The rule of law is the idea that everyone, including the government, is subject to and accountable under the law. For a solicitor it is not abstract theory: it tells you when a public body has acted lawfully, when an interference with a client's rights can be challenged, and how the courts will read a statute that seems to cut across basic protections. Whenever you question whether the state had the power to do something, you are working with the rule of law.
This lesson builds the principle up step by step:
- The Principle — what the rule of law means, its classical core, and how it sits alongside parliamentary sovereignty.
- Legality and No Power Above the Law — why every act affecting rights needs a legal basis, and what happens when authority is missing.
- The Principle of Legality and Statutory Interpretation — how courts presume Parliament did not mean to sweep away fundamental rights.
- Protective Presumptions — the presumptions against retrospective laws and in favour of mens rea.
- Access to Justice and Ouster Clauses — how courts protect the right to reach them, and why laws must be clear and accessible.
- Judicial Independence and Impartiality — the protections that keep judges free from pressure and bias.