This document provides an overview of case law (common law) in the English legal system. It explains that while many areas of law are regulated by statutes, some key areas like contract formation, murder, and negligence are governed solely by case law established by precedent. It provides examples of landmark cases that set principles in these "pure" common law areas. The document also discusses how cases are reported in various law reports and citation formats.
This document provides an overview of case law (common law) in the English legal system. It explains that while many areas of law are regulated by statutes, some key areas like contract formation, murder, and negligence are governed solely by case law established by precedent. It provides examples of landmark cases that set principles in these "pure" common law areas. The document also discusses how cases are reported in various law reports and citation formats.
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This document provides an overview of case law (common law) in the English legal system. It explains that while many areas of law are regulated by statutes, some key areas like contract formation, murder, and negligence are governed solely by case law established by precedent. It provides examples of landmark cases that set principles in these "pure" common law areas. The document also discusses how cases are reported in various law reports and citation formats.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
Induction lecture by Tony Storey (tony.storey@unn.ac.uk) General Introduction Most areas of English law are regulated by statute. The courts in cases explain the meaning of any ambiguities in the statutes (statutory interpretation) However, many key areas of English law are not regulated by any statute. The law is “purely” case law (otherwise known as the common law). Example of “pure” common law (1): Formation of contract There is no “Contract Act” Instead, key principles have been established by the courts, such as… Adams v Lindsell (1818) – established the “postal rule” – still in force in 2007 Felthouse v Bindley (1862) – established the rule that “silence is not acceptance” – still in force in 2007 Example of “pure” common law (2): Murder There is no “Murder Act” Contrary to popular belief, the Homicide Act 1957 does NOT define murder! Definition of murder is therefore still common law – ‘The unlawful killing of another human being, under the Queen’s peace, with malice aforethought’ (Sir Edward Coke, 1552 – 1634) Example of “pure” common law (3): Intoxication defence There is no “Intoxication Act” DPP v Beard (1920), House of Lords – allowed a defence of intoxication by alcohol (D not guilty of murder) R v Lipman (1970), Court of Appeal – allowed a defence of intoxication by drugs (D not guilty of murder) Example of “pure” common law (4): Negligence There is no “Negligence Act” Donoghue v Stevenson (1932), House of Lords – established the “neighbour principle” for finding a duty of care Marc Rich & Co AG v Bishop Rock Marine Co Ltd (1994), House of Lords – modified Donoghue. Now courts look for “proximity” as well as “foreseeability” Law Reporting Cases are reported in various volumes of law reports. The case of R v Mirza is reported in the following: [2004] UKHL 2 [2004] 1 AC 1118 [2004] 2 WLR 201 [2004] 1 All ER 925 [2004] 2 Cr. App. R. 8 (2004) 154 NLJ 145 (2004) 148 SJLB 117 The Times, January 23, 2004 Neutral Citation (1) R v Mirza [2004] UKHL 2 This is the “neutral” citation. ‘UKHL’ stands for “United Kingdom House of Lords”. Mirza was case number 2 in the House of Lords in 2004. R v Ismail [2005] EWCA Crim 397 Here, ‘EWCA Crim’ stands for “England & Wales Court of Appeal (Criminal Division)”. Ismail was case number 397 in the Criminal Division in 2005 Neutral Citation (2) Special Effects Ltd v L'Oreal SA [2007] EWCA Civ 1 ‘EWCA Civ’ stands for “England & Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division)” DPP v Santa-Bermudez [2003] EWHC 2908 ‘EWHC’ stands for “England & Wales High Court” Appeal Cases R v Mirza [2004] 1 AC 1118 This is the Appeal Cases reports (available via Westlaw on Athens) The case is reported on page 1118 of volume 1 for 2004 Notice the [square] brackets. This indicates that the case is reported in volume 1 of the year 2004 Weekly Law Reports R v Mirza [2004] 2 WLR 201 This is the Weekly Law Reports (available via Justis on Athens) The case is reported on page 201 of volume 2 for 2004 Note again the [square] brackets All England Law Reports R v Mirza [2004] 1 All ER 925 This is the All England Law Reports (available via Butterworths on Athens) The case is reported on page 925 of volume 1 for 2004 Note again the [square] brackets Criminal Appeal Reports R v Mirza [2004] 2 Cr. App. R. 8 This is the Criminal Appeal Reports (available via Westlaw on Athens) Here, the “8” refers to the case number, not the page So the case is reported in volume 2 of the Criminal Appeal Reports for 2004, but it is case number 8 New Law Journal R v Mirza (2004) 154 NLJ 145 This is the New Law Journal The case is discussed on page 145 of volume 154, published in 2004 Notice the (round) brackets. This indicates that the case is reported in volume 154 of the New Law Journal, which happened to be in 2004 Solicitors’ Journal R v Mirza (2004) 148 SJLB 117 This is the Solicitors’ Journal Law Brief. The case is discussed on page 117 of volume 148 of the Solicitors’ Journal, published in 2004 Note again the (round) brackets Newspapers The “quality” press also carry case reports R v Mirza (2004) The Times, January 23 This is the report of the case in The Times newspaper See also The Daily Telegraph and The Independent for case reports Other reports R v Williams [1923] 1 KB 340 – the King’s Bench Reports R v Linekar [1995] QB 250 – the Queen’s Bench Reports R v Elbekkay [1995] Crim LR 163 – the Criminal Law Review (usually has some analysis of the case as well)