Law Reform Flashcards
Paper 2 Section A
What is a manifesto in the context of political parties?
A manifesto is a document published by political parties outlining their political ideas and aims.
Which act was influenced by the Labour party’s manifesto promise to bring rights home?
Human Rights Act 1998
What are private member’s Bills?
Bills introduced by individual MPs during Parliamentary sessions.
Who introduced the Abortion Act 1967?
David Steel
How can public opinion influence Parliament?
Strong public feeling on an issue can compel Parliament to create laws addressing it.
What was the public response that led to the creation of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991?
Public outcry about children being injured by dogs.
What role does the media play in influencing Parliament?
The media can raise public attention on issues, thereby influencing parliamentary action.
What are sectional pressure groups?
Groups representing particular sections of society and their interests.
What does the Law Society represent?
The interests of lawyers.
What does the British Medical Association represent?
The interests of doctors.
What are cause pressure groups focused on?
Specific causes rather than groups of people.
What was the focus of the League of Cruel Sports?
Opposition to fox hunting.
What legislation resulted from the activities of the League of Cruel Sports?
Hunting Act 2004
What is the role of lobbyists in Parliament?
Lobbyists try to persuade individual MPs to support specific causes.
What is the Law Commission?
An independent group of legal experts that identifies problems in the law and proposes reforms.
What act implemented changes suggested by the Law Commission?
Consumer Rights Act 2015
Fill in the blank: The _____ is an independent group that conducts research to find legal problems and propose reforms.
Law Commission
What is the Law Commission (LC)?
An independent body responsible for reviewing and reforming the law
Established under the Law Commissions Act 1965.
Under which act was the Law Commission established?
Law Commissions Act 1965
This act outlines the functions and responsibilities of the LC.
What are the three main functions of the Law Commission under s3 of the Law Commissions Act?
- Codifying the law
- Consolidating the law
- Repealing the law
These functions aim for systematic reform of the law.
What does codifying the law mean?
Bringing together all the laws on one topic into one complete code
Example: The LC aims to create a cohesive Criminal Code.
What was the significance of the LC’s manifesto published in 1985?
It set out their political ideas/aims influencing the ‘Draft Criminal Code’
This draft tied together many areas of criminal law.
Have any Governments implemented the full Criminal Code proposed by the LC?
No
The LC often works on smaller areas of law to encourage government adoption.
What does consolidating the law mean?
Bringing a law spread across many cases and statutes into one single Act
Example: Non-Fatal Offences (NFOs) spread across different laws.