Law is a set of rules that are created and are
enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a
science and as the art of justice. State-enforced laws can be made by a group
legislature or by a single legislator, resulting in
statutes; by the executive through
decrees and
regulations; or established by judges through
precedent, usually in
common law jurisdictions. Private individuals may create legally binding
contracts, including arbitration agreements that adopt
alternative ways of resolving disputes to standard court litigation. The creation of laws themselves may be influenced by a
constitution, written or tacit, and the
rights encoded therein. The law shapes
politics,
economics,
history and
society in various ways and also serves as a mediator of relations between people.
Legal systems vary between
jurisdictions, with their differences analysed in
comparative law. In
civil law jurisdictions, a legislature or other central body
codifies and consolidates the law. In
common law systems, judges may make
binding case law through
precedent, although on occasion this may be overturned by a higher court or the legislature. Historically,
religious law has influenced secular matters and is, as of the 21st century, still in use in some religious communities.
Sharia law based on
Islamic principles is used as the primary legal system in several countries, including
Iran and
Saudi Arabia.
The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the
Civil Division of the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of the Rolls is second in seniority in
England and Wales only to the
Lord Chief Justice. The position dates from at least 1286, although it is believed that the office probably existed earlier than that.
The Master of the Rolls was initially a clerk responsible for keeping the "Rolls" or records of the
Court of Chancery, and was known as the Keeper of the Rolls of Chancery. The Keeper was the most senior of the dozen Chancery clerks, and as such occasionally acted as keeper of the
Great Seal of the Realm. The post evolved into a judicial one as the Court of Chancery did; the first reference to judicial duties dates from 1520. With the
Judicature Act 1873, which merged the Court of Chancery with the other major courts, the Master of the Rolls joined the Chancery Division of the High Court and the Court of Appeal, but left the Chancery Division by the terms of the Judicature Act 1881. The Master of the Rolls had also been warden of the little-used
Domus Conversorum for housing Jewish converts, which led to the house and chapel being used to store legal documents and later becoming the location of the
Public Record Office. He retained his clerical functions as the nominal head of the Public Record Office until the
Public Records Act 1958 transferred responsibility for it to the
Lord Chancellor. One residual reminder of this role is the fact that the Master of the Rolls of the day continues to serve, ex officio, as President of the
British Records Association. The Master of the Rolls was also previously responsible for registering solicitors, the officers of the Senior Courts. (Full article...)
Over the following three decades, Garran provided legal advice to ten different
prime ministers, from Barton to
Joseph Lyons. He was considered an early expert in
Australian constitutional law, and with
John Quick published an annotated edition of the
constitution that became a standard reference work. Garran developed a close relationship with
Billy Hughes during World War I, and accompanied him to the
Imperial War Cabinet and the
Paris Peace Conference. Hughes, who was simultaneously prime minister and
attorney-general, appointed him to the new position of solicitor-general and delegated numerous powers and responsibilities to him. He was knighted three times for his service to the Commonwealth, in 1917, in 1920 and in 1937. (Full article...)
The Statute of Monopolies (
21 Jas. 1. c. 3) was an
act of the
Parliament of England notable as the first
statutory expression of English
patent law. Patents evolved from
letters patent, issued by the monarch to grant monopolies over particular industries to skilled individuals with new techniques. Originally intended to strengthen England's economy by making it self-sufficient and promoting new industries, the system gradually became seen as a way to raise money (through charging patent-holders) without having to incur the public unpopularity of a tax.
Elizabeth I particularly used the system extensively, issuing patents for common commodities such as starch and salt. Unrest eventually persuaded her to turn the administration of patents over to the
common law courts, but her successor,
James I, used it even more. Despite a committee established to investigate grievances and excesses, Parliament made several efforts to further curtail the monarch's power. The result was the Statute of Monopolies, passed on 29 May 1624 (although at the time this was thought to be 1623).
