Civil Court System Flashcards
What personnel are at the Magistrates Court?
Magistrates
Legal advisors
District judges
Who hears cases in the Magistrates Court?
Magistrates and District Judges (DJ is more likely to deal with complicated cases)
Both have the same sentencing powers
Which personnel at the Magistrates Court are legally qualified?
Legal advisors and District Judges
Magistrates need not be legally qualified
What is the role of the legal advisor?
They interpret the law and analyse for the magistrates, they do not tell a magistrate what to do (i.e. whether or not they should impose a fine)
What are the three types of crown court judge?
o High Court judges (less common. More likely in serious cases)
o Circuit Judges (attached to a region in E&W)
o Recorders (part time. Junior level of CJ)
What type of work is usually dealt with in the Magistrates Court?
Criminal cases and some non-criminal work i.e. licensing applications for pubs.
Most common work includes:
o Driving offences
o Minor assaults
o Minor thefts
o Bail applications
o Enforcement of fines
o Grant of search warrants
How are Crown Court Judges appointed?
On the basis of merit by the Judicial Appointments Commission
What is the role of the jury?
Juries are only in the Crown Court. Their role is to listen and evaluate evidence and reach a verdict.
Jury service is obligatory unless there is a satisfactory excuse
What non-judiciary personnel are in the civil courts?
- Mediators
- Arbitrators
- Tribunal members
What judges are in the county courts?
CJs and DJs
What is a district registry?
Offices of the High Court outside of London
Matters are usually heard by a DJ, but can be a CJ if complex
What is a master?
The name of the DJ that sits in the Royal Courts of Justice (i.e. the High Court)
What judges are in the High Court?
High Court Judges
What judges sit in the Court of Appeal?
- Lord and Lady Justices of Appeal
- Sometimes HC Judges
What judges sit in the Supreme Court?
Justices of the Supreme Court (also called senior judiciary or law lord)
What political figures have involvement with the judiciary? What do they do?
Secretary of State for Justice
o Member of the cabinet
o Responsible for running the MOJ
Attorney General
o Chief law officer to the Government
o Responsible for the CPS, serious fraud office and Government Legal Department
Solicitor General
o Attorney General’s deputy
What is a combined court centre?
A court centre which deals with criminal and civil matter
Which cases should be commenced in the County Court?
Those with a value under £100k or £50k in PI cases
If the case is above these values, the claimant can still choose to issue the case in the CC, but complex matters or those of importance should be started in the HC
Therefore, if the case is several £100k’s but it is straightforward, it could be heard in the CC
What types of cases does the County Court usually deal with?
o Debt recovery
o Money claims
o Personal injury
o Medical negligence
o Consumer Credit Act claims
o Mortgage repossessions
What are the general elements to a County Court claim?
- Pre-action
- Commencement
- Defending the claim
- Allocation
- Directions
- Hearing
- Judgment
- Enforcement
When can a civil appeal take place?
Only with permission
What is the appeal hierarchy in the County Court?
An appealed decision of a DJ is heard by a CJ
An appealed decision of a CJ is sent to the High Court and heard by a HC Judge
How is permission to appeal a civil decision obtained?
Usually permission is requested orally as soon as the judgment is delivered. Otherwise, a paper application will need to be made.
In either case, an appellant’s notice will generally need to be filed within 21 days of the date of the decision
When is an appellant’s notice filed and served?
When appealing a civil decision.
Generally, it must be filed within 21 days of the date of the decision. This is the case whether permission was given verbally at the hearing or if a written paper application for permission is being made.
It must be served as soon as practicable and no later than 7 days after it is filed, unless otherwise ordered by the court
NB: there are different timescales for some specific matters
What is the test for permission in the county court?
Permission will only be granted if:
o There is a real prospect of success; or
o There is some other compelling reason for the matter to be heard.
Can new evidence be introduced in a civil appeal?
Generally, no.
What are the divisions of the High Court?
o King’s Bench Division
o Chancery Division
o Family Division
What are the Business and Property Courts?
They are a group of specialist courts which fall under the KBD and CD, i.e. (non-exhaustive):
The Admiralty Court
The Commercial Court
The Circuit Commercial Court
The Technology and Construction Court
What cases does the KBD deal with?
Deals with contractual and tort matters
What courts sit under the KBD?
o Commercial court
o Admiralty court
o Administrative court - this court also hears appeals by way of case stated from the Magistrates’ or Crown Courts
o Technology and construction court - this also deals with environment, public procurement and insurance
What cases does the Chancery Division deal with?
