levo
Log inStart

Criminal Defences

Self-Defence and the Prevention of Crime

  • 3 things to know
  • Paper 1

Overview

Recall questions on the effect of the defence, when it is available, its relationship with the statutory power and the two-stage test.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started
Numbers

Can a defendant rely on self-defence if their belief in the need to use force was mistaken?

Key term

What is the outcome if self-defence is successfully established?

Key term

What happens to the defence of self-defence if the force used was disproportionate to the threat faced?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    What is the outcome if self-defence is successfully established?

    Model answer

    Self-defence is a complete defence that results in acquittal.

  2. 2

    In what situations is the defence of self-defence available to a defendant?

    Model answer

    When the defendant uses force to protect themselves, another person, or property from an unjust attack or threat.

  3. 3

    How do the courts treat the relationship between common law self-defence and the statutory prevention of crime defence?

    Model answer

    They operate as a single unified defence, with the common law and statutory provisions being treated together.

  4. 4

    What is the first stage of the two-stage test for self-defence?

    Model answer

    The defendant must have genuinely believed that force was necessary.

  5. 5

    Is the first limb of self-defence assessed subjectively or objectively?

    Model answer

    Subjectively—the defendant must have genuinely believed that the use of force was necessary, even if that belief was mistaken.

  6. 6

    Can a defendant rely on self-defence if their belief in the need to use force was mistaken?

    Model answer

    Yes, provided the belief was genuinely held, as established in Williams (Gladstone) and confirmed in section 76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008.

See the rest and revise

Other ways to work this

The same content, four other ways.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

1Closed book
2Open book
3Closed book

The 3-step method, run for you

Answer cold, learn it, then prove it stuck. Levo tracks the jump between your first attempt and your last.

The Nature of Law
The European Union and English Law
Legal Personnel and the Judiciary
Access to Justice and Funding

Cram a whole paper in one sitting

Sort every topic into what you know and what you do not, then drill only the weak ones.

Assault and .
batterywoundingtheft

Blank Blitz makes facts automatic

Rapid timed gap-fills on the terms and numbers you need to recall without thinking.

AThe defendant must have brought something onto their land.
BThe thing must be likely to do mischief if it escapes.
CThere must be a non-natural use of land.

Build It gets the exam shape right

Assemble a full-mark answer from its marking points, in the order an examiner wants them.

Wound means a break in both layers of the skin.
TrueFalse

Test It catches misconceptions

Spot the fault in a statement. The traps are the mistakes students actually make.

721941163128510

Brain Breaks between sessions

Short focus games to reset attention, so the next set lands better than the last.

Every question in Criminal Defences, on a schedule.

Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.

Start revising, £5 a monthSee how the method works

Or £46 a year, about £3.83 a month. Cancel anytime.