judiciary Flashcards
when was the supreme court established?
-established under the constitutional reform act 2005
what functions do the supreme court perform?
-to act as the final court of appeal in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and hear appeals from civil cases in Scotland.
-to clarify the meaning of the law by hearing appeals in cases where there is uncertainty.
how are supreme judges appointed?
-in order to be considered they need to have held judicial office for at least 2 years or have been a qualifying practitioner for a period of 15 years
-vacancies are filled by appointment from a 5-member selection committee, then the lord chancellor has to accept this and then the prime minister recommends the candidate to the queen.
how is the Lord chancellor limited?
-input is greatly reduced as they are not permitted to repeatedly reject names put forward by the selection committee.
what is judicial independence?
-principle that those in judiciary should be free from political control, and this allows judges to do the right thing and apply justice properly without the fear of consequences.
what is judicial neutrality?
-where judges act impartially in administration of justice
how is judicial independence maintained?
-judges are appointed for an open-ended term only limited by them retiring at 75.
-guaranteed salaries paid from the consolidated fund
-media, ministers and other individuals are prevented from speaking out publicly during legal proceedings so no pressure.
-downgrading of the post of Lord chancellor and the creation of a new UK supreme court enhanced separation between senior judiciary and other branches of gov.
-independent appointments committee
-judges take considerable pride in their legal standing and are there unlikely to defer to politicians opinions
how is judicial neutrality maintained?
-judges rarely speak out on politics
-restricted on political activity, no campaign or pressure group
-offer explanations of the outcome of trials and how their decision is rooted in the law.
-high level training gives them the training to put belief behind them
what are the courts powers?
-revisiting and reviewing earlier legal precedent established under common law and case law.
-making ultra vires rulings where the court judges that public bodies have acted beyond their statutory authority.
-addressing disputes arising under EU law
-issuing declarations of incompatibility under the HRA.
what was Gina Miller’s case with the supreme court?
-2017
-she argued that the UK government could not trigger Article 50 to leave the EU without a vote or deliberate debate in parliament, the courts argued in favour of Miller arguing that referendums are non-binding and the government could not ignore the sovereignty of parliament, the commons duly had a vote on triggering article 50.
what does ultra vires mean?
-beyond the authority and judges decide if the laws go beyond the authority given to them.
what is judicial review?
-the process by which judges review the actions of public officials or public bodies in order to determine wether they acted in a lawful manner.
arguments in favour of the judiciary being too powerful?
-HRA has skewed the constitutional balance between parliament and judiciary in favour of judges with them now having the ability to interpret wether laws fit with it
-extensive use of judicial reviews are a direct challenge to government
-rise of judicial activism for example the refusal to repatriate the Afghan hijackers who arrived here by diverting a flight to Stansted.
-more independence after 2005 has led to the judiciary being more willing to challenge government power.
arguments against the judiciary being too powerful?
-government can overrule the judiciary by a simple majority in Parliament e.g Belmarsh case.
-judges are required to interpret the law to some extent when they do so it is done carefully and in the public interest
-courts exercise a key role in protecting the rights of the individual
-judges have huge experience are unbiased and need to only focus on enforcing the law fairly and don’t need to consider the electoral popularity of their decisions.
example of judicial review?
-judge said Hancock had preached his legal obligation by not publishing details within 30 days of COVID contracts being signed as he was lawfully supposed to do.
-this was brought to court by the campaign group Good Law project and three MPs, Debbie Abrahams La, Caroline Lucas Gr and Layla Moran LD.
