Finality, in
law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
, is the concept that certain disputes must achieve a resolution from which no further
appeal
In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...
may be taken, and from which no collateral proceedings may be permitted to disturb that resolution. For example, in some jurisdictions, those convicted of a crime may not sue their defence attorney for incompetence or
legal malpractice
Legal malpractice is the term for negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, or breach of contract by a lawyer during the provision of legal services that causes harm to a client.
Examples
A common example of legal malpractice involves the lawyer's m ...
if the civil
lawsuit
-
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...
would call into question the finality of the criminal conviction.
Finality is considered to be important because otherwise, there would be no certainty as to the meaning of the law, or the outcome of any legal process. The principle is an aspect of the separation of powers, that being a distinction between the executive and the judicial power. That concept was defined in ''
Kable v Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW)
''Kable v DPP'',. is a decision of the High Court of Australia. It is a significant case in Australian constitutional law.
The case is notable for having established the 'Kable Doctrine', a precept in Australian law with relevance to numerous i ...
'' in which a court stated that unless orders were valid until set aside, "the exercise of judicial power could yield no adjudication of right and liability to which immediate effect could be given".
The importance of finality is the source of the concept of ''
res judicata
''Res judicata'' (RJ) or ''res iudicata'', also known as claim preclusion, is the Latin term for "a matter decided" and refers to either of two concepts in both civil law and common law legal systems: a case in which there has been a final judgm ...
'': the decisions of one court are settled law and may not be retried in another case brought in a different court.
References
{{law-term-stub
Legal procedure
Legal doctrines and principles