AQA A-Level Law Paper 1: Exam Question Paper with
Full Mark Scheme | Updated for 2025/2026 | Ace
Your Exams
what is parliamentary sovereignty ? -
ANSWER//Parliament can make or unmake any law
Why does parliament have sovereignty ? -
ANSWER//Because they are voted in What is
judicial review ? - ANSWER//Judges can examine
public bodies for their decision to be fair How is
criminal law enforced ? - ANSWER//Formally by the
police and courts What does ambiguity mean ? -
ANSWER//Where a word has two or more
meanings and it may not be clear which meaning
should be used What does changes in the use of
language mean ? - ANSWER//The meaning of
words can change over years What's the case for
new developments ? - ANSWER//Nursing v DHSS
What is the literal rule ? - ANSWER//The words
have the simplest meaning even if it leads to a
weird result What does Whitely v Chappell illustrate ?
- ANSWER//The literal rule made the law absurd
What happened in Whitely v Chappell ? -
ANSWER//Offence to impersonate 'any person
entitled to vote' - defendant was not guilty since a
dead person is not in the literal meaning of the
words 'entitled to vote' What happened in LNER v
berriman ? - ANSWER//Her claim for compensation
failed because a look out only be provided for
'relaying or repairing' not maintenance such as
oiling What is the difference between the broad and
narrow approach when using the golden rule ? -
,ANSWER//The narrow approach chooses out of the
literal meanings whereas the broad meaning can
interpret the words What happened in Re Allen ? -
ANSWER//Bigamist - defines marriage as
ceremony - narrow one meaning What is statute ? -
ANSWER//These are a more common source of
law, can also be referred to as an act of parliament
or legislation. These are laws which parliament has
debated and voted on and has received royal
assent What is negligence? - ANSWER//Don't have
intention don't foresee risk but failed to take
precautions A failure to meet the standard of the
reasonable man What are the sentencing Council
guidelines for offence category one? -
ANSWER//Determining category - greater harm
serious injury higher culpability Category range - 1
to 3 years custody Starting point - One year and six
months custody What are the sentencing council
guidelines for offence category two? -
ANSWER//Determining category - greater harm and
lower culpability or lower harm and higher
culpability Category range - low level community
order - 51 week custody Starting point - 26 weeks
custody What are the sentencing Council guidelines
for Offence category three? -
ANSWER//Determining category - lesser harm and
lower culpability Category range - Band A - high
level community order Starting point - medium
community order What is absolute liability? -
ANSWER//No MR and not voluntary AR Are social
norms laws ? - ANSWER//No they are expectations
and therefore are only deviant not criminal How did
the courts used to operate? - ANSWER//Local
,assizes at the principal towns of each country,
where the main feature until 1971. Judges
conducted trials dealing with serious offenders
Court verdicts were returned by juries of 12 What is
the difference between an intrinsic and extrinsic aid ?
- ANSWER//Intrinsic aids are matters within the
statute itself that aid to make its meaning clearer
External aids that are matters outside the act What
extrinsic aid was used in Cheeseman v DPP ? -
ANSWER//Dictionary Was Hansard used in Davis v
Johnson? - ANSWER//Yes What is the case for
binding precedent ? - ANSWER//Schweppes ltd
RRTA What is the criminal court structure ? -
ANSWER//Supreme Court Court of appeal QBD -
divisional Crown Magistrates What is the court
structure ? - ANSWER//Every court is bound to
follow the courts above and appellate courts and in
general the appellate courts are bound by their own
decisions How are laws enforced ? -
ANSWER//Formally by the police and courts, agree
to be right but has punishment What is ratio
decidendi ? - ANSWER//Reason for deciding,
binding part of the decision What does a broad term
//Stone and Dobinson ? - ANSWER//Stones elderly
sister, F, came to live with the defendants. She
failed to eat and became bedridden and incapable
of caring for himself. F died from malnutrition. Both
defendants were found guilty of her manslaughter
What happened in the case of Gibbins and Proctor ?
- ANSWER//The father of a 7yr old girl lived with a
partner. The father had several children from an
earlier marriage. He and his partner kept the girl
separate and deliberately starved her to death.
, They were both convicted of murder. The father has
a duty to feed her because he was her parent. What
is a state of affairs crime ? - ANSWER//Somebody
is responsible for a state of affairs Punished for the
situation What is a conduct crime ? -
ANSWER//Guilty act but no consequence What are
the cases for absolute liability ? -
ANSWER//Larsonneur Windzor What is factual
causation? - ANSWER//The defendant can only be
guilty if the consequence would not have happened
'but for' the defendants conduct. What are the cases
for factual causation? - ANSWER//White Pagett
Hughes Did White have factual causation ? -
ANSWER//No Did Pagett have factual causation ? -
ANSWER//Yes What does legal causation require ?
