Ex tempore decision

Ex tempore (Latin for "out of the moment“) is a law latin legal term that means "at the time". A judge who hands down a decision in a case soon or straight after hearing it is delivering a decision ex tempore. Another way a judge may deliver a decision is to reserve their decision and deliver it later in written form. An ex tempore judgment, being off the cuff, does not entail the same preparation as a reserved decision. Consequently, it will not be thought out to the same degree.[citation needed]

In Australia, intermediate-level courts tend to have a heavy case load, and so many decisions are delivered ex tempore for reasons of time and necessity. Because many decisions of intermediate-level courts are ex tempore, those decisions are not binding on inferior courts as a matter of stare decisis. For example, in New South Wales, the District Court's decisions are not binding on the Local Court.

Ex tempore decisions are not binding on later courts due to the quick nature of their delivery after the hearing of a case. Therefore, these decisions are of persuasive authority only and a later court, dealing with a case of similar facts, can reach a different conclusion if it is appropriate and the court in question believes that their decision is more suitable.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Holland, James; Webb, Julian (2019). Learning Legal Rules: A Students' Guide to Legal Method and Reasoning (10th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 81–82. ISBN 9780198799900. OCLC 1108710547. OL 28144803M.
  2. ↑ Zander, Michael (2004). The Law-Making Process. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-60989-0.
  3. ↑ Valentine v Eid (1992), 27 NSWLR 615.

Further reading