Difference between Common Law and Civil Law in Canada

The Canadian legal system in every province exceptCourt of Canada that authority to bind all courts in the
for Quebec is based on the British common lawcountry with a single ruling. If a there is a little or no
system. The Quebec province retains a civil systemexisting Canadian decision on a legal issue it is possible
for issues of private law, however both of these legalthat the court will look to a non-Canadian legal authority
systems are subject to the Constitution of Canada.for reference. Most often the decisions on other
Inside the commonwealth system everything is dividedcommonwealth countries like the U.S. and England are
into areas like criminal law or civil law. It this article weutilized. While the decisions of English higher courts like
will examine the Civil Law area and the Common Lawthe English Court of Appeal are respected and these
area in Canada.courts are considered the be persuasive authority,
Common lawmany of the constitution or privacy related issues are
Canada belongs to a group of common law countries,solved basing on the decisions of United States courts,
so Canadian law adheres to the doctrine of starebecause the there is a much greater body of
decisis. In this system all the lower courts are bound byjurisprudence in U.S. law than English law in these
the decisions of higher courts and must follow it. Butareas. Canadian courts are also particularly bind with
this works only inside one province, lower courts fromthe decisions of the House of Lords made before
two different provinces are not bound by each others1867, but practice shows that most of these decisions
decisions. The decisions made by a province's highestwere overturned by the Canadian Supreme Court or
court like the Court of Appeal, nevertheless aresimply not considered serious by any of the Canadian
considered as "persuasive" even though they are notlower courts.
binding on other provinces. There is also the Supreme