Law Made Simple 12E (Learning Made Simple)

423 Pages·2007·2.17 MB·English

by  D. Barker

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Law Made Simple
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Law Made Simple
Twelfth edition
D. L. A. Barker, AM, LLB, MPhil, LLM,
DipLG, GradDipLegPrac, FCIS, FCI Mgt,
MCI Arb, FAIM, FACE, FAICD.
Solicitor of the Supreme Court of NSW
and High Court of Australia;
Professor and Formerly Dean, Faculty of Law,
University of Technology, Sydney;
Sometime Dean, Faculty of Law,
University of Westminster
(formerly Polytechnic of Central London)
AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON • NEW YORK • OXFORD
PARIS • SAN DIEGO • SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO
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To G. T. P. & C. B.
Made Simple is an imprint of Elsevier
Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP, UK
30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA
First edition 1970, Second edition 1972, Third edition 1973,
Fourth edition 1975, Reprinted 1976, Fifth edition 1978,
Sixth edition 1981, Seventh edition 1989, Eighth edition 1992,
Ninth edition 1996, Tenth edition 1998, Eleventh edition 2002, Twelfth edition 2007
Eleventh edition, copyright ©2002, D.L.A. Barker and Mrs G. Padfield. All rights reserved
Twelfth edition, copyright ©2007, Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science & Technology Rights
Department in Oxford, UK: phone ((cid:2)44) (0) 1865 843830; fax ((cid:2)44) (0) 1865 853333;
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No responsibility is assumed by the publisher for any injury and/or damage to persons
or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use
or operation of any methods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material
herein
While every effort has been made to ensure the information in his book is as
up-to-date and accurate as possible, the law is complex and constantly changing,
and readers are, therefore, advised to seek expert advice when faced with specific
problems. This text is intended as a guide to the law and should not be used as a
substitute for legal advice.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-0-7506-8494-1
For information on all Made Simple publications
visit our web site at books.elsevier.com
Printed and bound in Great Britain
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Contents
Preface to the Twelfth edition xiii
1 Introduction 1
1 The nature of law 1
2 Custom, morality and law 1
3 Classification of law 3
4 Characteristics of English law 5
Exercises 7
2 Historical sources of English law 9
1 The Common Law 9
The Norman Conquest 10
The Common Law courts 12
2 Equity 13
Later history 15
3 Legislation 15
European Union law 17
4 Canon law 17
5 The law merchant 18
6 Local custom 19
7 The nineteenth century 19
Reorganization of the courts 20
The House of Lords 20
Reforming the rules 20
Exercises 21
3 Legal sources 23
1 Judicial precedent 23
The House of Lords and precedent 24
Case law: advantages and disadvantages 24
Law reports 26
Citation of cases 27
Declaratory theory of the common law 28
2 Legislation 28
Statutes 28
Stages in legislation 29
Obsolescence 30
Consolidation and codification 31
Delegated legislation 31
Forms of delegated legislation 32
Growth of delegated legislation 32
Criticism of delegated legislation 33
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Control of delegated legislation 33
Publication 34
Interpretation of statutes 35
Presumptions 36
Reference to statutes 37
Reference to statutory instruments 38
European Community law 38
Human Rights Act, 1998 38
Law revision and reform 38
3 Textbooks 40
4 Local custom 40
Exercises 42
4 The courts today 43
1 Civil courts 43
The House of Lords and the Supreme Court 43
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council 43
Court of Appeal (Civil Division) 44
The High Court of Justice 44
County courts 46
2 Criminal courts 47
The House of Lords and the Supreme Court 47
Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) 48
The Crown Court 49
Appeal by Way of Case Stated 51
Magistrates’ courts 52
Jurisdiction of magistrates’ courts 53
Juvenile courts 55
Appeals from magistrates’ courts 55
3 Other courts 55
Courts-Martial Appeal Court 55
Restrictive Practices Court 55
Employment Appeal Tribunal 56
Coroner’s courts 56
4 Court of Justice of the European Communities 57
5 Administrative tribunals 57
Examples of tribunals 58
6 Judicial control of administrative tribunals 61
Supervision by the Queen’s Bench Division 62
