SOC 1500 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Precedent

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 1500
• Professor: Stephanie Howells

Document Summary

Rule of law: the requirement that governments, as well as individuals, be subjected to and abide by the law. Canadian charter of rights and freedoms: the primary law of the land and guarantees fundamental freedom, legal rights, and equality rights for all citizens of. Criminal law: the body of law that deal with conduct considered so harmful to society as a whole that it is prohibited by statute and prosecuted and punished by the government. Precedent: a judicial decision that may be used as a standard in subsequent similar cases. Common law: law that is based on custom, traditions, and practice and is generally unwritten. Statute law: written laws that have been enacted by a legislative body, such as parliament of canada. Case law: law that is established by precious court decisions and based on the rule of the precedent. Stare decisis: the principle by which the higher courts set precedents that the lower courts must follow.