Legal Method and System (Law)

This document provides an overview of the legal system, doctrine of precedent, sources of English law, and principle of statutory interpretation. It discusses the importance of precedents in decision making, the application of ratio decidendi, and the different sources of English law. It also explains the rules of statutory interpretation and their significance in legal cases. Find study material and solved assignments on legal method and system at Desklib.

LEGAL METHOD AND
SYSTEM (LAW)

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Doctrine of precedent...................................................................................................................3
Application of ratio decidendi on the legal problem...................................................................4
Sources of English law.................................................................................................................6
Principle of statutory interpretation.............................................................................................7
Civil or criminal law....................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION
Legal system is referred to as an effective process which helps in enforcing rights and
responsibilities in legal and ethical manner1. Wales and England tends to operate a common legal
system which is useful in enforcing the law within the country. The major legal system mainly
consist of common law, civil law and religious law. Doctrine of precedent provides consistent
decision making within the particular law and also helps in ensuring fairness. Ratio decidendi is
referred to as the key facts of the case upon which no individual can debate. This study will
highlight on precedents and statutory interpretation. This report will highlight on the English
legal system, Doctrine of precedent, etc. This report also applies ratio decidendi on the legal
problem and also focus on application of rules associated with the statutory interpretation in
relation to provide solution for legal problem. It also helps in examining why the different rules
of the court of appeal and supreme court is considered to be necessary.
MAIN BODY
Doctrine of precedent.
Doctrine of precedent in accordance with English legal system helps in referring to the
legal decision which has been made by the judges in the high court. The decision is made by the
equal or lower court in the future2. Cases which tends to have similar facts are likely to be bound
with the past decisions. It is considered to be as the fundamental principle associated with the
English law. It is considered to be as the form of decision making and reasoning in any case law.
Any principle which has been announced by the high court are followed in the later cases. Judges
are required to obey the precedents which has been established at the time of prior decision
making. The legal principle is referred to as “Stare decsis” in accordance with the Latin name.
Adherence to the precedents helps in achieving two key objects associated with the legal order
which mainly comprise of maintaining a system of stable laws which in turn is considered to be
very useful in complying with the degree of security associated with the individual rights. The
1
Orakhelashvili, Alexander
2 Bankowski, Zenon, Neil MacCormick, and Geoffrey Marshall

second object is to ensure that, the law is developing in accordance with the changing perception
of the society and community3.
3
Gehring, Thomas, Christian Dorsch, and Thomas Dörfler

Doctrine of precedent requires judges to effectively follow the determinations and rulings
of the judges in the high court with the case involving similar issues and facts. Doctrine of
precedent is important because it helps in specifying that, the court must effectively apply the
rulings of the former case in the situation where the same facts relies. This is the decision of the
judges which in turn becomes a law which must be followed by the future judge. It tends to
provide certainty in the legal law4. The major advantage is that, it provides consistent decision
making within the particular law and also helps in ensuring fairness. There are two types of
precedents related to doctrine of precedents which mainly constitute of persuasive precedents
and binding precedents. The binding precedents tend to oblige the court to follow the decision of
the judge. But on the contrary, persuasive precedent can inform or influence the decision but do
not have the right to restrict or compel the decision on judges. The key advantage of the doctrine
of precedent is that, it helps in providing predictability and certainty. It is very useful for the
court to effectively save the time for future ruling. But on the other hand, doctrine of precedents
might result in lack of flexibility. It helps judicial to prevent the occurrence of the mistakes. It
also results in inability of common law in order to adapt to the socio- economic, changing moral
and political realities which tends to result in static body of law. Another major disadvantage
associated with the doctrine of precedents is that, it forces judges to look backwards instead of
looking forwards in the future. (Bankowski, Zenon, Neil MacCormick, and Geoffrey Marshall)
examined that, the presence of the doctrine of precedents helps in making it easier for the judicial
court to take decisions on the basis of previously decided law. This helps in providing fair
treatment to the individuals in case related with the similar material facts. Different rules of court
of appeal and supreme court is considered to be necessary because it helps in ensuring the justice
and accuracy within the trial court. Individuals appealing to the trail court have the option to
appeal to the federal or state supreme court in order to hear the case of an appeal.
Application of ratio decidendi on the legal problem.
Ratio decidendi is considered to be as the Latin phrase which is mainly associated with
“the reason for the key decision”5. Ratio decidendi is referred to as the legal, social and political
principle on which the decision of the court rests. It is useful in binding of lower courts with the
principles associated with the “Stare decsis”. Ratio decidendi is referred to as the key facts of the
4 Garay, Alberto
5 Lienen, Christina.
5

