If like means "similiar to" and can only compare nouns and noun phrases, can the following be correct?

"Like in the previous case, the judge took an early break." (similiar to the previous case, the judge took an early break)

"As in the previous case, the judge took an early break."

"Just as the trains were late yesterday,the buses are late today" In this case, since there is a verb in the clause, you must use AS.

Am i on the right track here ? i'm a little confused.


thanks guys.