AC 1.1

• Judicial Precedent

  Source of law making where past decisions of judges create law for future judges to follow
• Judicial Precedent

  • Based on the principle of standing by or following what judges have decided in previous cases
  • In Latin it is known as stare decisis
  • Means that where a point of law in a case today is the same or similar to a previous case, the judge should follow the decision made in the previous case
  • Creates consistency and fairness in the legal system
  • Much of the law of the land has developed from decision made previously and this has helped to create a single set of law common to the whole country. This is known as common law
• Court Hierarchy

  Legal system has a hierarchy of courts with the supreme courts at the top and the Magistrates court at the bottom
• Court Hierarchy


  • A decision taken by a higher court creates an original or binding precedent for all lower courts
• What are the distinguishing exceptions to precedent?

  • A precedent from an earlier case is only binding on a present case if the legal principle involved is the same  and if the facts are similar in both cases 
  • Means the judge finds the facts in the present case are different enough from the earlier one to allow him or her to reach a different decision and not follow the precedent 
• What are the Overruling exceptions to precedent?

  • Where a court higher up the hierarchy states that a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturns it 
  • e.g. the Supreme Court can overrule a lower court's decision when it hears an appeal 
• Example of Overruling?


  R V R 1992

  • Husband convicted of attempting to rape wife
  • appealed on grounds here was a centuries old precedent that a husband could not be guilty of raping his wife because the marriage contract gave a wife's irrevocable consent to sex 
  • appeal court overruled this -idea of irrevocable consent was unacceptable
• What is Statutory interpretation?


  Judges can make law by the way they interpret statutes.

  An act is written so judges need to interpret the meaning of its words and apply to cases they are judging
• What is the literal rule?

  Judges use ordinary every day meaning of words in the statute, however words can sometimes have several meanings.
• Example of the literal rule?

  R V Maginnis 1987

  • different meanings applied to the word 'supply' in a case involving drugs
• What is the golden rule?

  Allows the judge to modify the literal meaning to avoid absurd results. used if the literal meaning of the word leads to an absurd result.
• Example of the golden rule:

  Alder V George 1964

  Official secrets Act (1920) states that in an offence to obstruct HM's forces "in the vicinity of a prohibited place" In this case the defendant was not in the vicinity of a prohibited place but actually in it. The golden rule was applied here to avoid an absurd result 
• What is the mischief rule?

  Allows the court to enforce what the statute was intended to achieve, rather than what words it actually says.
• Example of the Mischief rule:

  Corkey V Carpenter 1951

  The court up help that Corkey was guilty even though he had been riding a bicycle (not a carriage) as the law intended to stop people from using any form of transport on the roads when they were drunk. 1872 - illegal to be drunk when in charge of carriage.
• What are the 7 stages of law making process:

  • Green paper
  • White paper
  • First reading
  • Second reading
  • Committee stage
  • Report stage
  • Third Reading
  • procedure repeated in the other house
  • Royal assent
• What is the Green paper process?


  A proposal for a new law is created. The bill is drafted.
• What is a white paper?


  The law is officially read out in one of the parliament's houses
• What is the first reading?


  When the short title of the bill is read out and followed by an order for it to be printed for the first time as a house of commons or house of lords
• What is the second reading?


  The first opportunity for MP's to debate the general principles and themes of the bill
• What is the committee stage?


  Where a detailed examination of the bill takes place
• What is report stage?


  Where the bill returns to the floor of the house it started in and can be amended and debated and further amendments proposed
• What is the Third reading?


  Where members vote on the final form of the bill, some debate can occur here, once a bill passes this stage it moves to the next house
• What happens in house of Lords?


  A recognition that the bill goes through all the same stages in the other house of parliament
• What is royal assent?


  The permission given by the Governor General, on behalf of the Queen, for a bill to become law after it has been approved by both Houses of Parliament.
• What does the term 'ping pong' mean?

  When a bill goes back and forth between the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
• The process of governmental law making is repeated in the other house.

  Either the House of Lords or the House of Commons.
• If there are disagreements over the wording of the Bill, then the Bill will go back to its original House where Members may propose changes to resolve the differences.