Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Defence definition

What does Defence mean? In civil litigation, a defence is the defendant’s formal pleading that answers the claim and sets out the material facts and legal grounds relied on. It shapes the issues for disclosure, evidence and trial, and must be filed within the time limits set by court rules; failure may lead to default judgment (or decree). In England and Wales, under the Civil Procedure Rules, the defence is a statement of case responding to the particulars of claim. It should specify which allegations are admitted, denied or not admitted, explain any denial, and plead defences such as limitation or set-off....

Defences to Occupiers’ Liability Claims in England and Wales: Status, Contributory Negligence, Volenti, Illegality, Warnings, Exclusions and Liability for Independent Contractors

Published by a LexisNexis PI & Clinical Negligence expert

Practice notes

The standard range of defences, including limitation, is also generally open to a defendant in such proceedings. A defendant might dispute being in occupation or having control of the premises, or otherwise contend that no duty of care whatsoever was owed to the claimant, or that any such duty was not breached. They may further assert that, for the purposes of the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 (OLA 1957), the claimant was not a lawful visitor but a trespasser, such that only the narrower duty under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984 (OLA 1984) applied. Alternatively, the defendant could entirely reject both visitor and trespasser status, alleging the claimant was on a public right of way, and thus no duty of care arose under either OLA 1957 or OLA 1984. An occupier might also raise the following potential defences where relevant and appropriate.

contributory negligence

The Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 has application in cases brought under both OLA 1957 and OLA 1984. An occupier may argue that the visitor’s injuries were caused, or at least contributed to, by the visitor’s own conduct. Contributory negligence operates as a partial defence which may result in...

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Andrew Wilson

Andrew has more than 25 years’ experience of working in the fields of personal injury and occupational disease litigation, acting for both claimants and defendants. He trained at L Bingham & Co, gaining early experience in a number of important high profile claims involving the MIB. During the 1990s Andrew worked at Hextalls and then Kennedys, predominantly for defendants across a range of motor, employers’ liability and public liability matters many of which involved serious injuries or death. More recently, he has dealt with cases for claimants who have suffered serious injuries or occupational disease. He was a partner in a large specialist practice. He has provided seminars to solicitors and other legal professionals both for an external conference company and in house on the workings of the Civil Procedure Rules in the context of personal injury claims, amongst other...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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