Legal Foundations Flashcards
What are the principles of justice
Fairness
Equality
Access
Social Cohesion
The ability of a community to live in a peaceful, harmonious and orderly manner by recognising that everyone has rights and responsibilities
Fairness - principle of justice
everyone can participate in the justice system and its process must be IMPARTIAL (no bias) and OPEN (transparent)
Equality - principle of justice
everyone participating in the justice system should be treated equally
FORMAL- parties are treated the same
SUBSTANTIVE- a party is treated differently to ensure equality
Access- principle of justice
all people should be able to engage with the justice system and its processes on an informed basis (ability to understand e.g. a lawyer)
Characteristics of an effective law
- known
- enforceable- there are consequences
- reflect societys values
- stable
- clear and understandable
Court hierarchy
ranking of the courts based on their jurisdiction:
(lowest to highest)
Magistrates court
County court
Supreme court trial div
Supreme court of appeal
High court
Why are courts presented in a court hierarchy?
Precedent- consistency, fairness
Appeals
Specialisation- allows judges to develop expertise
Administrative convenience- less complex, more efficient cases
Precedent
Legal principle established by a court in a previous legal case.
Binding & persuasive precedents
Separation Of Powers
executive- puts laws into place (govt)
Legislative- makes and amends laws (parliament)
Judiciary- applies and interprets the law (courts)
THIS PREVENTS ONE GROUP HAVING TOO MUCH POWER AND BECOMING CORRUPT
Division Of Powers
exclusive powers- federal (defence)
concurrent powers- federal and state ( taxation)
residual powers- state (crime)
by laws- local (rubbish collection)