case upon which no individual can debate6. It tends to play a very crucial role in relation to the
judicial precedent which tends to play as the underlying decision in a particular case of the law.
The ratio tends to come towards the end of the case.
Case of Donoghue vs Stevenson (1932)
This case is about the platiff where Mrs. Donoghue have went to the cafe with a friend.
The friend has brought her the drink of ginger beer7. Mrs. Donoghue has pored some of the
drink and has consumed it. Further, a ded snail was found in the bottle and it has been found that
she has fell ill. She sued Mr. Stevenson the ginger beer manufacturer. Mrs. Donoghue fell ill
after the consumption of noxious substance. It was a landmark court decision in English Tort law
and Scotland delict law by the House of Lords (Legal skills and debates in Scotland, 2019). They
laid down the foundation of negligence of the modern law by effectively establishing the general
principles associated with the duty of care8. This case law determines the tort of civil law for
negligence in order to observe a duty of care towards customers. The result of the majority was
3:2 decision which was in favour of Donoghue. One ratio decidendi which has been taken from
Donoghue vs Stevenson (1932) case is referred to as the “neighbour principle”. It is considered
to be one of the key aspects in order to take decision. A legal reasoning has to be applied in this
case. Ratio decidendi is mainly referred to as the combination of the decision upon which all the
assenting judges tend to agree upon. The House of Lords states that, the owner of the ginger beer
manufacturer tends to own a duty of care towards Mrs. Donoghue which has been breached.
There has been a negligence and failure to ensure the safety of the products. There is a proximate
relationship between product manufacturer and consumer9. In accordance with the case, the
decision has created new type of liability within the law which is not likely to be dependent on
the previously recognized case associated with the tortious claims. The ratio decidendi of the
case states that, no selling of the opaque bottles of beverages which contains dead snail.
Neighbour principle states that, the individual is highly responsible for taking responsible care in
the omission or action in order to not cause harm to the proximate party. Neighbour principle
6 Valvoda, Josef, and Oliver Ray.
7 Goh, Bee Chen, and Tom Round.
8 Hodgson, Ruth.
9 Wood, Steve.
6

was considered the part of the ratio for making judgement10. Hence, Ratio decidendi tends to play
a key role in evaluating the case from starting to the end in order to meet valid conclusive point.
It has been examined that, manufacturer has duty of care towards its customers.
Sources of English law
English law symbolizes the law that has been developed for the common people residing
in England and Wales. There are two major parts of the English law i.e. civil law and criminal
law and these help in giving appropriate decisions. The sources of these laws are generally
derived from the primary or secondary legislation11. The case law rules or the ones that are
derived form the precedent decisions, the decisions taken in the conventions etc. are some of the
major sources of taking decisions and formulating law in the English session.
European Union Law signifies the conglomeration of entire legal system that is
applicable in the entire European Union and all its states that from the part of European Union.
The European Law is said to be the supreme law in all the member states and cannot be
challenged as per the treaties that have been formulated between the member countries.
However, it can also be said that the court of Justice is different for the English law.
European convention on human rights is another internation human right treaty that has
been signed between the 47 state member that constitute the part of the European Council12. This
treaty tries to instil democratic rights and give more power to the individuals or common people
of these member countries. When the state courts do not take right decisions, the convention has
the right to issue ruling against them and this will be treated as the final rule.
As per the English law, the Court of Appeal acts as in intermediary body between the
state courts, county courts, high courts and the supreme court of a country 13. The precedence
ruling states that if the Court finds the fact of a case similar to an earlier cane, then the ruling of
that previous case can be taken as a basis of decision for the current or future cases. In case of
supreme courts, the judges cannot violate the rule of precedence i.e. they cannot give out ruling
which is in deviation or in contrast to the ruling given by them earlier. However, the judges of
10 Clancy, Michael
11 Andrews, Neil
12 Fabbrini, Federico
13 Wells, Douglas and Helen Gibson
7

