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COMMON LAW / CASE LAW (JUDGE MADE LAW) INTRODUCTION Some English law is not contained in statutes but in the decisions of the judges as recorded in the Law Reports. This body of law is known as common law, e.g. the tort of negligence, a lot of the law of contract etc. The common law can be traced back to 1066 and the Norman invasion. THE DOCTERING OF PRECEDENT The judges have developed the common law using the doctoring of precedent (Stare Decisis - stand by your decision). Simply stated judges deciding a case will look at previous cases with similar facts, then extract the decision/law, and apply it to their case. This ensures that the law remains consistent and certain. FEATURES OF PRECEDENT: There are three important features of precedent: 1) The court structure 2) The Decision - Ratio Decidendi / Obiter Dicta 3) Law Reporting THE COURT STRUCTURE: The courts are organised hieratically. The courts at the top yield more power...

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