{"id":699,"date":"2015-04-23T17:28:28","date_gmt":"2015-04-23T17:28:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/masterybusiness1xngcxmaster\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=699"},"modified":"2024-05-03T15:35:51","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T15:35:51","slug":"statutory-vs-common-law","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/chapter\/statutory-vs-common-law\/","title":{"raw":"Statutory vs. Common Law","rendered":"Statutory vs. Common Law"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Define statutory law<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Define common law<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Statutory Law<\/h2>\r\nStatutory law is laws passed by Congress that represent one of the primary sources of law in the United States. This legislative power was established in the Constitution, which granted Congress the power to pass laws or statutes on any subject not prohibited in that document. The White House website summarizes the composition, powers, and process of the legislative branch of government. To excerpt: \"Established by Article I of the Constitution, the Legislative Branch consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation.\u201d[footnote]\"The Legislative Branch.\" The White House. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/about-the-white-house\/the-legislative-branch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/about-the-white-house\/the-legislative-branch\/<\/a>.[\/footnote]\r\n\r\nA new statute generally starts as a proposal or \u201cbill.\u201d According to the GovTrack website, Congress considers around 5,000 bills and resolutions annually; only a fraction\u2014approximately 7% or 350\u2014become law.[footnote]\"Bills and Resolutions.\" GovTrack.us. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/<\/a>.[\/footnote] For perspective on current bills, see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">GovTrack.us, an independent website tracking the status of legislation in the United States Congress<\/a>. In order to advance, a bill must win a simple majority vote in both the House and Senate. A bill that is approved by Congress is submitted to the president for consideration. At this point, the bill is either signed and becomes a new statute\u2014law\u2014or is vetoed. If the president vetoes the bill, a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate is required to override the veto and pass the bill. If the votes garner that support, the bill becomes law without the president\u2019s signature.\r\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\r\n<h3>Statutory Law In North Carolina<\/h3>\r\n<p class=\"title editable block\"><img class=\"alignright wp-image-8029\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/143\/2016\/10\/25215312\/3028317639_107190ee32_b-201x300.jpg\" alt=\"several bottles of beer\" width=\"250\" height=\"374\" \/><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"title editable block\">Suppose you are headed over to a friend's house to watch football on Sunday, and on your way, you stop in at the local supermarket to buy some beer and pretzels for the gang. You carry\u00a0your six-pack and snacks up to the counter to pay, and\u00a0the clerk tells you that she's sorry, but she can't\u00a0sell you the beer. At first, you think it's because she suspects\u00a0you're underage, but before you can show her your ID, she explains that she can't\u00a0sell alcohol before noon, because: (1) it's Sunday, and (2) you are in the state of North Carolina.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"title editable block\">Shocked, you think she's joking until she refers you to the following NC Statute: N.C. General Statute 18B-1004(c) states,<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"title editable block\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u201cIt shall be unlawful to sell or consume alcoholic beverages on any licensed premises from the time at which sale or consumption must cease on Sunday morning until 12:00 noon on that day.\u201d<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"title editable block\">No amount of begging or pleading will get you the\u00a0beer, because the owner of the supermarket knows that if she violates N.C. General Statute 18B-1004(c), the store's ABC license could\u00a0be revoked and its alcohol sales ended\u00a0<em>permanently<\/em>. This is an example of statutory law.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Common Law<\/h2>\r\n<div class=\"section\">\r\n\r\nCommon law is based on the concept of precedence, which requires judges to decide a case based on prior rulings, or, at a minimum, consider the reasoning of prior judges when deciding a case with similar facts. The constraints that precedence imposes on a judge depend on court hierarchy, case relevance, and jurisdiction. As outlined by the Indiana Court System, \u201cWhen a decision is made by a higher court, the lower courts must follow it. Once a case is decided, it establishes a precedent, or a judicial decision that should be followed when a similar case comes to court. To serve as precedent for a pending case, a prior decision must have almost the same question of law and almost the same facts. If the precedent is from another area, such as another state's Supreme Court, it can be considered, but it does not have to be followed.\u201d In this way, new decisions can become a legal precedent. A binding precedent is referred to by the Latin phrase <em>stare decisis<\/em> or \u201clet the decision stand.