the Court of Appeal, have the right to contradict their ruling that was given earlier if they find
that it will not address the nature of the problem currently14. However, the decision of court of
appeal must always stand with or comply the decision taken by the House of Lords.
This creates different rules for the judges of supreme court in UK and the judges of Court
of Appeal in UK, thus segregating the rights that they might otherwise enjoy.
Principle of statutory interpretation
Statutory Interpretation involves the process through which the judger of the courts
interpret the law, statutes or the previous proceedings that have been developed so that this can
be applied to the current case as well15. This technique of statutory interpretation helps the judges
in taking appropriate decisions and the intention of the parliament is carried out by this method
of ruling. There are three major rules in the statutory interpretation technique and each rule has
separate decision criteria and basis: Rule of Literal Interpretation: This rule states that the the judge should interpret the
natural and intended meaning of the law or statute and rather than glossing over it or
trying to mould the intended meaning the rule or decision should be made according to
the intended law or rule. The literal rule case can be better understood by the case of
Fisher versus Bell16. Under this case the defendant was charged because of the display of
a flick knife with a price tag in the window and it was treated as a criminal offence under
the law to display the weapons in such manner for sale. The conviction regarding the
current case was done on the basis of application of the literal rule and it was ruled that
the display of such knives is not an offer but an invitation to treat. The Mischief Rule: The mischief rule of statutory interpretation states that this rule shall
only be applied in some cases where there is some ambiguity regarding the statute or law
that can be used by the judge17. This rule was basically established in the case of Heydon
which was a very prominent and recognised case in the year 1584. Under Heydon's case,
a charge or suit was filed against Heydon for violating the rights and intruding into
14 Cairney, Paul, Aileen McHarg, Nicola McEwen, and Karen Turner
15 Williams, Joseph James
16 Edmonds, Ed
17 Daly, Paul, Kirsty Hughes, and Kenneth Armstrong
8

certain private property in the Devon County and this made judges give a very special
verdict which led to the formation of the Mischief Rule. It was ruled that why the
application of common law was not sufficient for the mischief and defect and why the
law and statute that has already been developed is not adequate for the ruling18. This leads
to development of a remedy that acts as an appropriate base for the solution of the present
case problem.
 Golden Rule of Interpretation: This rule is applicable in some really rare cases when the
application of the literal rule is redundant and will lead to the creation of absurdity on the
behalf f the ruling court if these literal rules are applied. This then leads to formation and
development of a secondary meaning and the judges make the ruling by interpreting the
statute in a different context that is relevant to the law. The RV Allen case of 1872 can e
taken as a reference for this case where the defendant was filed for the offence of
bigamy19. The statute stated that if an already married person marries another while the
former partner is still alive shall be treated as an offence. Therefore, the court developed
a golden ruling where the word marry was detailed as the process of going through the
entire marriage ceremony.
Civil or criminal law
A problem or case that comes to the court can either be criminal in nature or civil and for
the different nature of these out cases, the ruling is different and the court proceedings are also
different. These two has separate procedure of court proceedings and can be illustrated on the
following basis: Criminal Cases: The criminal cases are taken very intricately and seriously and these
come t the court for hearing only after certain decision has been taken by the Crown
Prosecution Service. Initially, the trial starts when the judge supervises the initial
proceedings that take place and give decision accordingly. Circuit Judges sit with the
Crown court cases where the case is first discussed and give appropriate rulings and
decisions. This is then followed by the case being moved forward to the higher court
where the case is reheard and decisions are given by the High Court Judges. Lastly, the
18 Amar, Akhil Reed, Frank H. Easterbrook, John C. Harrison, I. I. Kuntz, and William
Francis
19 Easterbrook.
9

