Question of Law, Question of Fact and mixed question of law and Fact, Law vs Facts

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Introduction


It is commonly said that all questions which arise for consideration in a court of justice are of two kinds. They are either question of law or question of fact. It has been very difficult to define the exact difference between the law and fact. In the below we will discussed about the question of law,  question of fact and mixed question of law and fact. At the end we concluded how a court decided and takes decision from law according to facts.

Question of Law

Question of law is defined as

 "It is a question which must be answered by applying relevant legal principles, by an interpretation of the law."

According to Salmond; the term question f law is used in three distinct senses

  1. Question determined authoritatively answered by the law
  2. Interpretation of statutory provisions
  3. Questions to be answered by the judges
Question Determined Authoritatively Answer by the Law:

In the 1st place, it means a question which the court is bound to answer in accordance with the rule of law which has already been authoritatively answered by the court. All other questions are question of fact. e.g. whether a holder of bills of exchange has been guilty of unreasonable delay in giving notice of dishonor is a question of law and is to be determined in accordance with the rules laid down in bills of exchange Act.

Interpretation of Statutory Provisions:


In the 2nd sense, a question of law is a question as to what the law is. An appeal on question of law means an appeal in which the question for decision is what the true rule of law is on a certain matter.
Duty of Court: The business of the court is to determine what in its own judgment and fact, the true meaning of the words used by the legislatures. An authoritative answer to the question becomes the judicial precedent.

Questions to be answered by the Judges: 

In the 3rd sense, there is a general rule that the question of law are to be answered by the judges and question of fact are to be answered by the jury. It is true that questions of law are never referred to the jury but questions of face can be referred to the judges.
The question of reasonable and probable cause for prosecution in a suit for malicious prosecution is decided by judge not by jury even it is a question of fact.

Question of Fact

Question of face also known as point of fact is defined as
 "A disputed factual contention that is generally left for the jury to decide"

In Wider Sense: It includes all the questions which are not the question of law. According to Salmond; "A question of fact means either any question which is not pre-determined by rule of law, or any question except the question as to what the law is or any question which is to be answered by the jury"
In Narrower Sense: A question of fact is opposed to question of judicial discretion which includes questions as to what is right, just and equitable or reasonable.
Illustration: 
Question of Law: Does leaving a baby with a 10-year old child for 4 day fit the legal definition of child neglect?
Question of Fact: Did Mr. and Mrs. Holland leave their 10 year old child home alone with their baby for 4 days?

Mixed Question of Law and Fact

Experience shows that in actual practice, question of law and fact are mixed. In the same case the court has to decide question of law and fact.

If there is a dispute whether the partnership exists among certain parties or not, it is the question of fact that what is the basic relation among them and its is a question of law that whether the basis relation among the parties continues as partnership in the eye of law or not. Thus it is a mixed question of law and fact.

Transformation of Question of Fact into Law:

As more and more cases are settled, precedents have come into farce. If the facts of the two cases are identical, the discretion of judge disappears and he is bound to give his decision according to the precedent on the subject.

Conclusion

it is concluded that the questions which are to be determined by the court are of three kinds, questions as to law, question as to fact and mixed question of law and facts which is also called judicial discretion. As the legal system grows, there is a tendency to transform question of fact, into those of questions of law. 

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