The statute repealed some past and future patents and monopolies but preserved exceptions: one of these was for patents for novel inventions. Seen as a key moment in the evolution of patent law, the statute has also been described as "one of the landmarks in the transition of [England's] economy from the feudal to the capitalist". Even with the statute in force, it took over a century for a comprehensive legal doctrine around patents to come into existence, and James I's successor
Charles I regularly abused the patents system by ensuring that all cases relating to his actions were heard in
conciliar courts, which he controlled. The
English Civil War and the resulting
English Restoration finally curtailed this system. The statute is still the basis for Australian law, and until the United Kingdom began following the
European Patent Convention in 1977, was also a strong pillar of the United Kingdom's intellectual property law. (Full article...)
... that Dutch physician Aletta Jacobs′ legal challenge to be added to the Amsterdam electoral rolls backfired, leading to a
constitutional amendment granting voting rights only to men?
... that when Henry McCardie was a
barrister, he often worked so late that his
chambers were nicknamed "the lighthouse", as there was light coming from the windows?
... that the diaries of James Humphreys, the "Emperor of Porn", were used to convict 13 policemen of accepting his bribes?
Case law, also used interchangeably with
common law, is a
law that is based on
precedents, that is the
judicial decisions from previous cases, rather than law based on
constitutions,
statutes, or
regulations. Case law uses the detailed facts of a
legal case that have been resolved by
courts or similar
tribunals. These past decisions are called "case law", or precedent. Stare decisis—a Latin phrase meaning "let the decision stand"—is the principle by which judges are bound to such past decisions, drawing on established judicial authority to formulate their positions. (Full article...)
The
Cambridge Water Company were a company responsible for providing potable water to the inhabitants of
Cambridge and the surrounding areas. In 1976, they purchased a
borehole outside
Sawston to deal with rising demand. In 1980, a
European Directive was issued requiring nations of the
European Community to establish standards on the presence of
perchloroethene (PCE) in water, which the United Kingdom did in 1982. It was found that the Sawston borehole was contaminated with PCE that had originated in a tannery owned by Eastern Counties Leather. Prior to 1980, there was no knowledge that PCE should be avoided or that it could cause harm, but the Cambridge Water Company brought a case against Eastern Counties Leather anyway.
The case first went to the
High Court of Justice, where
Kennedy J dismissed claims under nuisance,
negligence and Rylands v Fletcher because the harm was not foreseeable. His decision was reversed by the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales, who cited an "obscure decision" to justify doing so. The case then went to the
House of Lords, where a decision was read by
Lord Goff on 9 December 1993. Goff first countered the Court of Appeal decision, restoring Kennedy's dismissal of the case, before moving on to the deeper legal points. Based on the original decision in Rylands, Goff argued that it had always been intended for foreseeability of harm to be a factor, something not previously put into law by the English judiciary. He then stated that Rylands was arguably a sub-set of nuisance, not an independent tort, and as such the factors which led him to including a test of foreseeability of harm in Rylands cases also imposed such a test on all nuisance cases.
The decision in Cambridge Water Co made an immediate change to the law, for the first time requiring foreseeability of harm to be considered in cases brought under Rylands v Fletcher and the general tort of nuisance. It was also significant in implying that Rylands was not an independent tort, something later concluded in the Transco case. Goff's judgment has been criticised on several points by academics, who highlight flaws in wording which leave parts of the judgment ambiguous and a selective assessment of Rylands that ignores outside influences. (Full article...)
... that the BK inequality was used to identify implausibly lucky
Florida Lottery winners, whose involvement in illegal activities was later confirmed by investigations?
... that a complaint over an allegedly illegal transmitter move led to Texas radio station KFQX-FM being forced off the air for four hours in 1988?
... that Frank Jackson was born free but had to win two court cases before he was freed from forced slavery?
... that the release of
Lee Hyori's album It's Hyorish had to be moved forward after several tracks were illegally leaked?
... that American legal scholar John Hart Ely penned a law review article castigating the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, despite being
pro-choice?
Image 2The
Constitution of India is the longest written constitution for a country, containing 444 articles, 12 schedules, numerous amendments and 117,369 words (from Legal history)
This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by
JL-Bot (
talk·contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is
tagged (e.g. {{
WikiProject Law}}) or
categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See
WP:RECOG for configuration options.