Court of Appeal is the stage where the Criminal Division of the court takes the final
decision on the case20. The last resort is the supreme court and this is done when the
defendant even challenges the decision of the court of appeal.
 Civil Cases: These are cases that are not criminal in nature and covers a wide range of
topics that are covered under the civil case ruling. The case is first heard by circuit judges
and these are the ones that are dealing solely with the civil and domestic cases. The
decision is the n challenged in the chancery division of the high court that again hears the
case and then give appropriate ruling21. This is then challenged, by the defendant, if
necessary, in the court of appeal where it is again challenged and lastly the supreme court
is again the last resort that can take the final decision on the concerned case.
CONCLUSION
The research above helps in concluding that the rule of precedence and the statutory
interpretation are two of the most important aspects in giving appropriate decision or ruling in
the court s of UK. This report also identified the role of different sources through which the law
in UK has been developed and what are the different civil or criminal case procedure that can be
adopted in the courts. The report analyses every aspect and then gives appropriate conclusion
and every relevant aspect is highlighted in this report.
20 Gluck, Abbe R
21 Gluck, Abbe R., and Richard A. Posner.
10

REFERENCES
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Gehring, Thomas, Christian Dorsch, and Thomas Dörfler. "Precedent and doctrine in
organisational decision-making: the power of informal institutional rules in the United
Nations Security Council’s activities on terrorism." Journal of International Relations and
Development 22, no. 1 (2019): 107-135.
Garay, Alberto F. "A Doctrine of Precedent in the Making: The Case of the Argentine Supreme
Court's Case Law." Sw. J. Int'l L. 25 (2019): 258.
Goh, Bee Chen, and Tom Round. "Wild negligence: Donoghue v Stevenson." In Law as if Earth
Really Mattered, pp. 91-106. Routledge, 2017.
Hodgson, Ruth. "Legal and professional boundaries: a case study." Journal of Paramedic
Practice 8, no. 2 (2016): 90-94.
Wood, Steve. "UK airport operators’ liability for corporate manslaughter as a result of terrorism:
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Clancy, Michael P. "Scots Law and Scottish Identity: A Legendary Tale." Scottish Affairs 27, no.
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Valvoda, Josef, and Oliver Ray. "From Case Law to Ratio Decidendi." In JSAI International
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Lienen, Christina. "Judicial constitutional comparativism at the UK Supreme Court." Legal
Studies 39, no. 1 (2019): 166-182.
Andrews, Neil. "Sources and General Principles of English Contract Law." In Arbitration and
Contract Law, pp. 165-175. Springer, Cham, 2016.
1

Fabbrini, Federico. "Brexit According to the UK Supreme Court: The Miller Judgment." Centro
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Cairney, Paul, Aileen McHarg, Nicola McEwen, and Karen Turner. "How to conceptualise
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Edmonds, Ed. "Research Handbook on EU Sports Law and Policy. Edited by Jack Anderson,
Richard Parrish, and Borja García. Cheltenham, UK; Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar
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$225.00." International Journal of Legal Information 47, no. 2 (2019): 118-119.
Daly, Paul, Kirsty Hughes, and Kenneth Armstrong. "Brexit and EU Nationals: Options for
Implementation in UK Law." University of Cambridge Faculty of Law Research Paper 1
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Amar, Akhil Reed, Frank H. Easterbrook, John C. Harrison, I. I. Kuntz, and William Francis.
"Panel on Rules Versus Standards in Constitutional and Statutory Interpretation." Tulsa
Law Review 53 (2018): 539
Easterbrook., 2017. The Absence of Method in Statutory Interpretation. U. Chi. L. Rev., 84, p.81.
Gluck, Abbe R. "Justice Scalia's Unfinished Business in Statutory Interpretation: Where
Textualism's Formalism Gave Up." Notre Dame L. Rev. 92 (2016): 2053.
Gluck, Abbe R., and Richard A. Posner. "Statutory Interpretation on the Bench: A Survey of
Forty-Two Judges on the Federal Courts of Appeals." Harv. L. Rev. 131 (2017): 1298.
2

Online
Legal skills and debates in Scotland. 2019.
[ONLINE]. Available
through:<https://www.open.edu/openlearn/ocw/mod/oucontent/view.php?
id=68381&section=1.1>
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