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Similarities and differences between civil law and common law
The relationship between society and the development of laws
Common law importance
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Over the past century law has become crucial and important part of human life. Law has developed significantly throughout the world and continues to improve and change as a result of globalization, fast advances in technology, and the development of administrative regulations. Before continuing the essay, first of all, the notion of law should be discussed. What is law? During the decades, the legal writers have given records of law which take their focal issue the different capacities which law should perform in a general society. Raymond in his work mentions that ‘law as fundamentally a vehicle for the protection of individual rights, the attainment of justice, or economic, political, and sexual equality’ (Wacks, 2008, p3). One of the classic …show more content…
After the Norman Conquest in 1066, medieval kings started to merge control and build up new establishment of imperial power and equity. New types of legal actions set up by the crown worked through an arrangement of writs. The common law has been advanced with the help of judges, through the principle of ‘stare decisis’ (‘let the decision stand’) (Wacks, 2008, p32). Over the last century, these two main traditions have evolved significantly. Therefore, there is a diversity of distinctive features between the two systems. The clearest differentiation between civil law and common law is that civil law tradition is the system of codified law, while the common law is non-textual law, based mainly on case law. The common law and civil law frameworks are the results of two in general diverse ways to deal with the legitimate procedure. The main standards and rules of the civil traditions are contained in codes and statuses, which are connected by the courts code. Furthermore, codification which is the heart of civil law tradition guarantees logical, methodical way to deal with law (Common Law and Civil Law Traditions, 2012,
-Common Law: the “law of the land”(Pool 127), which was built up over many centuries
Legislation and the Common law are not separate and independent sources of law. They exist in a symbiotic relationship. Symbiotic relationship refers to the two different sources of legal norms that provide the sum of rules establish system as a whole. (Brodie v Singleton Shire Council (2001) 206 CLR 512, 532 [31])
For our government to function it must be able to resolve the conflicts that arise as a result of this ‘struggle’. The rule of law is the principle that enables reconciliation and its primacy to the successful implementation of our government cannot be understated. Simply stated t...
Law, ?a governmental social control? (Black 2), is a quantitative variable that changes in time and space and can be defined by style: penal, compensatory, therapeutic or conciliatory (Black 5). The brief description of law and its interrelation with social control and deviant behavior can be encapsulated in the following scheme. This concept of law put into the context of social life gives a framework of the behavior of law.
In every society around the world, the law is affecting everyone since it shapes the behavior and sense of right and wrong for every citizen in society. Laws are meant to control a society’s behavior by outlining the accepted forms of conduct. The law is designed as a neutral aspect existent to solve society’s problems, a system specially designed to provide people with peace and order. The legal system runs more efficiently when people understand the laws they are intended to follow along with their legal rights and responsibilities.
‘Law as integrity’ embraces a vision for judges which states that as far as possible judges should identify legal rights and duties assuming that they are created by the public as an entity, and that they express the public’s perception of justice and fairness. This requires Dworkin’s ideal of Hercules, a judge of ‘superhuman skill, learning, patience and acumen’, to ask whether his interpretation of law could form a part of a coherent theory justifying the whole legal system. Law as integrity stipulates that the law must express one voice. Judges must accept that the law is based around coherent principles about justice, fairness and procedural due process, in all new cases which comes before them in order to treat everybody equally.
The English legal system is ostensibly embedded on a foundation of a ‘high degree of certainty with adaptability’ based on a steady ‘mode’ of legal reasoning. This rests on four propositions
Common law is the concept that some of the core principles that form the basis of the English legal system come from judges as opposed to Parliament, with rulings from case to case developing predicedent, which forces lower courts to follow princaples set by higher cores but allows higher courts to overrule the descisions of lower courts. This allows the courts, over time to refine law. The courts can even decide to ignore rulings when considering to set it as precident with enough justification, this allows rooms for special cases. As a drawback to common law, the courts are sometimes unwilling to overrule long standing precidents. Slapper,...
Part of the grounds for arguing in favor of the common law system over the codified system is its characteristically equitable qualities. Since antecedents are pursued in all cases, everyone gets the same treatment. This same legal procedure is administered to everyone in spite of their position or creed. Therefore, this system of going by antecedents which had hitherto been set usually leads to equity and fairness. This system of law also has the advantage over the codified system by offering protection to persons via the law of tort.
Why is the concept of the rule of law an important aspect within society to have an integral understanding of? The rule of law is a facet of our society that affects and serves our lives on a daily basis because rules and laws dictate the underlying basis of our social interactions. One basic understanding of the idea of the rule of law is that society should be ruled by law, and not by men. At perhaps the most rudimentary level, the rule of law has been used to explain a type of governance that is founded upon universal and neutral rules. Endicott argues that communities can never adequately achieve the rule of law because “it requires, among other things, that government officials conform to the law. But they may not do so, and presumably there is no large community in which they always do so” (Endicott, 1999, p.1). Consequently, an area of rule of law is explored by Aristotle’s critique of Plato’s philosopher-rulers theory and his defence and understanding of the rule of law.
Law is the foundation of central structures of social life on which society’s integrity depends, which is why Petrazycki, Ehrlich and Habermas perceive it to be a key steering mechanism in society,
United Kingdom is a country with a distinctive set of legal system. It is fairly different from other countries having civil law based legal systems. The legal system in the United Kingdom consists of various sources of law, where other civil law based countries rely only on a written set of law. European influences on the English Legal System came much later in near decades. This essay will aim to examine the development of the English Legal System by reviewing applications of various sources of law in the English Legal System furthermore to discuss the recent European influences on the law of England.
The history and the evolution of what we know as law, has developed out of many different viewpoints and philosophies. It has been the result of the operational and manipulative aspects of public affairs, and also seems to be the creation of different philosophical systems. There have been many that have been innovators in this area of thought from political leaders and dictators, to others who were simple political idealists and philosophers. Through the wisdom and teachings of Plato, law has evolved into many different systems, and through this paper we will discuss the impact this particular philosopher had had on our modern system of democracy. We will also try to recognize that law will continue to evolve, as does man throughout history.
Firstly in this report, I will be giving the different definitions of rule of law by different philosophers; secondly, I will be applying the rule of law to the English Legal system and thirdly I will be explaining separation of powers with a focus on the impartial judiciary. Finally, I will be using cases to support every detailed point given.
The relationship between law and morality has been argued over by legal theorists for centuries. The debate is constantly be readdressed with new cases raising important moral and legal questions. This essay will explain the nature of law and morality and how they are linked.