AC 1.1 - Laws and Judges Flashcards
The House of Lords
The upper house of the British parliament.
The House of Commons
The first legislative body of Parliament whose members are elected.
Green Paper
An initial report to provoke public discussion of the subject.
Includes questions for interested individuals and organisations to respond to.
White Paper
A document setting out the detailed plans for legislation.
Includes a draft version of the bill that they intend to put before parliament.
First Reading
Formal introductions of the bill into the Commons.
Second Reading
Main debate on bill’s principles.
Committee Stage
Clause by clause consideration of the billl.
Report Stage
Committee members report back to the House. The House reviews amendments to the bill.
Third Reading
The House of Commons has a chance to accept or reject the changes to the bill before passing it on to the Senate.
Repeat process in the House of Lords
Final debate on the bill.
Royal Assent
A bill must be signed by the Queen’s representative in order for it to become law.
The Court Hierarchy
The ranking of courts according to the seriousness of the matters they deal with.
Exceptions to Precedent - Distinguishing
The judge finds the facts in the present case are different enough from the earlier one to allow them to reach a different decision and not have to follow the precedent of the earlier case.
Exceptions to Precedent - Overruling
When a court higher up the hierarchy states that a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturned it.
The Literal Rule
Requires the statutory words to be given their ordinary meaning.
