Statement I Analysis: Custom Validity

A custom, to be legally valid, must fulfill several conditions. These typically include being practiced from 'time immemorial' (which implies it must be ancient), certain, reasonable, and continuous. The statement claims a custom should be 'immemorial' but 'may not be ancient'. This is contradictory, as 'immemorial' inherently means ancient, existing since before legal memory. Therefore, Statement I is false because ancientness (immemorial nature) is a necessary condition for a valid custom.

Statement II Analysis: Ratio Decidendi

Judicial decisions create precedents that guide future cases. The binding part of a judicial decision, which lower courts must follow, is known as the ratio decidendi. This represents the legal principle or rule directly applied by the court to the facts of the case. Other parts of the judgment, like obiter dicta (things said by the way), are persuasive but not strictly authoritative. Thus, Statement II correctly identifies the ratio decidendi as the authoritative principle in a judicial decision.