Strict Liability & Absolute Liability — MCQs

All questions with answers and explanations

Read the full set here, or use the practice card above to test yourself one question at a time.

1. The rule in Rylands v. Fletcher (1868) applies when a person:

   • Negligently fails to inspect equipment
   • Brings and keeps on their land, for a non-natural use, something likely to cause mischief if it escapes (correct answer)
   • Directly deposits waste onto another's land
   • Is engaged in any hazardous industry, however careful

   Explanation. Rylands v. Fletcher requires a non-natural use of land plus accumulation of something likely to cause mischief if it escapes.

2. Which of the following is NOT a recognised exception to strict liability under Rylands v. Fletcher?

   • Act of God
   • Act of a stranger
   • The enterprise's own profitability (correct answer)
   • Plaintiff's own default

   Explanation. The five recognised exceptions are act of God, act of a stranger, plaintiff's default, statutory authority, and consent — enterprise profitability is not one of them.

3. The rule of absolute liability was laid down by the Supreme Court of India in:

   • Rylands v. Fletcher (1868)
   • M.C. Mehta v. Union of India, the Oleum Gas Leak Case (1986) (correct answer)
   • Donoghue v. Stevenson (1932)
   • Jones v. Llanrwst UDC (1911)

   Explanation. M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1986), the Oleum Gas Leak Case, is where the Indian Supreme Court evolved the rule of absolute liability.

4. How many of the Rylands v. Fletcher exceptions are available as a defence to absolute liability?

   • All five
   • Only 'act of God'
   • Only 'act of a stranger'
   • None — absolute liability admits no exceptions (correct answer)

   Explanation. The defining feature of absolute liability is that none of the Rylands exceptions are available — liability is truly absolute.

5. The 'deep pocket' or enterprise-liability principle means:

   • Only enterprises with large cash reserves can be sued at all
   • Compensation must be correlated to the size and capacity of the enterprise (correct answer)
   • Small enterprises are exempt from all liability
   • Compensation is a fixed statutory amount regardless of enterprise size

   Explanation. The deep pocket principle requires the measure of compensation to be proportionate to the enterprise's magnitude and capacity to pay.

6. In the Oleum Gas Leak Case, gas escaped from a unit belonging to:

   • Union Carbide Corporation, Bhopal
   • Shriram Foods and Fertilizer Industries, Kirti Nagar, Delhi (correct answer)
   • Tata Chemicals, Mumbai
   • Indian Oil Corporation, Chennai

   Explanation. The oleum gas escaped from a unit of Shriram Foods and Fertilizer Industries in the Kirti Nagar area of Delhi, in December 1985 — not the separate Bhopal (Union Carbide) disaster.

7. Under the Oleum rule, an enterprise engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous activity owes the community a duty that is:

   • Merely a duty of reasonable care
   • Absolute and non-delegable (correct answer)
   • Subject to the Rylands v. Fletcher exceptions
   • Owed only to its employees

   Explanation. In M.C. Mehta (the Oleum case), the Supreme Court held that an enterprise in a hazardous or inherently dangerous activity owes the community an absolute and non-delegable duty. It is liable for harm from an accident in that activity, without the Rylands exceptions.

8. A chemical plant, despite following every safety protocol, suffers a valve failure due to an undetectable manufacturing defect, injuring nearby residents. Under Indian law, the plant is:

   • Not liable, since it took all reasonable care
   • Absolutely liable, since it is engaged in a hazardous activity, regardless of the care taken (correct answer)
   • Liable only if the residents prove negligence
   • Liable only for half the compensation, since the defect was undetectable

   Explanation. Under the rule of absolute liability, an enterprise engaged in a hazardous activity is liable regardless of how much care was taken — no exception applies.