\u201d\r\n\r\nThe upside of this doctrine of precedence is predictability. Melbourne Law School professor Matthew Harding summarizes the logic of this practice: \u201cThe moral value of the doctrine of precedent is in the way it serves the political ideal of the rule of law; according to that ideal, institutions of the state, like courts, should strive to ensure that the law is developed and applied in a consistent and predictable manner, so that citizens may order their affairs with confidence as to their rights and duties.\u201d[footnote]Harding, Matthew. \"The High Court and the Doctrine of Precedent.\" Opinions on High. July 18, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.unimelb.edu.au\/opinionsonhigh\/2013\/07\/18\/harding-precedent\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/blogs.unimelb.edu.au\/opinionsonhigh\/2013\/07\/18\/harding-precedent\/<\/a>.[\/footnote]\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Practice Questions<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/3cf9ad51-1122-4552-b81b-e97ffad6c03f\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/f428d26f-c218-4c57-9f7f-c458cdb40ac1\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Define statutory law<\/li>\n<li>Define common law<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Statutory Law<\/h2>\n<p>Statutory law is laws passed by Congress that represent one of the primary sources of law in the United States. This legislative power was established in the Constitution, which granted Congress the power to pass laws or statutes on any subject not prohibited in that document. The White House website summarizes the composition, powers, and process of the legislative branch of government. To excerpt: &#8220;Established by Article I of the Constitution, the Legislative Branch consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;The Legislative Branch.&quot; The White House. Accessed June 12, 2019. https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/about-the-white-house\/the-legislative-branch\/.\" id=\"return-footnote-699-1\" href=\"#footnote-699-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A new statute generally starts as a proposal or \u201cbill.\u201d According to the GovTrack website, Congress considers around 5,000 bills and resolutions annually; only a fraction\u2014approximately 7% or 350\u2014become law.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;Bills and Resolutions.&quot; GovTrack.us. Accessed June 12, 2019. https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/.\" id=\"return-footnote-699-2\" href=\"#footnote-699-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a> For perspective on current bills, see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">GovTrack.us, an independent website tracking the status of legislation in the United States Congress<\/a>. In order to advance, a bill must win a simple majority vote in both the House and Senate. A bill that is approved by Congress is submitted to the president for consideration. At this point, the bill is either signed and becomes a new statute\u2014law\u2014or is vetoed. If the president vetoes the bill, a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate is required to override the veto and pass the bill. If the votes garner that support, the bill becomes law without the president\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox examples\">\n<h3>Statutory Law In North Carolina<\/h3>\n<p class=\"title editable block\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-8029\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/143\/2016\/10\/25215312\/3028317639_107190ee32_b-201x300.jpg\" alt=\"several bottles of beer\" width=\"250\" height=\"374\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"title editable block\">Suppose you are headed over to a friend&#8217;s house to watch football on Sunday, and on your way, you stop in at the local supermarket to buy some beer and pretzels for the gang. You carry\u00a0your six-pack and snacks up to the counter to pay, and\u00a0the clerk tells you that she&#8217;s sorry, but she can&#8217;t\u00a0sell you the beer. At first, you think it&#8217;s because she suspects\u00a0you&#8217;re underage, but before you can show her your ID, she explains that she can&#8217;t\u00a0sell alcohol before noon, because: (1) it&#8217;s Sunday, and (2) you are in the state of North Carolina.<\/p>\n<p class=\"title editable block\">Shocked, you think she&#8217;s joking until she refers you to the following NC Statute: N.C. General Statute 18B-1004(c) states,<\/p>\n<p class=\"title editable block\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u201cIt shall be unlawful to sell or consume alcoholic beverages on any licensed premises from the time at which sale or consumption must cease on Sunday morning until 12:00 noon on that day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"title editable block\">No amount of begging or pleading will get you the\u00a0beer, because the owner of the supermarket knows that if she violates N.C. General Statute 18B-1004(c), the store&#8217;s ABC license could\u00a0be revoked and its alcohol sales ended\u00a0<em>permanently<\/em>. This is an example of statutory law.