Ac1.1 Law Making Procceses

Question 1

Stage one of Goverment law making procedures

Answer 1

Green Paper- Before putting a bill before parliament, the goverment usually publishes a green paper. This is an initial report to provoke a public discussion of the subject. It often includes questions for interested individuals and organisations to response.

Question 2

Stage two of Goverment law making procedure

Answer 2

White paper- After the consultation, the goverment publishes a white paper.
This is a document setting out their detailed plans for legislation, it often includes a draft version of the Bill they intend to put before parliament.

Question 3

Stage three of Goverment law making procedures

Answer 3

First Reading- the Goverment introduces the bill into the commons, where it receives its first reading.
This is just a formal announcement of the bill and it is followed by a vote to allow it to the next stage.

Question 4

Fourth level in Goverment law making procedures

Answer 4

Second reading- The main principles of the Bill are considered and debated by the whole of the House of Commons and a vote is taken.
The Goverment will usually win this vote, if they do it goes to the next stage.

Question 5

Fifth level of Government law making procedures

Answer 5

The committee stage- The ill is now examined in detail line by line by a small committee made up of MPs from different parties.
The committee will report back to the whole house and will often propose amendments to the Bill.

Question 6

Sixth stage of Goverment law making procedures

Answer 6

The report stage- Gives MPs an opportunity to consider the committees report and to debate and vote on any amendments they might wish to make to the bill.
For major bills, the debates may be spread over several days.

Question 7

Seventh level of Goverment law making procedures

Answer 7

Third Reading- The report stage is normally followed immediately by a third reading of the bill.This is the final chance for the commons to debate the bills contents.
No amendments are allowed at this stage, the house either votes to pass or reject the bill.

Question 8

Eighth level of Government law making procedures

Answer 8

The lords, after the third reading te bill goes to the House of Lords where it does through the sae stages as the commons.
If the lords have a,ended the bill it must return back to the commons so that the MPs can decide whether to accept or reject the lords amendments.
The House of Commons has the final say as it is made up of the elected representatives.

Question 9

Final level of Goverment law making procedures

Answer 9

Royal assent- once the bill has passed both the House of parliament it goes to the monarch for signing, known as the royal assent.
This is the monarch agreement to make the bill into an act of parliament or law and is a formality.
The new law will come to force immediately unless the act specifics a later date (commencement order)

Question 10

Criminal just act 2003

Answer 10

Introduced a change in the double jeopardy L rule following Ann Mings successful campaign and the recommendations of the macpherson report of the murder of Stephen Lawrence. The change enabled the killer of Julie Hogue and two suspects of Stephen Lawrence to be re-tried, convicting all of them.

Question 11

The crime sentences act 1997

Answer 11

Introduced mandatory minimum sentences for a range of repeat offenders such as automatic life sentences for a second serious sexual or violent offence.

Question 12

What happens when laws are rushed?

Answer 12

Dangerous dog acts 1991- rushed making after two dog incidents however the identification of the type of dog was never identified to public so didn’t know what made them dangerous.

Question 13

How can senior judges make laws through

Answer 13

1- Judiciary precedents
2-Statutory interpretations

Question 14

Judiciary precedent

Answer 14

A type of law making where past decisions of judges create laws for future judges to follow, the principle of standing by means that judges follow what has been decided in previous cases where the point of law is the same.
Treating cases in the same was creates certainty,consistency and fairness in the legal system.

Question 15

Judiciary decisions without precedents

Answer 15

When there is no precedents the judges must make a decision and give an original precedents.

Question 16

Donoghue v Stevenson (1932)

Answer 16

Two friends visited a cafe, one drank from a. Bottle of ginger beer that contained remains of decomposing snail. The women fell inn and sued the manufacturer, she won the case, the court decided that a duty of care was owed by the manufacturer to the woman, known as the neighbour principle this case founded the modern day law of negligence.

Question 17

Daniels v white 1938

Answer 17

Bought a bottle of lemonade and when she drank it felt burning in his throat as it was found to contain corrosive metal in it. The case of Donoghue v Stevenson was used when suing for compensation although the facts where slightly different t was similar for the purpose of precendent.