- ANSWER//An intact chain of causation What is the
'thin skull' rule ? - ANSWER//The defendant must
take the victim as he finds them What is the
standard of proof for criminal law ? -
ANSWER//Beyond all reasonable doubt Where do
laws come from ? - ANSWER//Statute/legislation
judge-made/common How does the statue case
work? - ANSWER//Act of Parliament imposes a
duty to do something e.g the road traffic act 1988
required that people wear a seatbelt What does
London and North Eastern Railway Co v Berryman
illustrate ? - ANSWER//The literal rule can lead to
what may be considered harsh decisions What is a
binding precedent ? - ANSWER//A decision in an
earlier case which must be followed in a later case
Where did customs come from ? - ANSWER//Rules
of behaviour which developed in a community
without being deliberately invented What is advice
Full Mark Scheme | Updated for 2025/2026 | Ace
Your Exams
what is parliamentary sovereignty ? -
ANSWER//Parliament can make or unmake any law
Why does parliament have sovereignty ? -
ANSWER//Because they are voted in What is
judicial review ? - ANSWER//Judges can examine
public bodies for their decision to be fair How is
criminal law enforced ? - ANSWER//Formally by the
police and courts What does ambiguity mean ? -
ANSWER//Where a word has two or more
meanings and it may not be clear which meaning
should be used What does changes in the use of
language mean ? - ANSWER//The meaning of
words can change over years What's the case for
new developments ? - ANSWER//Nursing v DHSS
What is the literal rule ? - ANSWER//The words
have the simplest meaning even if it leads to a
weird result What does Whitely v Chappell illustrate ?
- ANSWER//The literal rule made the law absurd
What happened in Whitely v Chappell ? -
ANSWER//Offence to impersonate 'any person
entitled to vote' - defendant was not guilty since a
dead person is not in the literal meaning of the
words 'entitled to vote' What happened in LNER v
berriman ? - ANSWER//Her claim for compensation
failed because a look out only be provided for
'relaying or repairing' not maintenance such as
oiling What is the difference between the broad and
narrow approach when using the golden rule ? -
,ANSWER//The narrow approach chooses out of the
literal meanings whereas the broad meaning can
interpret the words What happened in Re Allen ? -
ANSWER//Bigamist - defines marriage as
ceremony - narrow one meaning What is statute ? -
ANSWER//These are a more common source of
law, can also be referred to as an act of parliament
or legislation. These are laws which parliament has
debated and voted on and has received royal
assent What is negligence? - ANSWER//Don't have
intention don't foresee risk but failed to take
precautions A failure to meet the standard of the
reasonable man What are the sentencing Council
guidelines for offence category one? -
ANSWER//Determining category - greater harm
serious injury higher culpability Category range - 1
to 3 years custody Starting point - One year and six
months custody What are the sentencing council
guidelines for offence category two? -
ANSWER//Determining category - greater harm and
lower culpability or lower harm and higher
culpability Category range - low level community
order - 51 week custody Starting point - 26 weeks
custody What are the sentencing Council guidelines
for Offence category three? -
ANSWER//Determining category - lesser harm and
lower culpability Category range - Band A - high
level community order Starting point - medium
community order What is absolute liability? -
ANSWER//No MR and not voluntary AR Are social
norms laws ? - ANSWER//No they are expectations
and therefore are only deviant not criminal How did
the courts used to operate? - ANSWER//Local
,assizes at the principal towns of each country,
where the main feature until 1971. Judges
conducted trials dealing with serious offenders
Court verdicts were returned by juries of 12 What is
the difference between an intrinsic and extrinsic aid ?
- ANSWER//Intrinsic aids are matters within the
statute itself that aid to make its meaning clearer
External aids that are matters outside the act What
extrinsic aid was used in Cheeseman v DPP ? -
ANSWER//Dictionary Was Hansard used in Davis v
Johnson? - ANSWER//Yes What is the case for
binding precedent ? - ANSWER//Schweppes ltd
RRTA What is the criminal court structure ? -
ANSWER//Supreme Court Court of appeal QBD -
divisional Crown Magistrates What is the court
structure ? - ANSWER//Every court is bound to
follow the courts above and appellate courts and in
general the appellate courts are bound by their own
decisions How are laws enforced ? -
ANSWER//Formally by the police and courts, agree
to be right but has punishment What is ratio
decidendi ? - ANSWER//Reason for deciding,
binding part of the decision What does a broad term
//Stone and Dobinson ? - ANSWER//Stones elderly
sister, F, came to live with the defendants. She
failed to eat and became bedridden and incapable
of caring for himself. F died from malnutrition. Both
defendants were found guilty of her manslaughter
What happened in the case of Gibbins and Proctor ?
- ANSWER//The father of a 7yr old girl lived with a
partner. The father had several children from an
earlier marriage. He and his partner kept the girl
separate and deliberately starved her to death.
, They were both convicted of murder. The father has
a duty to feed her because he was her parent. What
is a state of affairs crime ? - ANSWER//Somebody
is responsible for a state of affairs Punished for the
situation What is a conduct crime ? -
ANSWER//Guilty act but no consequence What are
the cases for absolute liability ? -
ANSWER//Larsonneur Windzor What is factual
causation? - ANSWER//The defendant can only be
guilty if the consequence would not have happened
'but for' the defendants conduct. What are the cases
for factual causation? - ANSWER//White Pagett
Hughes Did White have factual causation ? -
ANSWER//No Did Pagett have factual causation ? -
ANSWER//Yes What does legal causation require ?
- ANSWER//An intact chain of causation What is the
'thin skull' rule ? - ANSWER//The defendant must
take the victim as he finds them What is the
standard of proof for criminal law ? -
ANSWER//Beyond all reasonable doubt Where do
laws come from ? - ANSWER//Statute/legislation
judge-made/common How does the statue case
work? - ANSWER//Act of Parliament imposes a
duty to do something e.g the road traffic act 1988
required that people wear a seatbelt What does
London and North Eastern Railway Co v Berryman
illustrate ? - ANSWER//The literal rule can lead to
what may be considered harsh decisions What is a
binding precedent ? - ANSWER//A decision in an
earlier case which must be followed in a later case
Where did customs come from ? - ANSWER//Rules
of behaviour which developed in a community
without being deliberately invented What is advice
