Courts interpret and enforce laws made by Parliament.
When litigation is heard in courts, legislation will often need to be interpreted. When determining disputes, a judge will analyse and provide meaning to legislative provisions. The judge applies the meaning of the rule of law as stated in the legislation, or follows a judicial precedent established by a case from a previous court. This judicial decision-making process is known as statutory interpretation. The judge then provides written reasons for their decision in the form of a judgment.
Courts consider and interpret previous judicial decisions.
Often a judge will need to consider the meaning of a rule of law applied in a previous case. The judge will then either follow the legal principles applied in the legal case or apply a new meaning to that area of law.
‘Common law is the law developed by judges, usually those in superior courts and tribunals. Historically, case law was the major source of legal rules but, due to increasing government regulation of activity during the 20th and early 21st centuries, legislation in its various forms has replaced cases as the main source of Australian law... Even in areas governed by legislation, it is necessary to understand how that legislation has been interpreted by the courts and to be able to anticipate how courts may apply it in new disputes.’ 1
1. Robin Creyke et al, Laying Down the Law, (LexisNexis, 11th edition, 2020) 177.
Case law is the principle of law arising from the decisions, and reasons for those decisions, made by judges in courts (state, territory and federal). These decisions, known as judgments, were first recorded in printed publications known as law reports.
This video explains the difference between unreported and reported judgments. It demonstrates the components of a case citation for both an unreported and reported judgment format. Understanding the components of a case citation assists in locating the full text of the judgment in a database.