chapter 10-The judiciary-superior and inferior judges Flashcards
what are the qualifications of becoming a Supreme Court judge
-judges are called justices of the senior court
-15 year Supreme Court qualification
-been a barristor or solicitor
Court of Appeal qualifications and roles
-Lord justices of Appeal
-7 years legal experience
-been a high court judge
-barrister or solicitor
ROLES
-Hear appeals
-criminal cases on conviction or sentence
-civil cases on the finding or money awarded
High court qualifications and roles
-7 years legal experience
-barrister or solicitor
-been a circuit judge for 2 years
-they deal with the first instance cases and decide liability
-sits in one of the 3 divisions
Crown court 3 qualifications
-5 years legal advice
-Been a district judge or recorder for 3 years
-barrister and solicitor
County court qualifications and roles
-barrister / solicitor
-5 years legal advice
-or district judge
-deal with civil cases alone and decide the liability
Magistrate courts qualification and roles
-5 years legal advice
-barrister/solicitor
-been a deputy district judge
-they deal with criminal cases only on the verdict, sentencing and family work
Describe the Judicial appointments commission and how they operate for both inferior and superior judges
- Selects over 500 people each year as candidates
- they advertise their selection through websites or twitter
- Superior level judges: They recommend their appointment to the Lord chancellor (Part of the executive)
Inferior judges: They recommend their appointment to the Lord Chief Justice
How do superior level judges get selected
The Judicial appointment commission selects and recommends them to the lord chancellor, they can either accept or deny.
How do inferior level judges get selected and what are they assessed for
They are selected by the lord Chief Justice after recommended by the judicial appointments commission. They are assessed based on:
- personal qualities,
- judgment,
- understanding of the criminal justice system,
- commitment to public service.
They are solely based on MERIT
What are the 8 qualities that are desirable for a good judge
-Intellectual capacity
-integrity,
-independent,
-objective
-decisive
-ability to understand and deal fairly
-authority
-not more than 6 penalty points
For making a judge to the justices of the Supreme Court what is the selection process
1-the commission will elect a candidate
-2the candidate is reported to the lord chancellor where they can deny or accept the nomination.
3-The lord chancellor then notifies the prime minister
4-the prime minister then takes the appointment to the king
For all judicial posts below that of circuit judges, there is an extra filtering process:
All applicants should complete an online test to asses their abilities to perform judicial roles.
What are Recorders
These are people who manage cases well and determine claims at trials
what are the 3 qualifications for district judges
-Been a barrister or solicitor
-5 years of legal experience
-have been a deputy district judge
What is the MAIN role for all judges
To settle disputes in a fair an unbiased way while applying the law.
What are the roles for civil judges
> -Hearing of evidence from witnesses
>-decide on facts and on how the law applies
>-make a decision as to who has won
What are the 2 roles of a judge in a criminal court
>
- Deciding a sentence
- Decides on any relevant law in the case
Instead of hearing from witness evidence, what do appeal court judges hear
Issues with legal points in the case
What is the composition and role of the Supreme Court
-Judges are justices of the Supreme court
-12 judges present
-sit uneven in the panel
-decisions made become binding that lower courts must follow
-hear appeals from lower courts and Commonwealth countries
what are the roles of the COA in both civil and criminal division
civil- hear appeals based on the decision chosen or the money awarded
Criminal- hear appeals based on sentencing or conviction
What are the main roles of the high court judges
-Are placed in either division of the civil courts
-hear the first trial of cases and decide what the law is in the case.
Where is the training of judges carried out
Judicial college
What are the 3 main elements of training
+gaining and improvement of judicial skills
+knowledge of substantive law, evidence & procedure
+the social context that judges should consider.
what does the judicial pension and retirement act state:
All judges should retire by the age of 70. with some exceptions by the Lord chancellor, it can extend to 75
what were the aims of the constitutional reform act 2005
- instead of having the LC be in charge of selecting judges, they now require them to consult the Lord Chief Justice
Why can’t the superior judges be removed by the government or Lord chancellor
-this protects them from political interferes and makes them more independent in their judgements
Give an example case of where an inferior judge was removed based on bad conduct
Bruce Campbell was a circuit judge who was evading customs duty on cigars and whisky
what are the circumstances that lead to a judge being sacked
-Have a criminal conviction
-misconduct and inappropriate behaviour
-Incapable of carrying out their work(health issues)
-their behaviour has been complained.
What does Judicial independence aim to achieve
Each judge should conduct proceedings in a fair and unbiased way
What does the theory of separation of powers state
It stated that the three arms of state should be separated
the three arms are;
-the legislation
-the executive
-the judiciary.
The judiciary should be the most separated arm as to not be overstepped by the executive in its decisions
what are the ways in which judges are protected from outside pressure when doing their judicial function
1-Given a certain degree of financial independence as their salaries are controlled by the consolidated fund and not parliament
2-they have immunity from being sued for actions taken or decisions made
3-the security of the tenure of superior judges protects them from being sacked
Give an example case of a decision made against Government
DPP v Hutchinson
-Women had camped at the RAF base in order to protest against nuclear missiles. The court was in their favour as the minister of the land had exceeded his powers of the by laws
State the composition of the Judicial Appointments Commission
- 6 lay members
- 5 judges ( 3 COA & 1 circuit & 1 district)
- 1 barrister
- 1 solicitor
- 1 magistrate
- 1 tribunal member
how does the JAC encourage a wide range of candidates
- they run road shows and other outreach events
- these will explain the appointments system to potential applicants
Describe the appointment process
- All candidates will fill in an application form
- they complete the filtering test
- after are short listed based on their performance along with their application form and qualifications
- they will be interviewed and these can be role play
what is involved in the training of new judges, new judges at lower levels and experienced judges once taken to the judicial college
- all new judges have to go through an induction program normally taking 3 to 5 days long
- new judges at lower levels will be given an experienced judge to act as a mentor
- experienced judges can be given a mix of residential and non-residential
compare the statistics of women in the judiciary
- There were no women judges in the COA and high court 1990s BUT NOW in 2016 there are 8 judges and 23 in the high court.
compare the stats of Black minority ethnic groups in the judiciary
- in the 1990s there was no superior judge and very few for inferior judges
- BUT NOW in 2016 there are 3 judges in the COA and much greater numbers for inferior judges
