Which body has the power to make common law and enforce the law?

Which body has the power to make common law and enforce the law?

• A. The courts
• B. The Parliament
• C. The Prime Minister
• D. The Police

Answer: (A)

In a common law system, the law is formed by judges in the courts through the decisions they reach in individual cases. Those rulings create precedents that shape future conduct and fill gaps where no statute exists. At the same time, the courts enforce the law by issuing judgments, orders, and remedies, and by carrying out the processes that punish or remedy breaches. Parliament is responsible for creating statutes, the Prime Minister is not a law-making body, and the Police enforce laws but do not create them. So the courts are the body that both makes (through case law) and enforces the law.

In a common law system, the law is formed by judges in the courts through the decisions they reach in individual cases. Those rulings create precedents that shape future conduct and fill gaps where no statute exists. At the same time, the courts enforce the law by issuing judgments, orders, and remedies, and by carrying out the processes that punish or remedy breaches. Parliament is responsible for creating statutes, the Prime Minister is not a law-making body, and the Police enforce laws but do not create them. So the courts are the body that both makes (through case law) and enforces the law.