English Legal System

Question 1

What is criminal law?

Answer 1

-law that deals with offences against the state. - It results in punishment if the defendant is found guilty. E.g. theft

Question 2

What is civil law?

Answer 2

-law concerning disputes between individuals or organisations.
-e.g. contract, tort

Question 3

What are the four purposes of law?

Answer 3

-maintains order
-protects rights and freedoms
-settles disputes
-establish standards of behaviour

Question 4

What is statutory interpretation?

Answer 4

-The process by which judges interpret and apply Acts of Parliament.

Question 5

Why is statutory interpretation needed?

Answer 5

-because of ambiguous wording

Question 6

What is the Literal Rule?

Answer 6

-judges take the words in the statute at their plain,literal meaning.
-case: Whitely v Chappell
-can lead to unfair or absurd outcomes, but respects Parliament’s exact wording.

Question 7

What is the Golden Rule?

Answer 7

-A modification of the literal rule to avoid absurdity. Has a narrow and broad approach.
-narrow: choose between two possible meanings
-broad: modify the meaning of words to avoid absurdity
-adds a bit of flexibility

Question 8

What is the Mischief Rule?

Answer 8

-Focuses on the “mischief” the statute intended to remedy. Judges interpret to suppress that mischief. Case: Smith v Hughes
-focuses on the law’s purpose

Question 9

What is the Purposive Approach?

Answer 9

Judges interpret the law in line with the overall purpose of Parliament.
-case: Quintavalle v Secretary of State (2003)
-more modern and flexible. Used more now, especially with human rights laws.

Question 10

What are intrinsic aids to interpretation?

Answer 10

Aids within the Act itself: titles, preambles or definition sections

Question 11

What are extrinsic aids to interpretation?

Answer 11

Aids outside the Act: Hansard, previous case law, dictionaries

Question 12

What is Hansard?

Answer 12

The official transcript of parliamentary debates. Permitted as an extrinsic aid in Pepper v Hart.

Question 13

What is judicial precedent?

Answer 13

-it means judges follow past decisions in similar cases to keep the law consistent and fair. It’s based on the idea of ‘stare decisis’, which is ‘let the decision stand’

Question 14

What is ratio decidendi?

Answer 14

The legal reasoning behind a judge’s decision – binding part of the judgment.

Question 15

What is obiter dicta?

Answer 15

Other comments made by judges in a case – persuasive but not binding.

Question 16

What is the court hierarchy for precedent?

Answer 16

Supreme Court > Court of Appeal > High Court > Crown/County/Magistrates’ Court. Lower courts must follow higher courts.

Question 17

What is binding precedent?

Answer 17

A decision made by a higher court that must be followed by lower courts.

Question 18

What is persuasive precedent?

Answer 18

legal principle or decision from a previous case that a court is not required to follow, but may choose to be influenced by when making its judgment.
Not binding but may influence.
-decisions from lower courts
-obiter dicta
-decisions from other countries
-dissenting judgements (when judges disagree)

Question 19

What is distinguishing in precedent?

Answer 19

-Way to show judges avoiding precedent.
-Avoiding precedent by showing the case has significantly different facts.

Question 20

What is overruling in precedent?

Answer 20

-When a higher court changes a legal principle established by a lower court’s decision.
-Shivpuri overruled Anderton v Ryan

Question 21

What is reversing in precedent?

Answer 21

When a higher court overturns the decision of a lower court in the same case on appeal.
-COA decision reversed by Supreme Court

Question 22

Advantages of judicial precedent (4)?

Answer 22

-Consistency
-predictability
-saves time
-develops law over time

Question 23

Disadvantages of judicial precedent (3)?

Answer 23

-can be rigid
-some cases may be unfair.
-complex and hard to find relevant cases

Question 24

What are the features in the Magistrates’ Court (4)?

Answer 24

-deals with 95% of all criminal cases
-handles summary (minor) offences and preliminary hearings for more serious ones.
-no jury-just magistrates (lay people) or District Judges.
-can sentence up to 12 months imprisonment.

Question 25

What are the features of the Crown Court?

Answer 25

-deal with serious indictable offences and some triable-either-way offences. -heard by a judge and a jury of 12. -judge handles law and sentencing. -jury decides guilt or innocence.

Question 26

What is the role of lay magistrates?

Answer 26

-sit in Magistrates Court. -unpaid volunteers, but trained. -deal with minor criminal cases. -advised by a legal advisor.

Question 27

Advantages of lay magistrates?

Answer 27

-cheap for the state -local knowledge -diverse backgrounds

Question 28

Disadvantages of lay magistrates?

Answer 28

-Inconsistent decisions -rely heavily on legal advisors -middle-class bias?

Question 29

What are juries used for and what are the qualifications?

Answer 29

-used in Crown Court for criminal trials. -12 randomly selected people from electoral register. -To decide guilt in serious criminal trials in the Crown Court.

Question 30

Advantages of juries?

Answer 30

-public confidence -fair (decided by peers) -independent (free from judge pressure)

Question 31

Disadvantages of juries?

Answer 31

-may not understand complex cases. -media influence -bias or prejudice -no reasoning required for verdicts.

Question 32

What are the two types of criminal legal aid?

Answer 32

-advice and assistance -representation in court.

Question 33

What is advice and assistance?

Answer 33

-for early stages (police station interviews) -covers legal advice, not full representation. -everyone is entitled to free legal advice at the police station.

Question 34

What is representation in court?

Answer 34

-Provides a solicitor and/or barrister to represent the defendant in court proceedings.

Question 35

What is the means test and merits test in criminal legal aid?

Answer 35

-**Means test:**Assesses income and assets to determine financial eligibility. it is very strict and many people fall just above the limit. -**Merits test:**is this case serious enough to justify funding? (e.g. risk of prison) MAGISTRATES COURT: must pass means test CROWN COURT: easier to qualify as risk of prison is higher

Question 36

Problems with criminal legal aid?

Answer 36

-very limited access (many people don't qualify even though they cannot afford a lawyer). -underfunded -prosecution has state funding, defence may not.

Question 37

Alternative sources of legal help?

Answer 37

-(charities and legal clinics)Citizens Advice Bureau -private funding -free advice at court or police station.

Question 38

What is the 1966 Practice Statement and how does it avoid a binding precedent, using an example?

Answer 38

-was issued by the House of Lords (now the Supreme Court). It allowed the House to depart from its own previous decisions where it was right to do so, helping the law develop and avoid injustice. -this avoids a binding precedent because, under the doctrine of stare decisis,courts are usually bound to follow decisions from higher courts. The Practice Statement made an exception for the House of Lords. -In R v Shivpuri , the House of Lords used the Practice Statement to overrule its previous decision in Anderton v Ryan about attempting to commit an impossible crime. This showed the Practice Statement in action, correcting a mistake from just a year earlier.

Question 39

What are the qualifications to become a jury?

Answer 39

-aged 18-75. -on electoral register -lived in UK for 5+ years.

Question 39

What is the judge's role?

Answer 39

-ensure fair trial prep, make rulings on evidence. -explain law to jury, manage courtroom, rule on objections. -if D is found guilty, the judge decides the sentence.