The published judgement of courts. The law reports are released in series such as the Commonwealth Law Reports, which contain the judgements of the High Court of Australia, and the Australian Law Reports, which contain the judgements of courts, such as the Federal Court of Australia, the State Supreme Courts exercising Federal jurisdiction and the Supreme Courts of the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Teritory.
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liable (liability)
Where someone incurs a legal obligation or commits a breach; it can be criminal or civil
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A court that is low in its particular hierarchy of courts. (For example the Magistrates' Court is a lower court in the Victorian system of courts). Under the rules of precedent a lower court is bound by the previous decisions of higher courts in the same hierarchy.
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A court which has jurisdiction to hear and to determine minor civil and criminal cases and to conduct commital proceedings and other preliminary examinations. Magistrates' Courts exist in Queensland and in Victoria. In Sounth Australia, the equivalent is called a Court of Summary Jurisdiction, and in New South Wales and in Western Australia it is called a Court of Petty Sessions. In Tasmania, the terms Court of Summary Jurisdiction and Court of Petty Sessions are used. A Magistrates' Court is an inferior court.
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An untrue representation (statement of fact). A material (important) statement of fact, made prior to a contract being entered and made by one of the parties to the other, which was intended to induce (persuade) and did induce the latter to enter into the contract with the former. For instance, assuming the vendor of an hotel did intend the statement to induce and the statement did induce the purchaser to enter the contract, a claim that the hotel is 'pulling' fifty barrels of beer a week when it is only 'pulling' forty barrels, is a misrepresentation. The remedy available to the victim of a misrepresentation depends on whether the misrepresentation was made deliberately (fraudulent) or accidentally (innocent).
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The tort which protects people and their property from the careless behavior of other members of the community. To succeed in an action of negligence, the complainant or the plaintiff must prove that the defendant: (a) owed to the complainant or the plaintiff a duty to take care, (b) failed to observe that duty, and (c) caused the complainant or the plaintiff to suffer damages as a consequence.
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The test used to determine the conduct or mental state or behaviour or intention of a person when that person said or did something. The test uses a standard external to the person. That is, the test asks what would a reasonable person decide what the particular individual intended taking into account all the circumstances. The test is generally used in the civil law, whilst the subjective test is generally used in criminal law.
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The person to whom an offer is made (eg, a person interested in purchasing some land may make an offer to the owner - it is the owner in these circumstances that becomes the offeree. If the owner, in turn, makes a different offer to the intended purchaser then the intended purchaser becomes the offeree). The person making the offer is the offeror.
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The person who makes an offer. See 'offeree' above
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overruling (overrule)
Where a court sets aside the authority established in a previous case and by a lower court. For instance, if a single Justice of the High Court of Australia decided 'A' in 1980 on the basis of facts 'M' and 'N', but the Full Court of the High Court decided 'Z' in 1985 on the basis of similar facts, the Full Court is said to 'overrule' the decision of the single justice.
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