Torts affecting Property (Movable & Immovable): Trespass, Trespass ab initio etc

A tenant in Panvel stops paying rent, and the landlord changes the lock while she is at work. A neighbour's builder swings a crane over your terrace every morning. A courier boy, having delivered your parcel, walks on into your flat to “check the wiring”. And a friend borrows your bike and sells it. Every one of these touches something you own or possess, and not one of them needs a bruise to be wrongful. What does the law protect here, and why does it care so little about actual loss?

In two minutes

Torts against property protect possession : trespass to land, trespass to goods, conversion and detinue are all actionable without proof of damage, and a lawful entry that is later abused may be treated as a trespass from the very start (trespass ab initio).

The rest of this chapter

The full explanation, the cheat sheet, every previous-year question at every mark weight, the quiz and the answer skeletons are part of Law of Torts, Motor Accident Claims and Consumer Protection on LexBlox Semester. Sign in to unlock the subject, or read Module 1 of Legal Language and Writing free.