LLB101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Obiter Dictum, Cassell (Publisher), Ratio Decidendi
Document Summary
Week 7 doctrine of precedent #1: only interested in case/common law for this topic rather than statute law. Qld court hierarchy: high court, queensland court of appeal, supreme court, trial division, appeal division, district court, magistrates court. Hca decision: court of appeal should go to full court constituted by 2 justices, nothing links court of appeal to high court with single judge, therefore, decision of single justice is not binding for nsw court of appeal. Per incuriam decisions: a decision reached through want of care where a court has overlooked, a case, a relevant piece of legislation, and it has affected the outcome of their decision. If a higher court has done this, what can a lower court do: proctor v jetway aviation [1984, lower court cannot declare a superior court has made a decision per incuriam. Parties can, though, appeal to higher court to see if they"re willing to change their decision.