Law is a set of rules that are created and are
enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a
science and as the art of justice. State-enforced laws can be made by a group
legislature or by a single legislator, resulting in
statutes; by the executive through
decrees and
regulations; or established by judges through
precedent, usually in
common law jurisdictions. Private individuals may create legally binding
contracts, including arbitration agreements that adopt
alternative ways of resolving disputes to standard court litigation. The creation of laws themselves may be influenced by a
constitution, written or tacit, and the
rights encoded therein. The law shapes
politics,
economics,
history and
society in various ways and also serves as a mediator of relations between people.
Legal systems vary between
jurisdictions, with their differences analysed in
comparative law. In
civil law jurisdictions, a legislature or other central body
codifies and consolidates the law. In
common law systems, judges may make
binding case law through
precedent, although on occasion this may be overturned by a higher court or the legislature. Historically,
religious law has influenced secular matters and is, as of the 21st century, still in use in some religious communities.
Sharia law based on
Islamic principles is used as the primary legal system in several countries, including
Iran and
Saudi Arabia.
The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the
Civil Division of the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of the Rolls is second in seniority in
England and Wales only to the
Lord Chief Justice. The position dates from at least 1286, although it is believed that the office probably existed earlier than that.
The Master of the Rolls was initially a clerk responsible for keeping the "Rolls" or records of the
Court of Chancery, and was known as the Keeper of the Rolls of Chancery. The Keeper was the most senior of the dozen Chancery clerks, and as such occasionally acted as keeper of the
Great Seal of the Realm. The post evolved into a judicial one as the Court of Chancery did; the first reference to judicial duties dates from 1520. With the
Judicature Act 1873, which merged the Court of Chancery with the other major courts, the Master of the Rolls joined the Chancery Division of the High Court and the Court of Appeal, but left the Chancery Division by the terms of the Judicature Act 1881. The Master of the Rolls had also been warden of the little-used
Domus Conversorum for housing Jewish converts, which led to the house and chapel being used to store legal documents and later becoming the location of the
Public Record Office. He retained his clerical functions as the nominal head of the Public Record Office until the
Public Records Act 1958 transferred responsibility for it to the
Lord Chancellor. One residual reminder of this role is the fact that the Master of the Rolls of the day continues to serve, ex officio, as President of the
British Records Association. The Master of the Rolls was also previously responsible for registering solicitors, the officers of the Senior Courts. (Full article...)
Over the following three decades, Garran provided legal advice to ten different
prime ministers, from Barton to
Joseph Lyons. He was considered an early expert in
Australian constitutional law, and with
John Quick published an annotated edition of the
constitution that became a standard reference work. Garran developed a close relationship with
Billy Hughes during World War I, and accompanied him to the
Imperial War Cabinet and the
Paris Peace Conference. Hughes, who was simultaneously prime minister and
attorney-general, appointed him to the new position of solicitor-general and delegated numerous powers and responsibilities to him. He was knighted three times for his service to the Commonwealth, in 1917, in 1920 and in 1937. (Full article...)
The Statute of Monopolies (
21 Jas. 1. c. 3) was an
act of the
Parliament of England notable as the first
statutory expression of English
patent law. Patents evolved from
letters patent, issued by the monarch to grant monopolies over particular industries to skilled individuals with new techniques. Originally intended to strengthen England's economy by making it self-sufficient and promoting new industries, the system gradually became seen as a way to raise money (through charging patent-holders) without having to incur the public unpopularity of a tax.
Elizabeth I particularly used the system extensively, issuing patents for common commodities such as starch and salt. Unrest eventually persuaded her to turn the administration of patents over to the
common law courts, but her successor,
James I, used it even more. Despite a committee established to investigate grievances and excesses, Parliament made several efforts to further curtail the monarch's power. The result was the Statute of Monopolies, passed on 29 May 1624 (although at the time this was thought to be 1623).