Tribunals and Inquiries Act, 1922 63
The Inquiries Act, 2005 64
7 Arbitration 64
8 Juries 66
9 Legal Services 67
Legal Services Commission 67
Community Legal Service 67
Criminal Defense Service 68
10 Lay persons in the courts 69
Exercises 69
5 The judiciary, law officers and the legal profession 71
1 The Lord Chancellor – change in role 71
2 Judges 71
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Contents vii
3 Attorney General and Solicitor General 72
4 Masters 73
5 Director of Public Prosecutions 73
The legal profession 73
6 Solicitors 73
7 Barristers 74
8 Queen’s Counsel 75
9 Licensed conveyancers 75
10 De-regulation of legal services 76
11 Legal Services Ombudsman 76
Exercises 76
6 Outline of the law of persons 77
1 Legal persons 77
2 Nationality and domicile 77
British nationality 78
Loss of nationality 79
British Protected Persons 80
Aliens 80
Domicile 80
3 Marriage 81
4 Divorce 84
5 Domestic proceedings in magistrates’ courts 85
6 Legitimation 85
7 Adoption 85
8 Guardianship 87
9 Illegitimacy 88
10 Infants or minors 88
11 Mental capacity 90
12 Gender Recognition 90
13 Equality and Human Rights 91
14 Corporations 91
Classes of Corporations 91
Share structure of a company 94
The ‘ultra vires’ rule 94
Termination of a company 95
Company voluntary arrangements 95
15 Unincorporated associations 95
Legal liability of unincorporated associations 95
16 Partnerships 96
17 Trade unions and employers’ associations 97
18 Employment rights – protection against victimization 98
19 Crown proceedings 98
The Crown as employer 99
The Crown Proceedings Act, 1947 99
20 Data protection 101
Exercises 101
7 The law of contract 103
1 Essentials of a valid contract 103
2 Classification of contracts 104
3 Offer and acceptance 105
Rules regarding acceptance 110
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4 Intention to create legal relations 113
5 Consideration 114
Rules of consideration 114
6 Form 120
7 The doctrine of Part Performance 123
8 Contractual capacity 124
Infants or minors 124
Corporations 127
Insane and drunken persons 129
Married women 129
Aliens 129
9 Terms of a contract 130
Exemption clauses 132
The Unfair Contract Terms Act, 1977 134
Conditions and warranties 136
10 Void, voidable, and illegal contracts 136
Mistake 136
Misrepresentation 142
Contracts ‘uberrimae fidei’ 147
Duress and undue influence 148
11 Illegality 150
Contracts declared illegal by statute 150
Contracts illegal at common law 151
Effects of illegality 155
12 Discharge of contract 156
13 Remedies for breach of contract 164
14 Privity of contract 171
15 Assignment 173
16 Interpretation of a contract 176
17 Quasi-contract 176
Exercises 177
8 The law of torts 179
1 The nature of a tort 179
Definition of a tort 180
Damage and liability 180
Malice 181
2 General defences in tort 182
3 Capacity of parties 187
4 Remoteness of damage 190
5 Vicarious liability in tort 191
Joint tortfeasors 195
6 Trespass 195
7 Interference with goods 201
8 Nuisance 203
9 Negligence 208
Contributory negligence 214
10 Breach of statutory duty 216
11 Death: survival of actions 216
12 Occupiers’ liability 218
Dangerous premises 218
Trespassers 219
Children 219
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Contents ix
13 The rule in ‘Rylands v. Fletcher’ (1868) 220
14 Defamation 224
15 Deceit 231
16 Malicious falsehood 232
17 Limitation of actions 233
Exercises 234
9 Trusts 237
1 Definition of a trust 237
2 Private trusts 238
3 Public (or charitable) trusts 240
4 Differences between private and charitable trusts 242
5 The rules against perpetuities 243
6 Trustees 243
7 Trust corporations 243
8 Appointment of trustees 244
9 Termination of trusteeship 244
10 Duties and powers of trustees 244
11 Liability for breaches of trust 246
12 Following the trust property (tracing) 246
13 Relief from liability for breach 247
Exercises 247
10 The law of property 249
1 Ownership 249
2 Possession 250
3 Property 251
4 Freehold and leasehold land 253
5 Reform of the land law 256
6 An estate in fee simple absolute in possession 257
Extent of rights 258
7 Future estates 259
8 Settlements and trusts for sale 260
The Settled Land Act, 1925 261
9 Co-ownership 263
10 Leaseholds 264
Tenancies 265
Creation of leases 266
Duties of landlord and tenant 266
Express covenants 267
11 Servitudes 268
12 Commonhold 270
13 Restrictive covenants 271
14 Mortgages 272
15 The sale of land 276
16 Registered land 278
Exercises 279
11 The law of succession 281
1 Wills 281
2 Legacies and devises 286
3 Specimen will 287
4 Family provision 288