Assault, battery and mayhem
LUG-101 Law of Torts including Motor Vehicle Accident and Consumer Protection Act, Unit III: Assault, battery and mayhem. · LLB · 60 min
Assault, battery and false imprisonment are the three forms of trespass to the person, the oldest torts protecting bodily security and liberty. This lecture defines battery (the intentional and direct application of force without lawful justification: Cole v. Turner, Collins v. Wilcock) and assault (an act causing reasonable apprehension of immediate force: Stephens v. Myers, Tuberville v. Savage, Read v. Coker), examines the statement that "battery is the aggravated form of assault", explains mayhem and its Indian counterpart, grievous hurt (s. 116 BNS), sets out the parallel offences of force, criminal force and assault (ss. 128-131 BNS) and Rupan Deol Bajaj v. K.P.S. Gill, and covers the defences and remedies, with a comparison table of the three wrongs. It answers the short notes on battery and assault (2017-18), the "aggravated assault" question (2019-20), the distinction of assault, battery and mayhem (2022-23) and the 2025-26 question on assault and battery with its note on false imprisonment (Bhim Singh).
Objectives
- Explain trespass to the person and why its forms are actionable per se.
- Define battery and state its essentials with Cole v. Turner and Collins v. Wilcock.
- Define assault, explain reasonable apprehension and the role of words, with Stephens v. Myers, Tuberville v. Savage and Read v. Coker.
- Evaluate the statement that battery is the aggravated form of assault and distinguish the two.
- Explain mayhem and its relation to grievous hurt under s. 116 BNS, and the criminal parallels in ss. 128-131 and 74 BNS.
- State the defences (consent, private defence, lawful authority, necessity) and remedies, and write a note on false imprisonment with Bhim Singh.
Slides
- Trespass to the person
- Battery: definition and essentials
- Everyday touching: Collins v. Wilcock (1984)
- Assault: reasonable apprehension of immediate force
- Words and assault: Tuberville v. Savage and Read v. Coker
- "Battery is the aggravated form of assault"
- Mayhem
- The criminal parallels and Rupan Deol Bajaj
- Defences and remedies
- Assault, battery, mayhem and false imprisonment compared
Loading the lecture…