law reform Flashcards
What are some influences on parliament to change law ?
- Media pressure - “Sarah’s Law” – s.327 Criminal Justice Act 2003
- Public Opinion – Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 – introduced due to public concern about dangerous dogs. An often criticised piece of legislation.
- Pressure groups- Help the Aged, Mind, British Medical Association, etc., liberty etc
What is meant by parliamentry change ?
The government of the day has control over what ideas enter parliament,
Parliamentary law reform happens in four ways
Repeal – old and obsolete laws are removed
Creation – completely new laws are created and existing laws can be adapted to meet new needs
Consolidation – brings together successive statutes on the same subject
Codification – over time an area of law can develop to contain a large body of case law and statutes.
Codification brings it all together into one statute to increase certainty.
What is the law commission?
This is the main law reform body, established in 1965 by the Law Commission Act 1965. It is a full-time body.
-Composition includes 5 people, The chairman who is a High Court judge, 2 legal practitioners and 2 academic lawyers. It is also supported by civil service staff and parliamentary draftsmen.
What is the act that governs the law commission ?
- Law Commission Act 1965.
What is the role of the law commission ?
The role of the Law Commission is set out in s.3 Law Commission Act 1965. It:
Reviews all the areas of law which are believed need reforming
Keeps under review all the law with a view to systematic development and reform, including especially the following:
Codification of the law, i.e. bringing together all the law on a topic into one source of law, e.g. PACE 1984,
Consolidation – simplify and modernise the law, i.e. brings all existing laws from several Acts into one Act
Elimination of anomalies
Repeal obsolete and or unnecessary Acts
Reduction of separate enactments
How does the law commission work
The Lord Chancellor may ask it to review an area of law or it may select areas which need to be reformed.
- The Commission initially prepares a working paper and they then send it to interested parties and the press who will then comment.
- During the second phase; comments are considered and a report is prepared. It is then debated by the whole Commission. Draftsmen are then asked to prepare a bill.
- The Bill is presented to The Lord Chancellor together with a statement of the existing law and detail of the comments made.
- The Government then makes a decision over whether it is prepared to promote the Bill through Parliament.
What is the purpose of the law commission act 2009 ?
The Law Commission Act 2009 came into force in January 2010.
The purpose of this Act is to improve the rate at which Law Commission recommendations are implemented by the Government and eventually become law.
This statute requires the Lord Chancellor to make an annual report to Parliament. This report will outline the number of the Law Commission’s recommendations that have been implemented by the Government.
What does codification mean ?
- this means bringing together all the law on a topic from a variety of sources into one source of law, e.g. Police & Criminal Evidence Act 1984, Criminal Attempts Act 1981.
What does it mean to repeal an act ?
Statutes exist until they are formally “killed off”. At times we find old statutes that are totally irrelevant today, and have not been used or referred to for years. The Law Commission will prepare a Statute Law (Repeals) Bill for Parliament to pass
What is meant by consolidation
- This brings together all existing laws from several Acts into one Act. For example the law on sentencing was consolidated in the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000.
Name some other law reforming bodies
- Royal commissions - These are set up to investigate and report on a particular area of law or the legal system. They disband when finished. Examples of Royal Commissions include - The Phillips Commission 1981 led to PACE 1984
- Public Inquiries- These are set up, usually as a response to a significant event, and will examine options for changing the law as a result of some failing by the government or the current law.
Explain pressure groups as a type of law reform
Pressure groups are groups that attempt to influence policy-making and law making without actually seeking to form a government.
- Protective groups (also known as sectional or interest groups)– aim to protect the common interests of a particular section of society – e.g. Trade Unions
- Promotional groups (also known as cause groups) – promote a cause that is not necessarily of direct professional or economic benefit to the group e.g. Friends of the Earth .
- Insider groups – these are the groups that decision makers consider to be legitimate and are, therefore, included in the consultation process – these groups tend to respect the decision making process and do not make direct public attacks on decision makers. BMA
- Outsider groups – these groups do not have the same advantages as the insider groups and have fewer opportunities to directly participate in the formation of new legislations. Greenpeace.
What are the methods of influence for pressure groups
- Direct action - activities that target individuals, organisations or political groups to seek immediate remedies e.g. boycotting firms, strike action, protests. It can also involve law breaking (but does not have to) such as obstruction or trespass or violent behaviour.
- Making contact with MPs and political parties – some employ “lobbyists” particularly for this task. Some recruit MPs as members – e.g. labour + TU links.
- Lobbying at international level – especially the EU, due to the impact of EU law on the UK. But also organisations such as the G8, UN, World Bank.
What are some examples of success of pressure groups ?
- Friends of the Earth –Household Waste Recycling Act 2003, which made doorstep recycling a reality, ed the government to consider their Climate Change Bill, which became the Climate Change Act 2008 a
- Liberty- is a human rights pressure group- . The group were significant campaigners to help get the Human Rights Act 1998 passed.
- The Welsh Language Society – the most significant success for this group was the Welsh Language Act 1993, - is resulted in the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011
Explain judicial influences
- Some links to judges making law ie common law ie R V R
- Airedale NHS v Bland- the court had to decide whether it was lawful to stop supplying the drugs and artificial feeding that were keeping him alive, they argued that this was lawful