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Common Law<\/h2>\n<div class=\"section\">\n<p>Common law is based on the concept of precedence, which requires judges to decide a case based on prior rulings, or, at a minimum, consider the reasoning of prior judges when deciding a case with similar facts. The constraints that precedence imposes on a judge depend on court hierarchy, case relevance, and jurisdiction. As outlined by the Indiana Court System, \u201cWhen a decision is made by a higher court, the lower courts must follow it. Once a case is decided, it establishes a precedent, or a judicial decision that should be followed when a similar case comes to court. To serve as precedent for a pending case, a prior decision must have almost the same question of law and almost the same facts. If the precedent is from another area, such as another state&#8217;s Supreme Court, it can be considered, but it does not have to be followed.\u201d In this way, new decisions can become a legal precedent. A binding precedent is referred to by the Latin phrase <em>stare decisis<\/em> or \u201clet the decision stand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The upside of this doctrine of precedence is predictability. Melbourne Law School professor Matthew Harding summarizes the logic of this practice: \u201cThe moral value of the doctrine of precedent is in the way it serves the political ideal of the rule of law; according to that ideal, institutions of the state, like courts, should strive to ensure that the law is developed and applied in a consistent and predictable manner, so that citizens may order their affairs with confidence as to their rights and duties.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Harding, Matthew. &quot;The High Court and the Doctrine of Precedent.&quot; Opinions on High. July 18, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https:\/\/blogs.unimelb.edu.au\/opinionsonhigh\/2013\/07\/18\/harding-precedent\/.\" id=\"return-footnote-699-3\" href=\"#footnote-699-3\" aria-label=\"Footnote 3\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Practice Questions<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_3cf9ad51-1122-4552-b81b-e97ffad6c03f\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/3cf9ad51-1122-4552-b81b-e97ffad6c03f?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_3cf9ad51-1122-4552-b81b-e97ffad6c03f\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_f428d26f-c218-4c57-9f7f-c458cdb40ac1\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/f428d26f-c218-4c57-9f7f-c458cdb40ac1?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_f428d26f-c218-4c57-9f7f-c458cdb40ac1\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-699\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Original<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Statutory Law in North Carolina. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Linda Williams and Lumen Learning. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Tidewater Community College. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>Statutory vs. Common Law. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Nina Burokas. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Beer. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: DeusXFlorida. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/8363028@N08\/3028317639\/\">https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/8363028@N08\/3028317639\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-699-1\">\"The Legislative Branch.\" The White House. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/about-the-white-house\/the-legislative-branch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/about-the-white-house\/the-legislative-branch\/<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-699-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-699-2\">\"Bills and Resolutions.\" GovTrack.us. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-699-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-699-3\">Harding, Matthew. \"The High Court and the Doctrine of Precedent.\" Opinions on High. July 18, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.unimelb.edu.au\/opinionsonhigh\/2013\/07\/18\/harding-precedent\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/blogs.unimelb.edu.au\/opinionsonhigh\/2013\/07\/18\/harding-precedent\/<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-699-3\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 3\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":78,"menu_order":7,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"Statutory Law in North Carolina\",\"author\":\"Linda Williams and Lumen Learning\",\"organization\":\"Tidewater Community College\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Beer\",\"author\":\"DeusXFlorida\",\"organization\":\"\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/8363028@N08\/3028317639\/\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"Statutory vs. Common Law\",\"author\":\"Nina Burokas\",\"organization\":\"Lumen Learning\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"003638dc-da0d-4dde-833f-5a1a5a0fd2ae, dd04f200-fa9e-4173-98e7-bbb5732fc5e9, f6accd12-abd2-48a9-82ea-8c96ff9c990d","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-699","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":84,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/699","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/78"}],"version-history":[{"count":45,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/699\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15351,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/699\/revisions\/15351"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/84"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/699\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=699"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=699"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=699"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=699"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}