History and Application of Common Law

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1a) Common Law, also widely known as Case Law, derived from the old English common law, is largely based on precedents, where judicial decisions were already previously made in similar cases where it is used as reference bases or sources of law. Also, common law is not codified, which generally means there is no comprehensive compilation of legal rules and not written in statues [The common law and civil law traditions, 2010:1]. It is during the Middle Ages, after the Norman Conquest in 1066, where Common Law is believed to be formed from the changing and centralizing powers of the king, where “the medieval kings began to consolidate power and established new constitutions of royal authorities and justice” and in the seventeenth century when the common law triumph over the other laws, when Parliament established check on the power of the English king and claimed the right to define the common law an declare other laws subsidiary to it. [The common Law and Civil Law Traditions, 2010: 3-4] . Two obvious examples would be the Marriage Law, a traditional marriage where couples need not to obtain a marriage license, or perform a formal wedding [Cathy Meyer, 2013:1] or when a child lost both parents, is adopted by another couple, with no legal papers. Common law involves two opposing parties, which are juries, ordinary people with no background legal training, whom decides on the facts of the case, and the judge who determines the appropriate punishment, or sentence, based on the jury’s verdict [R.C. Van Caenegem, 1988:3-4]. Incase whereby according to [Marbury v. Madison, 1803] if “the court finds that the current dispute is fundamentally distinct from all previous cases, judges have the rights, authority and duty to make law by cr... ... middle of paper ... ...emieux/precedent-stare-decisis [4 DEC 2013] Chononu (2012) Explain Judicial Precedent and the types of Precedent [Online] Available: http://www.studymode.com/essays/Explain-Judicial-Precedent-And-The-Types-1225193.html [4 DEC 2013] Legislation vs Common Law [Online] Available: http://www.hobartlegal.org.au/tasmanian-law-handbook/courts-lawyers-and-law/law/legislation/legislation-vs-common-law [1 DEC 2013] R.C. Van Caenegem, (1988) The Birth of the English Common Law (Cambridge) [Online] Available: http://www.law.berkeley.edu/library/robbins/pdf/CommonLawCivilLawTraditions.pdf [1 DEC 2013] Gale Group (1995) Common Law and Legislation [Online] Available: http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Common+law+and+legislation.-a017987070 [30 NOV 2013] Kunz, Christina L., (et al. 2000). The Process of Legal Research. 5th ed. Gaithersberg, Md.: Aspen Law & Business. [30 NOV 2013]

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