Advisory opinions are legal advice given when there is no case or dispute but concern about the legality of the law. They can be obtained from courts, lawyers, and ethics commissions, but are not legally binding. They can be used to determine whether to proceed with an activity or legal case.
An advisory opinion is legal advice offered in a situation where there is not a case or dispute, but there is concern about the interpretation or legality of the law. There are a number of contexts in which such views may be offered. In some regions, some courts may be excluded from issuing advisory opinions under national law. When advisory opinions are issued, they may be made public or kept private depending on the country and the nature of the opinion.
One way to get an advisory opinion is to go to a court and ask the court for an opinion. In regions where courts may offer advisory opinions, a judge or panel of judges may review the information submitted to the court and provide a written opinion thereon. Opinion may state, for example, that a law appears to be legal and provide arguments to support this position, drawing on legal precedents and national values. Or an advisory opinion might suggest that a law is illegal and unlikely to stand up to challenge.
Another source of an advisory opinion can be a lawyer and jurist. Many government agencies retain attorneys on staff and may ask their staff to issue advisory opinions. This is often advised before passing a new regulation or making major policy changes. The goal is to evaluate the proposed material to discuss whether it will be appropriate or not. For example, an environment agency might seek an advisory opinion on a planned change to emissions rules.
Ethics commissions can also issue advisory opinions. In this case, someone would approach the commission asking for an advisory opinion on an issue involving the intersection of ethics and law. It is often advisable to consult people experienced in ethical matters before undertaking a project or activity that could be considered ethically problematic or questionable; for example, people are required to delete research involving human subjects with ethics panels.
As a rule, an advisory opinion is not legally binding. However, it can provide useful information on a topic of interest and can be used to determine whether or not to proceed with a planned activity, proposal or legal case. People should be aware, however, that opinions can differ radically. An activity authorized by one lawyer may be considered objectionable by another, or by a court called into session to consider it, and an advisory opinion is not necessarily a green light to proceed.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
