ABSTRACT
Norwegian lawyers traditionally entertain a sceptical attitude towards specialized courts, that is, courts whose competence is limited to particular areas of the law. There are some differences between various branches of law as regards the factors that determine the weight of precedents. Important parts of Norwegian law, such as law of torts, law of contract, administrative law and constitutional law, derive mainly from precedent. Conflicting precedents are rather unusual in the Norwegian legal system, since the main source of precedent is the Supreme Court and since the output of this court is manageable. Anticipatory overruling may be said to be formally permitted in the Norwegian legal system. Norwegian lawyers may speak of 'leading case' in the sense of the first, the latest, the most important or the most typical case in a line of cases. Judges surely consider rationales when they decide upon the degree of bindingness of previous judicial decisions, but the rationales are seldom discussed in judicial opinions.
