Judiciary Flashcards
Types of judges
Within the judiciary, there are two categories of judges: superior and inferior judges. There are 3 superior judges: Justices of the Supreme Court, Lord Justices of Appeal, and High Court Judges. The Justices of the Supreme Court sit in the Supreme Court and need 7 years of experience of being a Court of Appeal Judge. Below them are the Lord Justices of Appeal; they sit in the Court of Appeal and need 7 years experience of being a High Court Judge. Like the superior judges, there are also 3 inferior judges: Circuit Judges, District Judges, and Recorders. Circuit Judges sit in the Crown Court and in the County Court. They need 7 years of experience as a solicitor or a barrister, and they can become High Court Judges after a minimum of 2 years. Those District Judges that sit in the County Court only need 5 years of experience as a solicitor or a barrister, compared to the District Judges who sit in the Magistrates Court, who need 7 years of experience. Finally, Recorders, who are part-time judges, sit in the Crown Court, and in the County Court. They need, like most other judges, 7 years of experience as a solicitor or a barrister.
Describe the role of a judge
In civil courts, judges are responsible for resolving disputes in a fair and unbiased way. They also hear evidence from all the witnesses, listen to legal arguments, look at any relevant case papers, decide the facts, how the law applies to those facts, and make a decision as to who won. In criminal courts, judges will: oversee the case and ensure that correct procedures are followed, rule on points of law that arise to direct the jury on the law and if the defendant is found guilty, impose a sentence.
Evaluate the judiciary within the English Legal System
The main criticism of the judiciary is that it is dominated by middle aged, middle class, white males. There are not as many female judges as there are male judges, especially in the Superior Courts, and there are very few from ethnic backgrounds. Another criticism of the judiciary is that most of the judges had studied at Oxford or Cambridge University, meaning that the judges are chosen from an educated part of society, making the judiciary unrepresentative of the public. However, there are advantages of the judiciary, such as the judges being case hardened. This means that with their knowledge from previous cases, they can get through cases much quicker. Another advantage is that there’s certainty. If judges have to follow precedent, a solicitor can give sound advice and suggest whether or not it would be worth going to court. This saves time and money.
Discuss the principle of judicial independence
Judicial independence is the concept that states that the judiciary should be kept separate from the other two arms of the state: the legislature (Parliament), and the executive (Government). The judges can be thought of as being independent in a number of ways. Firstly, superior judges have security of tenure, which means that they cannot be dismissed by the government. This gives these judges protection and allows them to be independent in their judgments. Inferior judges do not have the same security of tenure as superior judges. They can be dismissed by the Lord Chancellor with consent from the Lord Chief Justice. Secondly, judges are given immunity of suit from prosecution for any acts they carry out in performance of their judicial function. Thirdly, judges have independence from the executive, which is the same as having security of tenure, but judicial independence is guaranteed under S.3 of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. Finally, judges have independence from the legislature, which means that they are not involved in any law making functions in Parliament.
