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Home (https://www.inbrief.co.uk/)  Legal System (https://www.inbrief.co.uk/legal-system/)  Precedents: What are they and when are they
used?

Do Courts Have to Follow Previous Legal System

Decisions When Deciding New Cases? Introduction
Difference Between Civil and
What is the doctrine of precedent? Criminal Law (/legal-
system/difference-between-
civil-criminal-law/)
The doctrine of precedent is the approach of the court in the context of previous court decisions. It is
English Law (/legal-
an important doctrine originating from the Latin maxim ‘stare decisis et non quieta movere’which
system/english-law/)
means: ‘stand by what has been decided and do not unsettle the established’.
The Rule of Law (/legal-
system/the-rule-of-law/)
How is a court judgment given and what does it include? What are Precedents (/legal-
system/precedents/)
At the conclusion of a case, the judge must give the court’s ruling, or ‘judgment’, which is the court’s
The Doctrine of Precedent
review and explanation of the facts of the case, the legal issues, the arguments in the case, the court’s
(/legal-system/precedent/)
decision and – importantly – how it reached its decision. Court rulings comprise two main elements:
The CPS (/legal-system/the-
the ratio dicidendi and obiter dicta.
cps/)
British Constitution (/legal-
Ratio dicidendi system/british-constitution/)
Classification of Powers of
The ratio dicidendiis the court’s reasons, or rationale, for its decision in a case. It is the ratio that
Appointment (/legal-
subsequent courts should follow in future cases with the same or similar facts and legal issues. system/powers-of-
However, the ratio of a ruling can then lead to future cases having to determine the breadth of that appointment-classification/)
ratio – reflecting the fact that every case is unique. Rising Prison Population
(/legal-system/rising-prison-
Obiter dicta population/)

The obiter dicta are comments, guidance and other observations made by judges when they give their Courts
rulings. The courts are not bound to follow comments made obiter in earlier rulings, but they are very
Magistrates Courts (/legal-
useful when judges are considering cases.
system/magistrates-courts/)
High Court (/legal-
What is the relevance of previous rulings? system/high-court/)
Supreme Court (/legal-
The doctrine of precedent dictates that a court must follow decisions of previous decisions of the same
system/supreme-court/)
or higher court in cases that are similar in relation to the facts and the legal issues. There are three
Moving to Crown Court (/legal-
types of precedent:
system/moving-to-crown-
court/)
Original precedent Court of Protection (/legal-
system/court-of-protection/)
Where the court hears a case that involves, for instance, a law and/or a set of facts that have never
Contempt of Court (/legal-
come before the courts, then the outcome will create an ‘original precedent’that future judges will system/contempt-of-court-
follow. When considering the case, the court will consider previous cases that may have similarities, as act/)
they can provide a helpful guide to the approach it should take in this case in reaching its decision. Director of Public
Prosecutions (/legal-
Binding precedent system/director-of-public-
prosecutions/)
Binding precedents arise from important previous cases, and bind future judges who must follow the Legal Services Act 2007 (/legal-
precedent – even if they do not agree. However, binding precedent will only apply where the facts of system/legal-services-act-
2007/)
the original case are sufficiently similar to those that appear in new cases, and the decision was made
by a court that is higher that the court currently deciding upon the issue. Statutory Interpretation
(/legal-system/statutory-
interpretation/)
However, a binding precedent can be overturned or departed from, for instance, if there is a change in
law or even in societal norms, that means the previous ruling is no longer good law. Only a higher court
Juries
can depart from a binding precedent.
Right to Trial by Jury (/legal-
Persuasive precedent system/right-to-trial-by-jury/)
Jury Qualifications and
These are previous decisions of the court which, though not binding on the court in subsequent cases, Disqualifications (/legal-
may influence a judge’s decision if the legal principles and reasoning given in the previous decision is system/jury-qualifications-
and-disqualifications/)
relevant to the present case. In this instance, the previous decision is a persuasive precedent.
Persuasive precedent may be found in: When are Juries Used (/legal-
system/when-are-juries-used/)
 Rulings made in the lower courts Jury Selection Process (/legal-
system/jury-selection-
Decisions of the Privy Council process/)

Obiter dicta in previous rulings Jury Service (/legal-

system/jury-service/)
A dissenting judgment (given by a judge who does not agree with the majority decision of the Lay Magistrates Juries (/legal-
court in an earlier case) system/lay-magistrates-
juries/)
Decisions of courts in other jurisdictions

Solicitors
Article written by... Solicitors (/legal-
system/solicitors/)
Lucy Trevelyan LLB
Alternative Roles for Solicitors
(/legal-system/alternative-
roles-for-solicitors/)

(https://www.inbrief.co.uk/author/lucy/) Solicitors Code of Conduct

(/legal-system/solicitors-code-
(https://www.inbrief.co.uk/author/lucy/) of-conduct/)

(https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-trevelyan-481a428/) Complaints About Solicitors

(/legal-system/complaints-
Lucy graduated in law from the University of Greenwich, and is also an NCTJ trained journalist. A about-solicitors/)
legal writer and editor with over 20 years' experience writing about the law. Private Information Given to
Solicitor (/legal-
system/private-information-
given-to-solicitor/)
Public Funding (/legal-
system/public-funding-in-
family-law/)

Barristers
Barristers (/legal-
system/barristers/)
Barristers Code of Conduct
(/legal-system/barristers-code-
of-conduct/)
Complaints About Barristers
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about-barristers/)
Bar Pro Bono (/legal-
system/bar-pro-bono-unit/)

Law Careers
How to Become a Solicitor
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Becoming a Solicitor Without a
Degree (/legal-
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without-a-degree/)
GDL Law Conversion Courses
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conversion-course/)
Notary Public (/legal-
system/notary-public/)

Environmental
Control of Hazards Accidents
(/legal-system/control-of-
hazards-accidents/)
Noise Pollution (/legal-
system/noise-pollution/)
Waste Management (/legal-
system/waste-management/)
UK Environment Damage
Liability (/legal-system/uk-
environment-damage-
liability/)

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