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According to Black's Law Dictionary common law is "The body of law derived from judicial decisions, rather than from statutes or constitutions". [17] Legal jurisdictions that use common law as precedent are called "common law jurisdictions," in contrast with jurisdictions that do not use common law as precedent, which are called "civil law" or "code" jurisdictions."
After independence, English common law still exerted influence over American common law – for example, Byrne v Boadle (1863), which first applied the res ipsa loquitur doctrine. Jurisdictions that have kept to the common law may incorporate modern legal developments from England, and English decisions are usually persuasive in such jurisdictions.
Common law offence. Common law offences are crimes under English criminal law, the related criminal law of some Commonwealth countries, and under some U.S. state laws. They are offences under the common law, developed entirely by the law courts, having no specific basis in statute.
Lists of landmark court decisions. Landmark court decisions, in present-day common law legal systems, establish precedents that determine a significant new legal principle or concept, or otherwise substantially affect the interpretation of existing law. " Leading case " is commonly used in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth jurisdictions ...
The contemporary national legal systems are generally based on one of four basic systems: civil law, common law, customary law, religious law or combinations of these. However, the legal system of each country is shaped by its unique history and so incorporates individual variations. [ 1 ] The science that studies law at the level of legal ...
Equitable remedies are distinguished from "legal" remedies (which are available to a successful claimant as of right) by the discretion of the court to grant them. In common law jurisdictions, there are a variety of equitable remedies, but the principal remedies are: injunction [5][6] specific performance. account of profits.
Writ. A writ of attachment. In common law, a writ (Anglo-Saxon gewrit, Latin breve) [1] is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and certiorari are common types of writs, but many forms exist and have existed.
The Restatements of the Law is one of the most respected and well-used sources of secondary authority, covering nearly every area of common law. While considered secondary authority (compare to primary authority), the authoritativeness of the Restatements of the Law is evidenced by their acceptance by courts throughout the United States.