SUMMARY

1 Common law legal method uses the standard techniques of reasoning by analogy, induction and deduction.

2 However, the doctrine of binding precedent is a distinguishing feature of common law legal method, which means you must be completely at ease with the hierarchy of the courts, the concepts of ratio decidendi and obiter dictum, and the nature and extent of bindingness.

3 Legal method can offer substantial scope for creative reasoning.

4 Legal method requires considerable sensitivity to the potential which language has for uncertainty of meaning.

5 When interpreting legislation, you must not only take into account the context within which words are used but also recognise that the legislative purpose is an important part of that context.

6 English lawyers need to be familiar with at least the basics of civil law legal method (using the phrase civil law to indicate the Roman law based legal systems of continental Europe) because of the ways in which European Union law and the law of the European Convention on Human Rights impact on English law.