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ACCA LW (F4) > Criminal vs Civil > Flashcards

Criminal vs Civil Flashcards

1
Q

Purpose

A

Criminal - regulate society by threat of punishment, what is or isn’t acceptable

Civil - dispute resolution

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2
Q

Terminology

A

Criminal - state prosecutes a defendant (Regina vs “name”

Civil - “name” vs “name” - claimant sues a defendant

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3
Q

Burden of Proof

A

Criminal - Guilty beyond all reasonable doubt

Civil - Balance of probabilities

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4
Q

Punishment

A

Criminal - Fines, community based punishment, imprisonment

Civil - Damages, specific performance, injunctions

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5
Q

Courts

A

Criminal - Magistrates, Crown (criminal only), Court of Appeal, Supreme Court

Civil - County (civil only), High Court of Justice, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court

Occasionally civil cases are heard in the Magistrates Court

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6
Q

The High Court Civil Law

A

Queen’s bench division - cases regarding contract law/torts (negligence), large/complex cases for compensation

Chancery division - winding up companies, land law, trusts, cases regarding taxes and income

Family division - matrimonial cases (divorces, pre nups), adoption cases

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7
Q

County Court Civil Law

A

Landlord tenant disputes, personal injury claims, creditors seeking payments, consumers seeking compensation for faulty goods or services

Sometimes cases can be heard in the Magistrates Court, those tend to be family matters, income and council tax debt recovery

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8
Q

Court of Appeal Civil Law

A

Led by the Master of the Rolls, appeals are heard at the Royal Courts of Justice, they include cases from the other civil courts but also from certain Tribunals such as immigration and employment

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9
Q

Supreme Court Civil Law

A

The final court of appeal in the UK for civil cases

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10
Q

Three Track System

A

Small Claims - less than £10k
Fast Track - £10k - £25k
Multi Track - £25k+

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11
Q

Magistrates Court Criminal Law

A

Minimal sentencing power, all criminal proceedings begin here, if serious it will immediately be moved on, Divisional court of the Queens Bench Division hears appeals from the Magistrates

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12
Q

Crown Court Criminal Law

A

Criminal only, appeals from the magistrates, sentencing defendants from the magistrates, conducting jury trials and sentencing those convicted in the Crown court

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13
Q

Court of Appeal Criminal Law

A

Led by Lord Chief Justice

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14
Q

Tribunals

A

Case will be heard by someone who has expertise in that area, much quicker process than court, can be much cheaper, much less formal and can be less intimidating and not bound to the doctrine of judicial precedence therefore at risk of making inconsistent decisions

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15
Q

Doctrine of Judicial Precedence

A

The system adopted by judges of following the decisions in previous cases, some precedence are binding and others are merely persuasive.

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16
Q

3 factors that decide whether a precedence is binding or persuasive

A
  • hierarchy of the courts - precedence of higher courts bind lower courts
  • ratio decidendi (legal reason for decision) and obiter dicta (not an essential part of ratio decidendi)
  • material facts of the case - in order for precedences to be binding facts of the 2 cases must be the same
17
Q

When is a precedence not binding?

A
  • Has been overruled by a higher court
  • Has been overruled by a statute
  • Was made without proper care
  • Can be distinguished from an earlier case
18
Q

Advantages of doctrine of precedence

A
  • Consistency (fairness)
  • Certainty (less mistakes are made)
  • Efficiency (saves time and money)
  • Flexibility (Judges have some freedom, landmark rulings)
19
Q

Legislation - Whitehall Stage

A

Government seeks views on the proposed legislation, green paper - consultation document and white paper - decided proposals and reasons

20
Q

Legislation - Westminster Stage

A

House of Commons, Becomes a Bill, 3R CR - 3 readings, Committee Stage and Report Stage

21
Q

Legislation - House of Lords

A

Largely same process as House of Commons (Westminster) committee stage carried out by the whole house and changes can be made at 3rd reading stage which is also final vote

22
Q

Legislation - Royal Assent

A

Queen signs the act, becomes an act of Parliament, just a formality

23
Q

Doctrine of Sovereignty of Parliament

A

Parliament is sovereign, meaning it is only Parliament that can make and pass new laws, however it cannot pass an act that can never be repealed or goes against EU law

24
Q

Delegated Legislation

A

Allow us to make changes to the law without the long Parliamentary process.

  • Orders in council - often in times of emergency (coronavirus)
  • Statutory instruments - Government ministers, rules are too technical or detailed to go or need to be changed often to go through Parliament (temporary motorway closure)
  • By Laws - affects local areas (parking, littering fines)
25
Q

Rules of Statutory Interpretation

A

Intrinsic - inside the legislation

Extrinsic - Outside of the legislation

26
Q

The Literal Approach

A

Judge should look primarily to the words of the legislation in order to construe meaning, should not look outside or behind legislation in attempt to find its meaning, used in British legal system

27
Q

The Literal Rule

A

Judge is required to consider what the legislation actually says rather considering what it might mean
Fisher vs Bell (1961)

28
Q

The Golden Rule

A

This rule is applied where the literal rule is likely to result in what appears to be an obviously absurd result
Alder vs George (1964)

29
Q

Mischief Rule

A

Considers the mischief that the legislation wanted to address
Gorris vs Scott (1874)

30
Q

Purposive Approach

A

Suggest that the interpretative rule of the judge should include, where necessary, the power to look beyond words of statute in pursuit of the reason for its enactment
Gardiner vs Sevenoaks RDC (1950)

31
Q

Rules of Language

A

Eiusdem generis - of the same kind
Expressio unius - express mention of one thing excludes all others
Noscitur a socis - takes its meaning from those around it
In pari material - courts can look at previous legislation dealing with the same subject matter to discover the appropriate interpretation

ACCA LW (F4) (2 decks)

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