To begin with, during the 19th century Great Britain was considered as one of the largest Empire in the world. Along with their historical superiority they also created a fundamental legislative mechanism. The British legal system has been built up very gradually and spread to other countries over the centuries. Inevitably the influence of their legal systems was bound to have some effect on their colonies. This essay will first describe the features of English legal system which is mainly derived from the concept of common law and secondly will consider whether the British legal system has influence on its Commonwealth countries particularly by focusing on the role of legislature and differences in court structure. Finally, it will examine the impacts of the British legislative power on the legal systems of Britain’s post- colonial countries particularly in contemporary Australia and Republic of Cyprus.
First of all, legal system of United Kingdom is mainly based common law as opposed to civil or Roman law. The common law is originated and developed in England during the Middle Ages and this forms the crucial origins of the English law. Almost every colony of the Great Britain has adopted this mechanism of law. Common law is often referred to as ‘judge-made’ law because the laws are based on previous decisions of the judges. This is known as judicial precedent where the decisions are binding rather than persuasive and future decisions has to follow other cases. Martin, J.
Britain, to begin with, has no written constitution due to the country’s own constitutional structure’s stability. It remains uncodified, yet it’s legal sources stem from Acts of parliament, European Union law, equity and common law,. Therefore the varying powers of parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law will be considered against these sources.
Australia 's Federal System is dynamic and the division of lawmaking power between the Commonwealth and State since 1901 has changed dramatically; Critically discuss, focussing on the major reasons for those changes.
Under the Civil Law system, the laws are written and codified that the judges have to follow verbatium. Whereas, under the common law system that is followed by Australia, India and the United Kingdom, the laws are codified, doctrine of precedents is followed but the higher courts have the power to over-rule old judgements and existing law in cases where the law breaches the basic structure. (Peterson)
Common law developed in the judicial system of England and its colonies before 1776. Statutory law refers to the body of law that is enacted by state and federal legislatures. Common law is not in any particular form; it consists of quotable statements taken from relevant opinions by prior judges, as well as ancient statutes, and is often summarized in legal treatises. Statutory law is found in the current published laws of each jurisdiction and is relatively concise. Although most states have adopted common law by legislative decree, state legislatures do not feel obligated to pass statutes consistent with common law, and inconsistent statutes supersede common law. Only in areas in which the legislature has not acted does common law serve as the primary authority. For example, the adoption of the Uniform Commercial Code in each state changed some rules of common law previously in effect.
The paper confronts assumptions about the English and UK constitutional framework leading up to the Magna Carta and other documents that both lead up to, and follow it. Our constitution has roots in English common law and written law. Common law was in place and used before written laws were created. The Magna Carta was emplaced to end common law in England. The Manga Carta was the first written laws that shifted the English political system to something
Common law became into effect after the Norman Conquest (A.D. 1066) consolidated their hold on newly won territory. One way was to take control over the legal/court systems. When this happen
Law is one part of a set of processes, social, political, economic and cultural, which shape and direct the development of society. Like all other mechanisms the law seeks to govern human behaviour. The Irish law system belongs to common law systems established in England by the Norman's. This type of law responded to actual rather than anticipated problems. In contrast the law in the civil system is contained in comprehensive codes which are enacted by legislators and which attempt to provide for every legal contingency. Case law or 'la jurisprudence' has lesser significance and lacks the quality of enjoying in the force of law.
In addition, we have European law, a major source of legislation related to employment matters for example, treaties (applies to trading activities across the UK), Regulations, Directives (UK Legislation) and decisions, which set precedence and legal test.
Some judges in their obiter dicta have declared their inclination to disregard the Parliament’s legislative objectives, and therefore limit parliamentary sovereignty if the rule of law is vulnerable or if the circumstances demand “a principle established on a different hypothesis of constitutionalism” . They have also suggested that, while the British Constitution is dominated by parliamentary sovereignty, “The rule of law enforced by the courts is the ultimate controlling factor on which our constitution is based” . This represents a possibility of stretching the dominance of the rule of law in constitutional law so that it becomes more powerful than parliamentary sovereignty in the British Constitution .
The courts of the United Kingdom are institutions there are aim justice to all and deliver fair and equal trails. Although ‘fair and equal’ are not always true to some cases along with ‘justice to all’. Never the less either convicting someone for unlawful activity or resolving a civil dispute, the British legal system employs a variety of courts in its application of the law. It much reminds me of my home country the United States the different level of courts I mean. Magistrates courts have the jurisdiction to try minor offences then for more serious offences are referred to the Crown courts. There are also appellate courts, which include the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court; formally known as the House of Lords. To
Without the English Common Law, America’s judicial system and the true meaning and purpose of the Constitution could not be understood. As Fisher and Pond state in Our American Common Law, “It is the Common Law that is most represented within Our Constitution, Declaration of Independence and Our Bill of Rights.” These documents were designed to limit and eliminate the vicious Equity, Maritime or Admiralty Law which was what we revolted against as Our Revolution against the totalitarianism of England. Since the colonies in the seventeenth century migrated from Europe, the colonial government was a mixture of English principles that had been modified to fit the needs and beliefs of the new nation. Therefore, British and American legal systems share many similarities. Global legal system
Common law - that part of the English law not embodied in legislation. It consists of rules of law based on common custom and usage and on judicial court decisions. English common law became the basis of law in the USA and many other English-speaking countries.
In Li CJ’s judgment in A Solicitor v Law Society of Hong Kong [2008] 2 HKC 1, he commented in paragraph 9 that the “rigid and inflexible adherence by this Court to the previous precedents may unduly inhibit the proper development of the law and may cause injustice in individual cases. The great strength of the common law lies in its capacity to develop to meet the changing needs and circumstances of the society in which it functions.” In this essay, this statement would be discussed with reference to the role of the courts and their relationship to the legislature.
Nowadays every legal system wants to achieve justice. Different legal traditions in the world have given a different meaning of this concept by following one of the two legal systems: a civil law system and a common law system. The civil law system emerged from Roman law and throughout many centuries has been developed in continental Europe and often is called a “continental legal system”, achieving its prominence through development of aqui communitare in Europe. The common law system emerged in England during the Anglo-Saxon period and was developed by British colonies, reaching its peak in the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
The United Kingdom (UK) is one of the longest living monarchies in Europe and has the longest Parliament. In legislative terms, the UK is a non-federal state that is composed of three countries (England, Scotland and Northern Ireland) and one principality (Wales) (Slapper & Kelly, 2008). Surprisingly, UK is one of the few countries that do not have a written constitution: however, UK has a body of law that is of constitutional significance. Furthermore, UK law is also not codified, process