User:Jack M. Cox

A short introduction of the English Legal System

The English Legal System encompasses legislation in conjunction with Precedent through case law. The UK has an uncodified constitution. It comprises of written and unwritten sources of laws.^[1] For example, theft is defined by the Theft Act 1968; however, murder is a common law practice based on the principle of stare decisis and is not delineated by a statute.

Sources of Law

The two major sources of Law in the English Legal System are statute and case law. Statutes are Acts of Parliament enacted by Parliament by the executive. They begin life as bills then, if successfully passed, become Acts of Parliament. They take a long time before being written in the statue books as several time-consuming stages are proceeded upon before the bill becomes a statue. On the other hand, case law is derived from judicial decisions, and operates through the system of judicial precedent, where judges have regard to earlier cases with similar facts when deciding the case before them.

^ "THE UK CONSTITUTION A summary, with options for reform" (PDF). House of Commons. Retrieved Tuesday 6 June 2023. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |access-date= (help)

[1] "THE UK CONSTITUTION A summary, with options for reform" (PDF). House of Commons. Retrieved Tuesday 6 June 2023. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |access-date= (help)

[1]