What Is English Common Law And How Was It Born

Common law is a body of unwritten laws based on legal precedents and will often guide court judgments and rulings when the outcome cannot be determined based on existing statutes or written rules.

What is english common law and how was it born. Even today in the us some common law principles from the original english law are applicable while alongside it is the growing body of common law which is being set as a part of stare decisis i e. The body of english law includes legislation common law and a host of other legal norms established by parliament the crown and the judiciary it is the fountain from which flowed nearly every facet of u s. Common law and illegitimacy. There was a common law presumption that a child born of a married woman was legitimate.

Law during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Thus the common law of england was the by product of an administrative triumph. The english common law system is the foundation of several systems of law throughout the world. The english common law from which americans borrowed heavily in the colonial period had evolved for centuries in england its principles and rules were extensive and complex and they varied by region and locality.

A standing expository difficulty is that whereas the united kingdom is a unitary state in international law it comprises three major and other minor legal systems those of england and wales scotland and northern ireland. In this lesson you will learn the history and definition of the english common law system. The judicial systems decisions and interpretation of statutory law provisions by judges are becoming a part of the common law. English common law is currently the most widespread legal system in the world with about 30 percent of the world s population living under common law.

The system of law that has developed in england from approximately 1066 to the present. First formulated by william staunford it was later set down by edward coke in his institutes of the laws of england it follows the language used for cases of murder in english law identifying three salient characteristics. Common law developed through practical experience over time and thus became distinguished from a legal code in which the law was summarized. The rules of law established by the king s courts were often unprecedented.

The development of english common law was not merely the institutionalization of traditional english customs. The common law is based on judicial decisions and consists of unwritten laws formed by previous court decisions that govern local customs accepted behavior and traditions. The born alive rule was originally a principle at common law in england that was carried to the united states and other former colonies of the british empire.