LW111- Module 2 WK5

• Adjudication


  The legal process of resolving a dispute or deciding a case
• Adjudicator


  Considers information presented and renders a decision on the basis of that information (e.g. a judge/Magistrate)
• Types of disputes handled or resolved through adjudication

  • Disagreements between private parties (single-persons, individual entities, or corporations)
  • Disagreements between private parties and public officials
  • Disagreements between public officials and/or public bodies
• Requirements for full adjudication include requisite notice to all interested parties and an opportunity for all parties to have their evidence and arguments heard
• Adversary system


  A system where each side to a dispute presents its best opinion and then a neutral decision-maker determines the facts and applies the law
• Inquisitorial system


  A legal system where the court or a part of the court is actively involved in investigating the facts of the case
• Differences between adversary and inquisitorial legal systems

  • Adversary system: Determine innocence or guilt
  • Inquisitorial system: Determine the truth
• In an adversary system, the opposing sides act as adversaries who compete to convince the judge and jury that their version of the facts is the most convincing
• In an inquisitorial system, the judge, as investigating magistrate, conducts an inquiry that involves the questioning of witnesses and suspects, the issue of search warrants and an examination of the evidence with the aim of discovering both incriminating and exculpatory evidence
• An adversarial system protects against wrongful convictions by ensuring that the process is slanted in favour of the defendant in the belief that it is better for ten guilty men to walk free than for one innocent man to be imprisoned
• An inquisitorial system may lead to an erroneous conclusion that results in the wrong individual being tried, where the presumption of innocence is eroded
• Judicial interpretation


  The application and interpretation of laws by the judicial branch, which is binding in much the same way as judicial development through case-law
• Case law


  Law that is based on judicial decisions
• How case law is developed

  1. A case comes before a court

  2. Parties present evidence

  3. Court refers to other rulings and court opinions

  4. Court issues a decision
• Unreported judgment


  A written judgment that has not yet been published in a law report
• Reported judgment


  A written judgment that has been published in a law report
• The UK House of Lords (formerly the highest court in the UK) was traditionally bound by its own earlier decisions, but in 1964 it declared it could overrule its previous decisions
• Stare decisis


  The principle that a court must follow and apply the law as set out in the decisions of higher courts in previous cases
• Types of case precedent


  • Binding precedent (lower courts must follow decisions of higher courts)
  • Persuasive precedent (lower courts may consider decisions of other courts)
• Doctrine of precedent


  The principle that lower courts must follow the decisions of higher courts in similar cases, to ensure certainty, consistency and clarity of the law
• The hierarchy of courts means lower courts are bound by the decisions of higher courts in similar cases
• Binding precedent


  • Provides consistency and certainty in the law
  • Promotes the expectation that the law is just
  • Enhances efficiency by guiding judges in resolving disputes
• Persuasive precedent


  A precedent established by a lower court that may be considered but is not required to be followed
• Distinguishing a case precedent


  Showing that the facts or legal issues in the current case are different from the precedent, so it does not apply
• Impact of case law


  • Miranda rights
  • Negligence (duty of care)
  • Battered Women Syndrome defence
• Sources of case law

  • Law reports
  • Official transcripts
  • Legal digests
• Considerations of court decisions


  • Affirm or uphold
  • Approve
  • Follow
  • Consider
  • Reverse
• Likely outcomes of a judgement

  • Affirmed
  • Reversed
  • Modified
  • Reached per incuriam (by carelessness or mistake)