What is Common Law, in particular, the one of the USA

Abstract

In the introduction, the author treats the juridical phenomenon as susceptible of being described by scientific principles (law-science). Therefore, for scientific methodology, it is possible to take a complementary study of the great juridical systems of the present time (families of rights). The great lines of the Roman-Germanic family of the rights will be studied, in comparison to "Common Law" family. After, the three senses of the expression "Common Law" are examined: as a typical system, born in England and that was extended by the world of English speech. Inside of this system, the appropriate "Common Law" senses, as being a right created by the judge (in opposition to the written right) and, historically, as the right created by the King's Tribunals (in opposition to that one created by the Tribunals of the King's Chancellor). Special emphasis is given to the right of the USA, considered as a mixed system, between the family of the Roman-Germanic rights and "Common Law".