Question 18

Higher vs lower courts

Answer 18

Decisions made by higher courts automatically create a binding prevendita for all lower courts.

Question 19

What does distinguishing mean?

Answer 19

Precedents can only be binding if the principle of a case is the same and the facts are similar.

Question 20

What does overruling mean?

Answer 20

Higher courts can over over turn a decision and set a new precedent,e.g R V R 1991 martial rape

Question 21

What does reversing mean?

Answer 21

A higher court changes a decision made in a lower court on appeal.

Question 22

Law on marital rape

Answer 22

The R V R 1991 removed the legal exemption for the rape in marriage in England and Wales, the case involved a husband who was accused of raping his wife which he argued wasn’t possible as their sexual relations where consented by nature.

The House of Lords decisions determined that under English criminal law it is a crime for a husband to rape his wife.

Question 23

Statutory interpretation - what is it?

Answer 23

A second way a judge makes laws

Question 24

When words are unclear to a judge what must they do?

Answer 24

Interpret it

Question 25

What is the literal rule?

Answer 25

Involves giving words their literal plain English meaning

Question 26

What are the case facts or whiteley v chappell (1868)?

Answer 26

The defendant was charged under a section which made it an offence to ‘impersonate any person entitled to vote’.

The defendant had pretended to be a person who was on the voters list but had died.

The court held that the defendant was not guilty since a dead person is not entitled to vote.

Question 27

What is the golden rule?

Answer 27

Used to avoid the creation of an absurd result.

Question 28

Golden rule- Narrow and wide approach

Answer 28

Narrow - choosing the meaning where the wording is ambiguous
Wide - the court ignores the literal meaning of the words

Question 29

Golden rules cons vs positives

Answer 29

Pros -> escape route, cannot change intention
Cons -> no guidance, against separation of powers

Question 30

What happened in the case of R V Allen ( golden rule)

Answer 30

Allen was charged with the offence of Bigamy
The court was called upon to examine the wording of S57 of the Offences Against The Persons Act 1861.
The court was faced with two possible meanings of the term “marriage”.
1. Becoming married legally.
2. To go through a marriage ceremony.
The court chose the second meaning since in the first interpretation nobody could be convicted under the law…if marrying twice under the act is illegal then nobody could be legally married twice.

Question 31

What happened in the case of Adler v George (golden rule)

Answer 31

The defendant was caught staging a protest inside an RAF base and was charged under S3 of the Official Secrets Act 1920 with: “obstructing a member of the armed forces in the vicinity of any prohibited place”.
The defendant’s argument was that “in the vicinity of” was not the same as inside, but the court disagreed.
“In the vicinity of” could mean “near to” and “within”.

Question 32

What happened in the sigsworth case (golden rule)

Answer 32

A son had murdered his mother who had not left a will.
Under the Administration of Justice Act 1925 the mother’s estate would automatically pass to her son.
There was no ambiguity in the words of the Act but how could the Court allow a murderer to benefit from his crime?
The wide approach to the law was used and the court effectively re-wrote the Act of Parliament.

Question 33

What is the mischief rule?

Answer 33

exists for the courts to give effect to the intention of parliament where a statute was intended to remedy an existing “mischief” in the law

Question 34

Mischief rule cons vs pros

Answer 34

Pros -> escape route, improves, true intentions
Cons -> old, less extrinsic aids

Question 35

What happened in Corkery v Carpenter?

Answer 35

The defendant was caught drunk in charge of a bicycle and was charged with being in charge of a “carriage” under the Licensing Act 1872.
The defendant argued that a bicycle was not a “carriage” for the purposes of the Act but the court disagreed.
They held that the mischief parliament wanted to cure was the presence of drunken people on the highway, the form of transport was irrelevant.

Question 36

What happened in Smith v Hughes?

Answer 36

6 prostitutes charged under S1(1) of the Street Offences Act 1959 for loitering or soliciting “in a street or public place for the purpose of prostitution”.
The women argued that because they had been signaling to men from windows and balconies, they were not in a public place.
The court dismissed their arguments - prostitution was the mischief the law was trying to eradicate - the prostitutes were “projecting their solicitations onto the street”.