Briefly Analyse The Impact Of Human Rights Act 1998 On The Operation Of The Doctrine Of Precedent



Briefly Analyse The Impact Of Human Rights Act 1998 On The Operation Of The Doctrine Of Precedent

The doctrine of precedent is a form of reasoning and decision-making formed by case law. If a higher court has made a significant legal point in one case, it would be considered as binding in later courts. In order to understand this doctrine more clearly, it would be necessary to examine the hierarchy of the English Courts. The House of Lords holds the highest position, any decision made by them, would be binding to lower courts which filter down to the Court of Appeal, to the Crown Courts and County Courts. This is otherwise recognised as the doctrine of stare decisis, which means standing by what has been decided. This doctrine is a fundamental principle of English Law. The use of precedent is vital to the decision making process of the courts. However, I will discuss how common law also can create uncertainty and can be in conflict with the constitution and how the legal decisions of European Court of Justice are becoming binding on UK courts and the consequences of Human Rights Act 1998.

In addition, I will also discuss how the doctrine of precedent to some extent create certainty at the same time produces uncertainty and have contradictory outcomes within the court system in UK. In the same time doctrine of precedent has some important advantages as well it also has considerable disadvantages and may be producing some chaos in the same time. The practice of binding precedent within the court hierarchy and the discretion of judges to make law in the English Legal System. The doctrine of precedent in the context of the English legal system means the judges in the courts make the rules for a particular case before the courts given the facts of the case in a given area of law.

If in the future, similar cases arises they use the same rules or reasons they use to make legal decisions. In the English legal system the precedents of the Higher courts are binding on lower courts and the court structure is hierarchical. In the English courts system the House of Lords is the pinnacle of the court system. This is the highest court. The precedents of the House of Lords are binding on the lower courts such as the Court of Appeal and other lower courts. However, the precedents are not binding on the judges of the House of Lords or the precedents are not binding on it self. In addition, due to European Community (EC) law and the European Court of Justice (ECJ) is superior to the House of Lords. That is the House of Lords have to follow the European Court of Justice legal rules and reasons to decide cases and their precedents becomes non binding and the ECJ legal rules becomes binding on lower courts as ...