Preview

Do Judge Make Laws?

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2186 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Do Judge Make Laws?
INTRODUCTION

We talked about the superiority of the parliament, and that only the parliament can make laws in the legislation. But, there is something that confuses the sovereignty of the parliament, which is the “judge-made law”. Is there such thing as a judge-made law?

What is a judge-made law? A judge-made law is when a judge applies or extends an established rule to new facts, or decides that the particular rule do not take effect on certain situations, thus, making a change in the law. However, when it comes to this, it does not mean that the judges have the power to change the law, nor make new laws. All these laws “made” by the judges are inferior to the parliament and delegated legislation thus can be overruled.

Until the judge-made law is overruled, it is considered as a precedent and stands as a decision on non-statutory points of law, and is subjected to the same rule of stare decisis. The reason why we have judicial precedent is that most of the English laws are derived from the statutes and common law. It then falls into the hands of the judges to interpret them and evolve the law to make a better law.

Judicial precedent, known also as the judge-made law, has two meanings. Firstly, it means the process where the judges of lower or equal courts follow the decision of the judge from previous cases. Secondly, it refers to the decided case itself, where a ‘precedent’ is set to be used in the future cases.

The doctrine of judicial precedent in the English law is one that involves the application of the principle of stare decisis. This principle is set that the Courts of Appeal is bound to follow it’s own previous decisions, and that each court is bound to follow the decisions imposed by the courts above them in the hierarchy. However, since the UK joined the European Union, the courts are bound to follow the EU law given by thee European Courts.

RATIO DECIDENDI & OBITER DICTUM

According to the Oxford dictionary of law, a ratio

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Law Unit 23

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Also case made law is when the court of appeal acts on a decision made by a lower court and by doing so establishes it in law. However, the judges can only work within the statute/act which is set by parliament. For example judicial review which is a hearing in front of the judge on…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    I am of the opinion that judges in Australian courts should make law, within specified boundaries. Through the doctrine of precedent, the decisions that judges make in cases before them, form a body of law known as unenacted or judge-made law. The ratio decidendi or the reasons for the judge’s decision form a binding precedent that will direct the decisions of lower courts in the same hierarchy, and guide other courts (Graw, 2005). This body of law, known as decisional law, makes up a large part of law as it stands. However, there are limits on the ability of judges to create laws. Also there are valid…

    • 1288 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    Precedents are a past case that is used as an example or as guidance as it has similar facts and circumstances. There are 3 types of Precedents; Original, Binding and Persuasive. They can be used instead of statutory laws in civil cases. They are created when a new case, which has never been trialled in the UK courts. An example of this was the London bombings in 2005. The rulings for this trial will now be applied to future cases, similar to this. Judges look at a previous case, which is similar and in an equal or higher court and they will then use this information to decide…

    • 1917 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Week1 Busn 420

    • 350 Words
    • 2 Pages

    At the heart of the common law system is the doctrine of stare decisis, which translates to “let the decision stand.” Stare decisis creates precedent and thus, when a court has decided a case in a particular way, future cases should be decided the same way. However, stare decisis will only apply if the facts of the case are substantially similar to the prior case. Precedent acts as a major guide for judges when hearing similar cases.…

    • 350 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Desperate loss and hopelessness fill so many homes. It is all too common to hear about a father walking out the door, a mother broken and defeated, and the children suffering through it all in fear and abandonment. Feelings such as these are found in Jim Stevens' poem "Schizophrenia." The poem shows the conflicts that exist within the house. However, the crisis that the family is experiencing is not expressed directly, but indirectly, through the house. By personifying the house in every aspect, "Schizophrenia" reveals the family's relationships, or lack there of.…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Precedent-a principle or rule established in a previous legal case that is either binding on or persuasive ruling…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    paralegal

    • 1529 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Common law is found in the decisions of the courts rather than statutes; judge- made law…

    • 1529 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Legal Studies VCE Unit 2

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Judges can only make new law when there is an actual case before the court that requires a decision and the following conditions are met:…

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Best Essays

    Stare Decisis Case Summary

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Stare decisis is the doctrine of precedent. This doctrine is cited by the courts when a previously determined issue is brought back up. In general, the court will adhere to past rulings.…

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Business Law Quiz

    • 1491 Words
    • 6 Pages

    | Incorrect. The use of precedent--the doctrine of stare decisis --permits a predictable, relatively quick, and fair resolution of cases. Under this doctrine, a court must adhere to principles of law established by higher courts.…

    • 1491 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    LA 245 Midterm 1

    • 4060 Words
    • 19 Pages

    The principle that precedent is binding on later cases is called stare decisis - “let the decision stand”…

    • 4060 Words
    • 19 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Student

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The definition of the doctrine of precedent is lower courts are bound by the decisions of higher courts within the same judicial hierarchy if the facts are similar. For example, in south Australian there are three tiered or layered court system. The lower layer is Magistrate court; the Middle layer is District court and the upper layer is the Supreme Court. The highest court is the high court of Australia. So if a decision made by the Supreme Court, the Magistrate court has to follow. Moreover, the Doctrine of precedent consists of binding precedent and persuasive precedent. Binding precedent mean is that lower courts must follow higher court’s decisions when the fact is similar. Persuasive precedent means is that if decision is made by a different judicial hierarchy, lower courts do not have to follow the decision, but encourage following it.…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Franchisee Case Solution

    • 355 Words
    • 2 Pages

    • If Franchisees buy things from informal sources or the above confinement on wellsprings of supply is unenforceable, sovereignties are forced or (if eminences are as of now part of the framework) balanced upward significantly to compensate for lost income at the Franchisor/partner level.…

    • 355 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Romeo and Juliet, the characters Romeo and Juliet have loyalty for their families and each other. Their love gets tested and it shows how much loyalty they have for each other. They do things for each other that most people would never do. Nothing can break the love and loyalty they have for one another. Loyalty to one’s true love is deeper than loyalty to one’s family.…

    • 624 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Judicial Creativity

    • 593 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Judges are unable to develop the law as it would be considered unfair. If a defendant commits an act which is not considered criminal, but the judge then decides that it is, therefore changing the law, this would be considered unfair for the defendant. This would be seen as the retrospective effect. Parliament makes the law, following a lengthy process, and then the judges must follow parliament’s decision. They must follow precedent of higher court judges. This is known as ratio decidendi. The doctrine of precedent is based on stare decisis, meaning to stand by what has already been decided.…

    • 593 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays