Case law

Case law is a collection of previous legal decisions written by courts and similar judicial bodies in the course of broadcasting cases, in which the law has been analyzed using these cases to resolve ambiguities in deciding current cases. These previous decisions are called “case law” or judicial precedent. Stare decisis – a Latin phrase meaning “what has already been established” – is the principle by which judges adhere to such prior decisions. These judicial interpretations are distinguished from statutory law, which is laws enacted by legislatures, and regulatory law, which is sought by the executive agencies based on laws. In some jurisdictions, case law can be applied to the ongoing judiciary; For example, criminal procedures or family law. In Anglo-Saxon legal systems, a case of precedent that establishes a principle or rule from which a court or other judicial body is entitled to make use of when there is a case of similar issues and facts. A precedent is defined as “a rule of law established for the first time by a court for a case of a particular kind and thus defining any similar cases.” In common law countries (including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand), the term case law is an almost exact synonym for common law. It is used in judicial decisions of selected courts of appeal, courts of first instance, agency courts, and other bodies carrying out judicial functions.