability Act 1957 The Occupiers' Liability Act 1957 (OLA 1957) protects lawful visitors from personal injury and property damage that may occur on premises. It establishes a common duty of care for occupiers to ensure visitors’ safety while on their property. This duty ensures that visitors are protected from personal injury or property damage while on the premises. The Act covers visitors with permission to be on the premises, such as: Invitees (those invited for

Causation in Criminal Law When trying to secure a conviction in criminal law, the prosecution must prove that the defendant’s actions caused the consequences to the victim, here they will establish the principle of causation. Causation is an essential principle that is used by the courts to establish whether the defendant’s actions were responsible for the consequences suffered by the victim. It is not enough to simply show that the defendant committed the actus reus (the phy

This blog explores the different non-custodial sentences available in the UK.

Strict Liability in Criminal Law In criminal law, the general rule is simple: to be guilty of a crime, the prosecution must prove both actus reus (the guilty act) and mens rea (the guilty mind). Most crimes require both elements. However, there are some offences that are exceptions to this rule. These are called strict liability offences, here the mens rea is not required for at least part of the actus reus. This means that in strict liability offences, the defendant will be

The Role of Magistrates Magistrates are lay people, which means that they have no formal legal training. They are volunteer judges who sit in the Magistrates Court and play a vital role in the justice system. Despite being volunteers, they deal with the vast majority of criminal cases. In fact, magistrates handle around 97% of all criminal cases from start to finish. To become a magistrate, there are no formal academic qualifications needed. Instead, applicants must: Be aged

The Role of Solicitors In the UK legal system, a solicitor is a type of lawyer who provides expert legal advice and support to clients. Solicitors often work directly with individuals, businesses, or organisations to handle legal matters, prepare documents, and offer guidance upon the law. They can also represent clients in criminal cases in the lower courts, and with additional qualifications, they can represent clients in higher courts too. Solicitors play a key role in ens

Introduction to Law When you begin to study law in the UK, one of the first and most important foundations to understand is the difference between civil law and criminal law. These two branches of law have very different purposes, processes, and outcomes. Knowing how they differ will help you make sense of the entire legal system, from who brings a case to court, to which judges hear it, to what the final decision means. Civil law is concerned with settling disputes between i

A-Level Law Revision Guides - The Best Resources for Exam Success Preparing for your A-Level Law exams can feel overwhelming. With so many cases, principles, and exam techniques to master, it’s important to have the right revision tools. At TeachLaw.net , we provide student-friendly A-Level Law revision guides and resources to help you study smarter, not harder. Whether you’re looking for concise summaries, exam tips, or interactive tools like flashcards and active recall pac

In criminal law, dishonesty is an essential mens rea element in offences like theft, fraud, and obtaining property by deception. Over the years, judges have refined what it means to be "dishonest." One of the most important recent developments came from R v Barton and Booth (2020), which re-defined the test for dishonesty.

Are you aged 16-18 years old and would like to pursue a career in law? Explore the TeachLaw Legal Work Experience for 16–18 Year Olds and free work experience download and get a head start searching for the best online and in-person opportunities to kickstart your legal career The Ultimate Guide to Legal Work Experience for 16–18 Year Olds   Why Legal Work Experience Matters Legal work experience is one of the most powerful ways to stand out when applying for law degrees, app

Types of Delegated Legislation When studying UK law, it’s important to understand that not all laws are made directly by Parliament. In fact, a lot of the day to day rules and regulations that affect us are made by other people or bodies, these are known as pieces of delegated legislation. Let’s break down the words delegated legislation. The word delegate means to pass on responsibility or authority. And as law students we known that legislation means the law. So, delegated

Robinson v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police (2018). In tort law, a claim can be brought under the law of negligence when someone suffers harm because another person has breached their duty of care. A person who has been injured due to someone else’s negligence can bring a civil claim for compensation. But to win the case, they must prove three key things: The defendant owed them a duty of care. The defendant breached that duty. The breach caused their injury or damage

Rylands v Fletcher: A Level Law Rylands v Fletcher, an important area of tort law that often appears in exams. This area of tort law that deals claims where the defendant can be found liable and can be held legally responsible for damage caused by something that they have stored on their land, and it then escapes from their land and causes damage to the neighbouring land. Imagine this: your neighbour stores a huge tank of water in their garden. The tank bursts, and water floo

R v Broughton (2020) Gross Negligence Manslaughter (GNM) is a form of involuntary manslaughter. It applies where death results from a defendant’s grossly negligent conduct, even without any intent to harm. GNM often arises in professional or duty based scenarios where a person fails to act when required to do so, and someone then dies as a result of this.   The 5-Part Test for Gross Negligence Manslaughter The test for GNM comes from R v Adomako (1995)  and has since been upd

The law of non-fatal offences for A level Law and BTEC Applied Law The law of non-fatal offences against the person covers a range of criminal actions where someone is harmed but not killed. These offences play a crucial role in protecting people from violence and threats, and they range from minor incidents like a push to serious injuries like broken bones. This blog will break down the actus reus (the physical element) and mens rea (the mental element) of each non-fatal off

Evaluation of the law upon non-fatal offences In this blog, we are going to evaluate and discuss the law upon the non-fatal offences, this is a key area of criminal law as it covers the crimes of assault, battery, ABH (Actual Bodily Harm), and GBH (Grievous Bodily Harm). We will explain and examine the problems with the common law offences of assault and battery, which were developed by judges rather than Parliament, and issues still remain with the Offences Against the Perso

The Four Tracks in Civil Cases If you're studying A-level or BTEC Law, it is important to know how civil cases and claims are allocated...