Class I: The Rise of Common Law: Historical Background The Rise of Common Law - Periods Four Periods: -Pre-Norman

-1066 to the Tudors -1485 to 1832- Ride of Equity -1832 to present- Modern Period ? 1973 accession into EC (Europe)? The Rise of Common Law Pre-Norman Chthonic Law Roman Law No common/uniform corpus of learned indigenous doctrine The Rise of Common Law Important Dates 1066 - 1485 -1066: William the Conqueror - Guillaume le Conqurant -Rise of Norman England -Feudalism -Curia Regis (Court of Exchequer, Court of Common Pleas, Court of Kings Bench) -Writs -1215: Magna Carta Rule of law and freedom of movement, regulates relationships between Crown, Nobility, Church and People required King John of England to proclaim certain liberties, and accept that his will was not arbitrary, for example by explicitly accepting that no "freeman" could be punished except through the law of the land, a right which is still in existence today. The Rise of Common Law Important Dates1485 - 1832 -1485 - 1603: Tudor Dynasty following the Rose Wars (1455-1485) -1534: Church of England breaks from Rome -James I (1603 1625):Theological base for monarchy; sets out the divine right of Kings, explainging that for biblical reasons kings are higher beings than men -1605: Gunpowder Plot. -1689: Reign of William & Mary; English Bill of Rights: Guaranteed rights and powers of Parliament and also protected personal liberties. England became constitutional monarchy The Rise of Common Law Important Dates1832 - 1875 -The Age of Reform: 1832: The Representation of the People Act ('The Reform Act') extends voting rights

-Judicature Acts 1873 1875: Fused administration of common law and equity. Created Supreme Court covering all jurisdictions English Common Law in Context English Law- Limited to England and Wales Historically, isolated from continent: What is the significance: -Revolution -Invasion -Influence of foreign ideas -Influence of Rome English Common Law and judicialisation -Role of the judges:Ces juges itinrants, envoys par le roi, vont laborer petit petit une jurisprudence commune uniforme sur l'ensemble de l'Angleterre ; c'est de l que vient le systme de la common law.Certains juges statuent selon la procdure de la common law, d'autres selon celle de l'equity -Role of the jury:The role of the jury is seemingly accurate to a finder of fact, while the judge is seen as having the sole responsibility of interpreting the appropriate law and instructing the jury accordingly. The jury will render a verdict on the defendant's guilt, or civil liability. Sometimes a jury will also make specific findings of fact in what is called a "special verdict." A verdict without specific findings of fact that includes only findings of guilt, civil liability and an overall amount of civil damages, if awarded, is called a "general verdict." Writs: -Habeas Corpus (where is the Body):nonce une libert fondamentale, celle de ne pas tre emprisonn sans jugement(contraire de l'arbitraire qui permet d'arrter n'importe qui sans raisons valables). En vertu de ce principe, toute personne arrte a le droit de savoir pourquoi elle est arrte et de quoi elle est accuse. Ensuite, elle peut tre libre sous caution, puis amene dans les jours qui suivent devant un juge. -Replevin (Repo Man):sometimes known as "claim and delivery," is a legal remedy for a person to recover goods unlawfully withheld from his or her possession, by means of a special form of legal process in which a court may require a defendant to return specific goods to the plaintiff at the outset of the action (i.e. before judgment). In other situations, a party seeking relief may elect to adjudicate the right to possession prior to obtaining immediate relief to obtain the property in question. In such cases, replevin actions are still designed to afford the petitioning party a relatively speedy process for obtaining judgment, as compared to typical lawsuits. The summary remedy afforded by replevin statutes can be thwarted by defendants who contest the claimant's right to possession, by contesting the plaintiff's complaint, and insisting on traditional litigation involving discovery, and in some cases, trial by jury. -Trespass:The Writs of Trespass and Trespass on the Case are the two catchall torts from English Common Law, the former involving trespass against person, the latter involving trespass against

anything else which may be actionable. The writ is also known in modern times as Action on the Case and can be sought for any action that may be considered as a tort but is yet to be an established category. -Mandamus: A writ of mandamus is a court order instructing an inferior court, a corporation or a person to perform some duty specified in the order.One of the oldest United States cases dealing with a writ of mandamus is Marburry v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137 (1803), a case famous for establishing the power of judicial review. -Prohibito:A writ of prohibition is a writ directing a subordinate to stop doing something the law prohibits. In practice, the Court directs the Clerk to issue the Writ, and directs the Sheriff to serve it on the subordinate, and the Clerk prepares the Writ and gives it to the Sheriff, who serves it. This writ is normally issued by a superior court to the lower court asking it not to proceed with a case which does not fall under its jurisdiction. -Certiorari: Certiorari is a type of writ seeking judicial review, recognized in U.S., Roman, English, Philippine, and other law. Certiorari ("to be more fully informed") is the present passive infinitive of the Latin certiorare ("to show, prove, or ascertain"). A writ of certiorari currently means an order by a higher court directing a lower court, tribunal, or public authority to send the record in a given case for review. -Error Coram Nobis:Coram nobis or coram vobis also known as error coram nobis or error coram vobis (from Latin quae coram nobis resident, or quae coram vobis resident, "which [things] remain in our presence", or "in your presence", respectively: the "things" referred to are the records of the original case.) is a legal writ issued by a court to correct a previous error "of the most fundamental character" to "achieve justice" where "no other remedy" is available. A petition for writ of error coram nobis is generally brought before the trial court, while a petition for writ of error coram vobis is brought before an appellate court. Both Coram nobis and coram vobis differ from Habeas Corpus in that they do not have a custody requirement. -Attachment;A writ of attachment is a court order to "attach" or seize an asset. It is issued by a court to a law enforcement officer or sheriff. The writ of attachment is issued in order to satisfy a judgment issued by the court. A prejudgment writ of attachment may be used to freeze assets of a defendant while a legal action is pending. Common grounds for obtaining a prejudgment writ of attachment are that a defendant has committed fraud or that a defendant is prepared to hide assets from a court. -Assumpsit: Theory of early English contract law that injury or damage could occur when someone did nothing after contracting to do something. If a tradesman contracted to repair a wall by a certain date, but didn't (not even showing up to do the job), any injury or damage resulting from the wall falling could be attributable to the contractor (if it can be proven that the wall would not have fallen had he done what he contract to do). According to some legal historians, this concept is the cornerstone of modern contract law. The Rise of Common Law Law of the common people of England Common to all or common from all?