Important Legal Maxims for all Judiciary Exams Part -1 || Legal Law || B.A.LL.B. || Law of Torts

Important Legal Maxims for all Judiciary Exams

1. DAMNUM SINE INJURIA

• In simple words, causing damages to a person without infringement of any legal right. Many acts seem to be harmful in nature but are not considered to be wrongful in the law, so they are not actionable and does not provide any remedy to the suffer.
• Also according to the principle, If a person in enjoying his/her legal right and in doing so he/she cause damage to another person, in that case the person will not be considered as a wrongdoer.

2. INJURIA SINE DAMNUM

• Causing injury to a person without any actual physical damage, here injury refers to the violation of legal right.
• In simple words infringement of a person's legal right without any actual damage to wealth , heal , and individuals comfort.

3. UBI JUS IBI REMEDIUM

• The word jus means, legal body or authority , and remedium means that the person has the right of action in the court.
• The law of torts is said to be the development of the maxim , the meaning of the essentials of a tort law, according to this maxim if any wrong has been committed or the right of a person has been violated then the court will provide a remedy. therefore no wrong should be allowed to go without compensation.

4. EX TURPI CAUSA NON ORITUR ACTION

•  The meaning of this maxim is that 'no action can arise from an illegal act'. 
• There are some cases where the plaintiff himself involved in the illegal  Act therefore that person will not be able to bring suit against the other Person and the plaintiff will not get any remedy. This could be used as a Defense which the defendant can use to exempt his liability from an act as  The plaintiff is also involved in the illegal act.
• Illustration : A and B have decided to commit theft in C's house but during this act, A gets injured because of B's negligence. Here even though B is guilty of negligence A cannot claim any damages because he suffered this injury as a result of being involved in an unlawful act of theft and thus it falls in the category of ex turpi causa non oritur actio. 

5. RES IPSA LOQUITOR

• This is one of the most essential maxims to decide the judgment of any case, the meaning of this maxim is that the 'things speak for itself', the res ipsa loquitor is used in the cases of negligence, where the pieces of evidence of a case are not properly stated but the facts are enough to prove the negligence of defendant party. This is one type of evidence that allows a reasonable fact finder to determine that the other person caused an unusual event to occur which causes injury to the plaintiff and also the defendant is negligent in his part. 
• Examples : A load of bricks on the roof of a building being constructed by highrise construction co. Falls and injures paul pedestrian below, and highrise is liable for pedestrian's injury even though no one saw the load fall 

6. ACTIO PERSONALIS MORITUR CUM PERSONA

• "The personal right of action dies with a person" in simple terms the rights of the person dies with his/her death. The cases cannot be passed to the other person, the credibility of the case came to an end with the death of the person. In 1496 the first case came to the light, where a woman died before paying the charges due on her for defaming someone and since then this maxim applied.

7. ACTUS DEI NEMINI FACIT INJURIAM MEANS "

• "An act of god causes legal injury to no one". In other words, no one is responsible when something (wrong) is done by god (nature). This denotes any damages caused by the unpredictable natural forces, will not be covered by the law. It means the law cannot hold anyone responsible for the act of god i.e. 'force majeure'. Likewise, no one can complain against any act of god because such an act is inevitable. Even any legal action or demanding compensation against the act of god will not be entertained by the court.
• The act of god is used as a defence tool in cases of torts when the situation is beyond the power of the defendant and the damage is caused by the forces of nature. In such a case, the defendant will not be liable in tort law for such inadvertent damage.
• Two essential elements are required in the application of such a defence. Firstly, there must be the working of natural forces. Secondly, the occurrence must be extraordinary and beyond reasoning. And finally, it should be beyond the power of human beings.

• Illustration :- Two parties enter into a contract for the supply of cotton in another country through the ship. However, the seller to the contract could not deliver the goods due to a tsunami in that region. The reason for the failure on the part of the seller to deliver goods to the buyer was not because of negligence on part of the seller but because of the tsunami which is considered as a natural disaster and an act of god.

Written By - KR Choudhary