Primarily:
o IP
o Disputes over wills and trusts
o Certain property loans
o Revenue and tax
What courts sit under the Chancery Division?
o Insolvency List
o Company List
o Patents Court
o IP enterprise court
The last two are similar and hear low value claims under £500k
What cases are heard in the family division of the High Court?
o Where a child is requires protection but this is not possible under CA 1989. This is called the court’s ‘inherent jurisdiction’. An example is when a child is made a ‘ward of the court’
o Some international abduction cases
o Forced marriage
o FGM
o Some appeals
Who hears appeals from the High Court?
Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
How are court of appeal decisions made?
By majority
What is the test for permission to appeal a high court decision?
If this is the first appeal, permission will only be granted if:
o There is a real prospect of success; or
o There is some other compelling reason for the matter to be heard.
If this is a second appeal, permission will only be granted if:
o There is a real prospect of success; and
o The case raises and important point of principle or practice; or
o There is some other compelling reason for the matter to be heard.
Can the court of appeal limit an appeal?
When granting an order for permission, the judge can also limit the issues to be heard and impose conditions
What is the procedure for appealing a High Court decision?
- The appellant applies to the court that made the original decision or the CoA. This needs to be done within the timeframe set by the Court or within 21 days of the date of the decision. They must file an appellant’s notice.
- The notice needs to be served on the respondent within 7 days of filing
- The respondent can file and serve their own notice putting in their own case 14 days after receiving the appellant’s notice
- Skeleton arguments will need to be produced.
What is meant by rights of audience?
The entitlement to make submissions in court. This is a reserved legal activity.
Can individuals have rights of audience?
Individuals can also have rights of audience by virtue of being an exempt person. This would need to be granted by the court on a one-off basis relating to a particular set of proceedings.
Unqualified third parties will be discouraged, but not necessarily refused.
What rights of audience do solicitors have?
The right to appear in the Mags Court and County Court
How do solicitors obtain higher rights of audience?
Complete the appropriate higher courts advocacy qualification:
o The Higher Courts (Civil Advocacy) Qualification
o The Higher Courts (Criminal Advocacy) Qualification
When does a solicitor not need to obtain higher rights of audience?
A solicitor can appear before the crown court without having obtained the above qualification if the case is on appeal from the Mags court and the solicitor (or their firm) dealt with the original trial
What is the format of a tribunal?
3 members and chaired by someone with legal qualifications. The other two are lay persons with relevant experience that balances the panel.
What are the different types of tribunal?
o LA tribunals i.e. school exclusion panels
o Government department tribunals i.e. valuation tribunal
o HMCTS tribunals
Explain the structure of HMCTs tribunals
Two-tier tribunal system:
1. The First Tier tribunal - includes various chambers which hears respective cases (i.e. tax chamber, immigration chamber)
- The Upper Tier tribunal - this hears some appeals from the first tier tribunal
NB: the employment tribunal has its own pathway
Can decisions of the Upper Tier Tribunal be appealed?
Yes, to the court of appeal.
What is the structure of the court of appeal?
It has a criminal and civil division
What cases does the civil division of the court of appeal hear?
Appeals from:
o The high court
o Family court
o Tribunals
If the court of appeal refuses permission, what happens?
This is the end of the matter. The appellant cannot then ask for the case to be heard by the Supreme Court
If the court of appeal grants permission, what rights do parties have on conclusion of the case?
A dissatisfied party could appeal to the Supreme Court but permission is required
What must a party do if it intends to appeal a court of appeal decision?
Make an application to the court of appeal within 28 days
What is the test to appeal a court of appeal decision?
Strict test - permission is only granted where the matter raises an arguable point of law or general importance that ought to be considered
What cases does the Supreme Court hear?
Appeals from:
o The CoA
o The High Court (if the case has been leap frogged)
What affects how many Justices will hear a case?
It will be between 3 to 9. The number will depend on a number of factors i.e. if the court is being asked to depart or if the case is of importance
What is the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council?
the highest court of appeal for a number of Commonwealth countries
What effect does a decision of the JCPC have?
Decisions are persuasive rather than binding
What is the civil test for leave to appeal to the JCPC?
the court granting leave to appeal to the JCPC can only do so if the matter raises a point of general public importance
What is the criminal test for leave to appeal to the JCPC?
the court granting leave to appeal to the JCPC can only do so if the case raises questions of great and general importance OR there has been a grave violation of natural justice
how many Supreme Court justices are there?
12
What requirements must be satisfied for someone to become a Supreme Court judge?
they must have held high judicial office for at least 2 years; and
they must have been a qualifying practitioner for at least 15 years
How is a Supreme Court justice appointed?
The recommendation comes from the prime minister
There is then a selection protect by a commission including one person who is not legally qualified
How are court of appeal judged appointed?
by the monarch on recommendation of a selection panel convened by the Judicial Appointments Committee
What codes of conduct are relevant to the judiciary?
Guide to Judicial Conduct
They will also bear in mind the codes of conduct which bound them before they became a judge i.e. SRA principles and Bar Standards Board handbook
