ABSTRACT
Common law was the unwritten law made by the King’s judges as opposed to Statute law. It has come to mean the domestic legal system generally applied, not only in England but also for example in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore and the USA. In common law systems, previous judicial decisions are legally binding on certain other courts under the rule of precedent, obliging such courts to apply the legal principle on which those earlier decisions were based. The same circumstances can give the right to claim for breach of contract and in tort. Whether the injured party is entitled to exercise both rights of action against the same wrongdoer depends on the applicable domestic law. The court must analyse the facts, apply its domestic law principles in deciding the law of which legal system governs the contract, and then decide whether under that law, a valid contract has been made.
