Advantages of Legislation over Precedent as a source of law

● Abrogative Power:● Legislation is both constitutive and ab rogative ● Precedent merely possesses constitutive efficacy. ● Legislation is not only a source of law, but it is equally

effective in amending or annulling the existing law.

Precedent, on the other hand, cannot abrogate the existing rule of law although it may produce very good law

● In some respects better than legislation. What it does, it does once for all. It cannot retrace its steps. Legislation as a destructive and reformative agent has no equal

Disadvantages of statute law

● Not made by persons who know law ● Too rigid● Procedural delay in enactment ● Dominated by political agenda● Legislation may at times be a knee jerk reaction● Little public knowledge

Disadvantages of precedent as source of law

● Complex and voluminous● Rigid● Illogical distinction● Unpredictability ● Dependence on chance● Unsystamatic progression● Lack of research● Retrospective operation ● Undemocratic

● Division of labour● Prospective operation● Law making by anticipation● Legislation is more concrete

Advantages of Precedent over Legislation

● Morality of courts is higher than the morality of the politicians

● Judges perform their functions impartially and fearlessly

● Precedent enjoys greater flexibility than statute law● Equity mitigates rigours of legislation● Statutes not necessarily ensure certainity