INTRODUCTION COMMON LAW

1. What is common law in the UK?

Common law in the UK is the body of law created by judges through decisions and precedents. It is a historical and technical system developed since the 12th century, based on judicial reasoning rather than codification.

2. Why is precedent binding in the UK?

Precedent is binding because judges are required to follow previous decisions of higher courts. This ensures consistency and predictability in the legal system.

3. What is the significance of the Norman Conquest (1066) for English law?

Before 1066, England had no unified legal system. After the Norman Conquest, royal courts and travelling judges helped create a unified common law applicable to the whole kingdom.

4. What were writs in medieval common law?

Writs were royal orders authorizing a person to bring a claim before a court. They provided specific remedies for specific wrongs and made the legal system highly formalised.

5. What caused the creation of equity?

Equity emerged because the common law became too rigid (“no writ, no remedy”), offering only damages even when inadequate. Petitioners sought fairness, leading to the development of equitable remedies by the Lord Chancellor.

6. What is the Court of Chancery?

The Court of Chancery, created in 1474, was a separate court applying equity. It granted remedies such as injunctions and specific performance, focusing on fairness.

7. What did the Earl of Oxford’s Case (1616) establish?

It held that equity prevails when common law and equity conflict. This established the superiority of equitable rules in cases of conflict.

8. What was the effect of the Judicature Acts (1873–1875)?

They merged common law courts and equity courts into a single High Court, allowing judges to apply both systems while maintaining their conceptual distinction.

9. What are equitable maxims?

Equitable maxims are general principles guiding equity, such as:

• “He who comes to equity must come with clean hands.”

• “Delay defeats equity.”

• “Equity will not tolerate a wrong to be without a remedy.”

10. What is a common law remedy for breach of contract?

The common law remedy is damages, based on the compensation principle from Livingston v Raywards Coal Co (1880), aiming to restore the injured party to the position they would have been in without the breach.

11. What is an equitable remedy for breach of contract?

Specific performance, which compels a party to perform the contract, may be granted when damages are inadequate.

12. What are injunctions in equity?

Injunctions are court orders requiring a person to do or not do something. They are equitable remedies often used in tort cases.

13. What is parliamentary sovereignty according to Dicey?

Dicey defined parliamentary sovereignty as the ability of Parliament to make or unmake any law, with no other body recognized as having the authority to override its legislation.

14. What historical events support parliamentary sovereignty?

Key events include the Battle of Lewes (1264), the Declaration of Rights (1688), and the Bill of Rights (1689), which collectively affirmed the supremacy of Parliament over the Crown.

15. Why is Parliament considered democratically legitimate?

Parliament is elected by citizens and reflects the will of the people. Its democratic mandate justifies its lawmaking authority.

16. What are the two Houses of Parliament?

The House of Commons (elected MPs) and the House of Lords (appointed and hereditary peers, plus Lords Spiritual). The Commons is more powerful, notably after the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949.

17. What did the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949 do?

They reduced the House of Lords’ power, replacing its veto with a delaying power (two years in 1911, one year in 1949).

18. What is primary legislation?

Primary legislation consists of Acts of Parliament created through a multi-stage process including readings, committee stage, “ping-pong” between Houses, and Royal Assent.

19. What is secondary legislation?

Secondary (or delegated) legislation is law made by government ministers or public bodies under authority delegated by Parliament through an enabling Act.

20. What is a Statutory Instrument (SI)?

A Statutory Instrument is the most common form of delegated legislation, issued by a Minister of the Crown.

21. What is judicial review?

Judicial review allows courts to assess whether a public body acted within the powers granted by Parliament. Grounds include illegality, irrationality, and procedural impropriety (CCSU v Minister for Civil Service, 1984).

22. What are summary offences?

Summary offences are minor criminal offences (e.g., motoring offences) heard exclusively by Magistrates’ Courts.

23. What are either-way offences?

Either-way offences (e.g., theft) can be tried either in Magistrates’ Courts or the Crown Court, depending on seriousness or the defendant’s choice.

24. What are indictable-only offences?

Indictable-only offences (e.g., murder, rape) must be tried in the Crown Court. Magistrates’ Courts deal only with preliminary matters.

25. What is the Crown Court?

The Crown Court hears the most serious criminal cases and appeals from Magistrates’ Courts. Trials involve a judge and jury.

26. What is the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division)?

It hears appeals from the Crown Court regarding convictions, sentences, and confiscation orders.

27. What is the Supreme Court’s role in the UK?

Since 2009, the Supreme Court is the final court of appeal in civil cases across the UK and criminal cases from England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It hears cases involving points of law of general public importance.

28. Why is the Supreme Court not a constitutional court?

The Supreme Court cannot strike down Acts of Parliament. Parliamentary sovereignty remains intact.

29. What is the ratio decidendi?

The ratio decidendi is the legal principle and reasoning essential to a decision. It is binding on lower courts.

30. What is an obiter dictum?

An obiter dictum is a judicial statement not essential to the decision. It is not binding but may be persuasive.

31. What is stare decisis?

Stare decisis means “let the decision stand.” Courts must follow binding precedent from higher courts when facts are sufficiently similar.

32. When can a case be distinguished?

A case can be distinguished when the judge identifies a significant difference in material facts, allowing the court not to apply an earlier precedent.

33. What is the per incuriam doctrine?

A decision per incuriam can be disregarded if it was made without considering essential legal authorities that would have changed the outcome.

34. What is the Practice Statement of 1966?

The Practice Statement allows the House of Lords (now the Supreme Court) to depart from its previous decisions when necessary to avoid injustice or promote legal development.

35. What are the exceptions allowing the Court of Appeal to depart from its own decisions?

According to Young v Bristol Aeroplane (1944), the Court of Appeal may depart from its decisions when:

• Two of its own decisions conflict,

• A decision conflicts with a House of Lords/Supreme Court decision,

• The previous decision was made per incuriam.