Question

‘Per incuriam’ means:

• A. Supremacy of law
• B. Mistaken identity
• C. Mistaken decision
• D. Supremacy of the Constitution

Hint:

“Per incuriam” judgments are exceptions to the doctrine of precedent; they can be ignored by lower courts because they were made without considering crucial legal provisions.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

The phrase “Per incuriam” comes from Latin and literally means “through lack of care” or “through ignorance”.
In legal usage, it refers to a judgment or decision made in ignorance of a relevant law or precedent.
Such a decision is considered to be a “mistaken decision” because the court failed to consider important legal provisions or past rulings that should have influenced the outcome.
Option (a) “Supremacy of law” refers to the principle that all individuals and institutions are subject to the law — not the meaning of this term.
Option (b) “Mistaken identity” relates to criminal law situations where someone is wrongly identified as an offender.
Option (d) “Supremacy of the Constitution” relates to the idea that the Constitution is the highest law of the land — again, unrelated.
Therefore, “Per incuriam” is best understood as “Mistaken decision” in the legal sense, implying that the ruling does not have binding authority due to the error.