Practice Statement

Practice Statement

Until 1966, the House of Lords in the United Kingdom was bound to follow all of its previous decisions under the principle of "stare decisis", even if this created "injustice" and "unduly restrict(s) the proper development of the law" (London Tramways Co. v London City Council [1898] AC 375). The Practice Statement 1966 is authority for the House of Lords to depart from their previous decisions. It does not affect the precedential value of cases in lower courts; all other courts that recognise the House of Lords as the court of last resort are still bound by House of Lords decisions. Before this, the only way a binding precedent could be avoided was to create new legislation on the matter.

This is the text of the Practice Statement:

:Their Lordships regard the use of precedent as an indispensable foundation upon which to decide what is the law and its application to individual cases. It provides at least some degree of certainty upon which individuals can rely in the conduct of their affairs, as well as a basis for orderly development of legal rules.

:Their Lordships nevertheless recognise that too rigid adherence to precedent may lead to injustice in a particular case and also unduly restrict the proper development of the law. They propose therefore, to modify their present practice and, while treating formal decisions of this house as normally binding, to depart from a previous decision when it appears to be right to do so.

:In this connection they will bear in mind the danger of disturbing retrospectively the basis on which contracts, settlement of property, and fiscal arrangements have been entered into and also the especial need for certainty as to the criminal law.

:This announcement is not intended to affect the use of precedent elsewhere than in this House.

::: — "Lord Gardiner's" statement in the House of Lords, July 26, 1966.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • information practice statement — A discrete statement that describes a particular use or practice regarding consumers personal information and or a choice offered to consumers about their personal information …   Big dictionary of business and management

  • Practice management — software (PMS) is a category of software that deals with the day to day operations of a medical practice. Such software frequently allows users to capture patient demographics, schedule appointments, maintain lists of insurance payers, perform… …   Wikipedia

  • statement of capital — United Kingdom As required by the Companies Act 2006, a company must file a statement of capital with the Registrar of Companies on formation, with the annual return and following an alteration of share capital. The statement must include… …   Law dictionary

  • PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — CIVIL Court Sessions The courts of three (judges) exercising jurisdiction in civil matters (see bet din ) held their sessions during the day, but – following Jethro s advice to Moses that judges should be available at all times (Ex. 18:22) – they …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Statement of Standard Accounting Practice — SSAP Any of the accounting standards prepared by the Accounting Standards Board and issued by the six members of the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies The first SSAP was issued in 1971 and in total 25 SSAPs were issued. Before a SSAP… …   Big dictionary of business and management

  • Statement of Recommended Practice — SORP A non mandatory statement dealing with accounting topics issued by the Accounting Standards Committee (ASC). Some franked SORPs were prepared by other bodies, mainly on an industry basis, and were approved by the ASC, a process known as… …   Accounting dictionary

  • Statement of Standard Accounting Practice — SSAP Any of the accounting standards prepared by the Accounting Standards Committee (ASC) and issued by the six members of the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies. Starting in 1971, a total of 25 SSAPs were issued up to 1990, when the… …   Accounting dictionary

  • Statement of Standard Accounting Practice — See Accounting Standards. Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein financial glossary …   Financial and business terms

  • Signing statement (United States) — A signing statement is a written pronouncement issued by the President of the United States upon the signing of a bill into law. There is an ongoing controversy concerning the extensive use of signing statements by President George W. Bush to… …   Wikipedia

  • I-statement — An I statement is a statement that begins with the word I . It is frequently used in an attempt to be assertive without putting the listener on the defensive. It can be used to take ownership for one s feelings rather than saying they are caused… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”