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Common law & statute - what is applicable? (1 Viewer)

dissipate

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if i've got a statutory authority that's liable under common law and perhaps a statute, would the statute override common law? or would it work together with common law in that it limits the liability the stat authority would face?
 

hfis

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Re: common law and statute

Statute always overrides common law, and under s 109 of the Constitution, Commonwealth statutes override any conflicting state statutes.

Common law can be used to interpret statutory provisions; it's the role of the Judiciary to give effect to what Parliament intended. For example, with an open definition ('x includes ...'), the role of a court could be to figure out what fits into it.
 

dissipate

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thanks hfis!

and is the duty of care test for a stat authority the old Donoghue v Stevenson test? or has it changed to McHugh's Crimmins v Stevedoring test?
 

Frigid

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to clarify:-

legislative supremacy: statute always overrides the case law. the only tricky part is, case law governs the statutory interpretation of statute.

so, for example, parliament enacts the No Public Holidays Act 2006 (NSW). now, the courts can construe, in their decision of cases, the meaning of provisions within the Act, and, by the doctrine of precedent thus affect the future interpretation of the same. in other words, case law builds on statute.

'last in time': later statute implicitly repeals earlier statute to the extent of the inconsistency

later case law preferred over earlier

[i've forgotten the authority for all these propositions.]
 
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dissipate

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got it! thanks frigid!! i was getting confused over all the various tests and which to apply!

also, do you know where can get examples of good torts assignments/exam answers?
 

Frigid

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some university library websites have a 'course reference' section, which have past exam papers in downloadable PDF format. all you have to do is find the course code for the torts and track down the materials.
 

dissipate

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yeah i've checked the past exam papers... and they don't have past exam answers there :( any other suggestions? i'm quite worried about my assignment... first time writing something like this.
 

Frigid

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i know the Faculty store some quality past answers in the UNSW library. otherwise it's really hard to help you, because there are no 'model' / 'right' answers in law (as you well know).
 

dissipate

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ok i'll go check my law library next week. it's more of how to construct an argument and explain everything within the page limit that i'm worried about.
 

Frigid

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i think it writing an answer for a legal question/problem would be no different to writing an essay. of course, often first and second drafts would be slightly over the word limit, but after that it's a matter of clarifying your expression and checking whether you've answered beyond the question. :)
 

El Misterio

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Some of the rules that need to be used in this situation have been accurately described here, but it's very important to remember that the extent to which any particular statute overrides the common law or works with it is a question of statutory interpretation and will vary between statute. Often it's not clear to what extent the pre-existing common law in the relevant area may still apply, and reasonable minds may well differ as to the interaction between statute and common law in any particular situation.

Good luck with your assignment.
 

hYperTrOphY

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dissipate said:
thanks hfis!

and is the duty of care test for a stat authority the old Donoghue v Stevenson test? or has it changed to McHugh's Crimmins v Stevedoring test?
When determining the duty of care for a statutory authority you have to look to what the common law has prescribed specifically for statutory/public authorites. There are additional considerations which are made in comparison to other tort cases. Most of the same commonl law principles will apply, but there are certain exceptions you should be aware of.
 

dissipate

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thanks for the tips!

also, when determining the duty of care for a stat authority, what if the stat authority is related to the plaintiff in more than one way? if for example the stat authority owns a shopping centre.. would i be looking at the tests for a stat authority as well as common law tests for an occupier?
 

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