The statute repealed some past and future patents and monopolies but preserved exceptions: one of these was for patents for novel inventions. Seen as a key moment in the evolution of patent law, the statute has also been described as "one of the landmarks in the transition of [England's] economy from the feudal to the capitalist". Even with the statute in force, it took over a century for a comprehensive legal doctrine around patents to come into existence, and James I's successor
Charles I regularly abused the patents system by ensuring that all cases relating to his actions were heard in
conciliar courts, which he controlled. The
English Civil War and the resulting
English Restoration finally curtailed this system. The statute is still the basis for Australian law, and until the United Kingdom began following the
European Patent Convention in 1977, was also a strong pillar of the United Kingdom's intellectual property law. (Full article...)
... that Dutch physician Aletta Jacobs′ legal challenge to be added to the Amsterdam electoral rolls backfired, leading to a
constitutional amendment granting voting rights only to men?
... that when Henry McCardie was a
barrister, he often worked so late that his
chambers were nicknamed "the lighthouse", as there was light coming from the windows?
... that the diaries of James Humphreys, the "Emperor of Porn", were used to convict 13 policemen of accepting his bribes?
Case law, also used interchangeably with
common law, is a
law that is based on
precedents, that is the
judicial decisions from previous cases, rather than law based on
constitutions,
statutes, or
regulations. Case law uses the detailed facts of a
legal case that have been resolved by
courts or similar
tribunals. These past decisions are called "case law", or precedent. Stare decisis—a Latin phrase meaning "let the decision stand"—is the principle by which judges are bound to such past decisions, drawing on established judicial authority to formulate their positions. (Full article...)
The
Cambridge Water Company were a company responsible for providing potable water to the inhabitants of
Cambridge and the surrounding areas. In 1976, they purchased a
borehole outside
Sawston to deal with rising demand. In 1980, a
European Directive was issued requiring nations of the
European Community to establish standards on the presence of
perchloroethene (PCE) in water, which the United Kingdom did in 1982. It was found that the Sawston borehole was contaminated with PCE that had originated in a tannery owned by Eastern Counties Leather. Prior to 1980, there was no knowledge that PCE should be avoided or that it could cause harm, but the Cambridge Water Company brought a case against Eastern Counties Leather anyway.
The case first went to the
High Court of Justice, where
Kennedy J dismissed claims under nuisance,
negligence and Rylands v Fletcher because the harm was not foreseeable. His decision was reversed by the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales, who cited an "obscure decision" to justify doing so. The case then went to the
House of Lords, where a decision was read by
Lord Goff on 9 December 1993. Goff first countered the Court of Appeal decision, restoring Kennedy's dismissal of the case, before moving on to the deeper legal points. Based on the original decision in Rylands, Goff argued that it had always been intended for foreseeability of harm to be a factor, something not previously put into law by the English judiciary. He then stated that Rylands was arguably a sub-set of nuisance, not an independent tort, and as such the factors which led him to including a test of foreseeability of harm in Rylands cases also imposed such a test on all nuisance cases.
The decision in Cambridge Water Co made an immediate change to the law, for the first time requiring foreseeability of harm to be considered in cases brought under Rylands v Fletcher and the general tort of nuisance. It was also significant in implying that Rylands was not an independent tort, something later concluded in the Transco case. Goff's judgment has been criticised on several points by academics, who highlight flaws in wording which leave parts of the judgment ambiguous and a selective assessment of Rylands that ignores outside influences. (Full article...)
... that the BK inequality was used to identify implausibly lucky
Florida Lottery winners, whose involvement in illegal activities was later confirmed by investigations?
... that a complaint over an allegedly illegal transmitter move led to Texas radio station KFQX-FM being forced off the air for four hours in 1988?
... that Frank Jackson was born free but had to win two court cases before he was freed from forced slavery?
... that the release of
Lee Hyori's album It's Hyorish had to be moved forward after several tracks were illegally leaked?
... that American legal scholar John Hart Ely penned a law review article castigating the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, despite being
pro-choice?
Image 2The
Constitution of India is the longest written constitution for a country, containing 444 articles, 12 schedules, numerous amendments and 117,369 words (from Legal history)
This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by
JL-Bot (
talk·contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is
tagged (e.g. {{
WikiProject Law}}) or
categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See
WP:RECOG for configuration options.
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_Aristide_-_Francesco_Hayez_-_gallerie_Accademia_Venice.jpg)
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