Contract v. Tort and Statutory Law v. Common Law (basic concepts)

Here are a few basic terms that I’ll use throughout this Blog. I apologize if they are too basic, but I don’t want to lose non-lawyers by assuming that these terms are commonly understood.

Cases “brought in contract” involve a plaintiff asserting a right that would not exist without a contract between the parties. For example, a plaintiff cannot assert that I should have painted its warehouse unless we had a contract in which I promised to paint it.

Cases “brought in tort,” are based on violations of duties imposed by society. For example, if you leave a banana peal on your shop floor and someone slips on it, you could be liable for a tort called negligence because you failed to meet your societal duty to keep your floor safe.

Statutory law is law created through the legislative process. Statutes can apply to both tort and contract actions. For example, in a case brought because the defendant did not accept the delivery of goods purchased from the plaintiff, the available remedies may be dictated by statute. Statutory law is sometimes referred to as “code.” (For example, the UCC or Uniform Commercial Code, is a collection of model laws, dealing with commercial issues, that states have modified and incorporated into their statutes. In Pennsylvania, the collection of statutes based on the UCC is sometimes referred to as the “Pennsylvania Uniform Commercial Code.”)

Common law refers to laws created by the written opinions of judges, in the absence of statutory laws. Our common law system was inherited from England during colonial times and has evolved since then. Like statutory law, common law can apply to both tort and contract actions. Every court system in the country (50 state systems plus the federal system) has a hierarchy where its lower courts must follow the common law created by its higher courts. This helps make the common law uniform within each system. Common law may be displaced by statutory law.



The information contained in this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such. For legal advice or for answers to specific questions, please contact the blog's author.