... In the judgement, the judge will give a summary of the facts of the particular case and he would explain the principle of law he used to come to his decision. The judge may also sometimes discuss what the law would have been if the facts of the case had been different, these are known as hypothetical situations. The most important part of each judgement is the principle of law the judge used to come to his decision, this is known as the ratio decidendi, this is a Latin phrase meaning 'the reason for deciding'. This is the part of the judgement that creates the precedent for future cases, the rest of the judgement is known as obiter dicta, this is another Latin phrase meaning 'other things said'. This obiter does not create any binding law, but future judges can refer to it if the so choose. Precedent is also ...

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