Religion / idea · concept

Common law

Common law is a legal system developed in England, based largely on judicial precedent and court decisions rather than comprehensive written codes. The British Empire spread it to its colonies, and it underlies the legal systems of many countries today. It is contrasted with the civil law tradition derived from the Roman law preserved in the Byzantine Empire's Corpus Juris Civilis.

Common law
Image: Derivate: Goldsztern Original: Maximilian Dörrbecker · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 7 profiles

British EmpireGovernanceByzantine EmpireImpactKingdom of EnglandGovernance, Impact, SummaryElectoral PalatinateGovernanceKingdom of IrelandGovernanceUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandImpactUnited KingdomGovernance, Impact

Mentioned in 6 state histories

Kingdom of EnglandIcelandic CommonwealthLordship of IrelandPrincipality of AnhaltUpper CanadaUnited Kingdom

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Common law. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/common-law
MLA
“Common law.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/common-law. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Common law.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/common-law.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Common law’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/common-law (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