Relations Between the Branches 4.1

Question 1

What is the Supreme Court?

Answer 1

The highest court of appeal in the UK with 12 justices

Established in 2009

Question 2

What is a key function of the senior courts?

Answer 2

Senior courts, such as the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court set legal precedents which can be referred to in subsequent cases

Question 3

What did the Supreme Court replace?

Answer 3

Replaces the 12 Law Lords who sat in the House of Lords and delivered judgements in the Appellate Committee

Question 4

What act introduced the Supreme Court?

Answer 4

The Constitutional Reform Act 2005

Question 5

Who is the president of the Supreme Court?

Answer 5

Robert Reed

Question 6

What did Constitutional Reform Act introduce?

Answer 6

• Made Supreme Court more open to public scrutiny than the previous Appellate Committee
• Made the SC the highest court of appeal for all civil cases and most criminal cases
• Made the SC appointment process more rigorous: justices are nominated by the JAC, approved by justice secretary (where justice can be rejected) and then agreed by PM before being approved by monarch

Question 7

How many female justices on the Supreme Court?

Answer 7

One as of January 2022: Lady Rose

90% male

Question 8

How many seats on SC are vacant currently?

Answer 8

Two following retirement of Lady Arden and Lord Lloyd-Jones

Question 9

How many of the 10 SC justices are Oxbridge educated?

Answer 9

9/10 = 90%

Question 10

What did John Griffith state?

Answer 10

John Griffith, a radical socialist academic argued in ‘The Politics of the Judiciary’ that socially and politically conservative judges always favour the status quo

Question 11

How does the government retain political influence over the appointment of the Justices of the SC?

Answer 11

The CRA merged the position of Lord Chancellor with justice secretary, with the justice secretary being a member of cabinet
Appointments must go through the justice secretary who can reject a nominee

Question 12

How does the Supreme Court have influence over government?

Answer 12

High-profile involvement in cases concerning the government that are politically charged
EG Brexit

Question 13

What is neutrality?

Answer 13

Judges will exercise their function without personal bias – judges should reach decisions on the basis of law alone

Question 14

How are judges neutral?- Judges must refuse to sit in a case that involves a family member, friend, or professional associate

• Judges must avoid political activity however they may sit on a government commission provided it does not compromise their neutrality, they cannot be a member of a political party
• Since creation of CRA, Supreme Court is far more transparent than Law Lords due to: proceedings being televised, open to visitors, website reasons the decisions on rulings
• JAC eliminates any judges that lack neutrality
• Lengthy experience of justices ensures they operate according to professional ethics

Question 15

How are judges not neutral + example?

Answer 15

• Narrow composition of the court in terms of gender, social and educational background – pale, male and stale
• Justices are seen as ‘Establishment’ and will uphold the status quo – John Griffith HOWEVER Gina Miller case SC ruled government did not have authority to begin process of withdrawing from EU
• Growing judicial activism shows a lack of neutrality

Question 16

What is independence?

Answer 16

The principle that judges must be free from political influence by other branches, particularly the executive

Question 17

How are judges independent?

Answer 17

• Security of tenure – appointed until retirement (age 70 if appointed after 1995) and can only be removed by both Commons and Lords if they break the law (Established in Act of Settlement 1701)
• Judges are appointed through the JAC, an independent appointment commission
• Judges have a fixed salary so removes the threat of lowering from parliament – salaries reccomeded by the Senior Salaries Review Body
• HRA provides a guide on cases which is independent
• CRA established SC to be separate from House of Lords – physical separation
• When a case is being heard, it is ‘sub judice’ – Parliament cannot express an opinion and. If they did it would be contempt of court

Question 18

How are judges not independent?

Answer 18

• Government retains a role in appointing judges ie Justice Secretary, a member of cabinet, can reject an appointment
• Growing trend of ministers to criticise judges rulings EG In 2017 politicians criticised the ruling on Article 50

Question 19

What Is the rule of law?

Answer 19

One of the two pillars of the UK constitution that applies to all citizens

Question 20

What are the core features of the rule of law?

Answer 20

What are the core features of the rule of law?

Question 21

Example of Supreme Court denying parliamentary privilege:

Answer 21

According to parliamentary privilege, MPs cannot be prosecuted for actions they take as part of parliamentary duties at Westminster
R v Chaytor 2010 – David Chaytor claimed that him and 2 other MPs could not be tried on the charge of false accounting as actions were part of parliamentary duty
HOWEVER SC ruled parliamentary privilege does not extend to criminal offences

Question 22

What important constitutional and political functions does the SC carry out?

Answer 22

• Determine the meaning of the law
• Deciding whether a public body has acted ultra vires
• Establishing where sovereignty is located in the UK
• Declaring when government has acted in defiance of HRA

Question 23

Example of case where SC determined the meaning of the law:

Answer 23

R v Jogee (2016) SC overturned the puncipled of ‘joint enterprise’ which was established by common law – stated that those who were part of a group which incited a murder could be convicted in same way as person who did the killing

Question 24

Example of public body acting ultra vires:

Answer 24

In 2013 Jeremy Hunt was deemed ultra vires when he shut down Lewisham Maternity Unit

Question 25

Example of a case determining location of sovereignty in UK:

Answer 25

Gina Miller case 2017

• Following 2016 EU referendum, government claimed it could begin leaving EU through exercising royal prerogative
• 2017 SC ruling 8-3 majority ruled Parliament did not have the authority: reasoning was parliament had taken us into EU in 1972, so parliament should take us out
• Lord Neuberger stated that “The UK’s constitutional arrangements require such changes to be clearly authorised by parliament”
• Daily Mail condemning High Court judges as ‘enemies of the people’

Question 26

Example of case declaring declaration of incompatibility:

Answer 26

Belmarsh Case 2004
- Blair used powers given by Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 to hold foreign terrorist suspects indefinitely without trial