CASE LAW (also known

as the COMMON LAW)

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)