the judiciary: Flashcards
how is the judiciary split?
Judges, known collectively as the judiciary, make decisions in a fair, unbiased way.
The judiciary is split into ‘superior’ judges and ‘inferior’ judges.
This distinction is important.
It affects the training, work and the terms in which they hold office.
where do superior courts sit and what are their titles?
supreme court
court of appeal
high court
The Justices of the Supreme Court
The Lord Justices of Appeal in the Court of Appeal
High Court Judges (sit in the three divisions of the High Court)
The head of the judiciary is the Lord Chief Justice.
who are the inferior judges and where do they sit?
The inferior judges include:
Circuit judges (sit in both Crown and County Court)
Recorders (part-time judges usually in Crown Court – sometimes County Court)
District Judges – hear small claims and other matters in County Court.
District Judges (Magsitrates’ Court) sit in Magistrates’ Courts in London and other major towns/cities.
Tribunal Judges
who sits in crown and county court?
circuit judges
who sits in the magistrates court?
district judges
what are the requirements to become a circuit judge requirements?
Must be lawyers who have held ‘rights of audience’ for at least 7 years.
Or have held another judicial role for at least 3 years.
Some circuit judges can then become senior circuit judges who can sit in the High Court or Family Court.
what are the district judge requirements?
They deal with most cases in the County Court.
Appointed by the King after a fair and open competition.
Must have 5 years of professional legal experience.
Lord Chancellor will usually only appoint people who have been Deputy District Judges for two years.
what are the requirements to become a superior judge?
Holding high judicial office for at least two years.
Have to have been a qualified and practised solicitor/barrister for at least 15 years.
An independent selection commission of 5 members will choose who to appoint. (before it was chosen by the Lord Chancellor who would’ve had a political influence).
It is a lengthy process to be chosen.
what is the kings role in appointing judges?
Once a candidate has been selected, the appointment is made by the King.
This keeps selection and appointment separate from the government.
who are justices of the supreme court?
They hear around 100 cases per year.
The cases they hear are appeals.
Can be civil or criminal (majority are civil)
Can only deal with cases where the appeal was to do with a point of law.
The Justices must sit as an uneven number panel (minimum 3).
Whatever decision the supreme court makes will become precedent for the lower courts (judicial precedent).
Who are the Lord Justices of Appeal?
All their work is concerned with appeals.
They sit in both the civil and criminal divisions of the Court of Appeal.
Their workload is much heavier than the Supreme Court.
For criminal, they will hear over 7,000 applications for leave (permission) to appeal against sentence or conviction.
These applications are dealt with by one judge.
Only around a quarter get leave to appeal.
They also hear over 3,000 civil appeals, based on the finding of liability or the remedy awarded.
Court of Appeal judges usually sit in a panel of three.
what do high court judges do?
Cases at first instance (first time the case is being heard).
They will hear evidence from the witnesses, decide what the law is and make the decision as to which side has won the case.
If the claim is for damages, the judge decides how much should be awarded.
When hearing first instance cases, judges sit on their own.
They also hear some appeals.
Mainly from civil cases from the County Court.
The judges in the KBD also hear criminal appeals from Magistrates’ Courts – appeals on law only.
When hearing appeals, they will sit in a panel of two.
Judges from the KBD can also sit in Crown Court with a jury.
what do they do in the county court?
Circuit judges sit in County Court and hear civil cases and also in Crown Court to hear criminal cases.
In County Court, they decide the law and the facts and make the decision on who has won the case.
In criminal, they sit with a jury. Jury decides the facts and judge decides the law.
where do recorders sit?
Recorders are part-time and are appointed for a period of 5 years.
Recorders mainly sit in the Crown Court but some will sit in County Court.
where do district judges sit and what cases do they deal with?
District judges sit in County Court and deal with small claim cases (under £10,000). Can hear cases for larger amounts too though.
District Judges (Magistrates’ Court) hear criminal cases on their own and decide on the facts and law, and also decide on the sentence.
what is the security of tenure?
They cannot be dismissed by the government (Act of Settlement 1701).
Can only be removed by the monarch following a petition presented by both Houses of Parliament.
Gives these judges protection from politics and allows them to be independent in their judgments.
This power to remove a superior judge has never been exercised for an English judge.
(was previously a 5 marker)
do inferior judges have the same security of tenure as superior judges?
Do not have the same security of tenure as superior judges.
The Lord Chancellor, with consent of the Lord Chief Justice, has the power to dismiss inferior judges for incapacity or misbehaviour.
Complaints will be investigated by the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office.
If the complaint is found to be true, it will be reported to the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice and the judge can be warned/reprimanded about their conduct. In serious circumstances, they can be removed from office.
what is immunity from suit?
Judges are given immunity from prosecution for any acts they carry out in performance of their judicial function.
They also have immunity from being sued in civil cases for actions taken in their judicial role.
This was confirmed in Sirros v Moore (1975):
Case in Crown Court, the judge wrongly ordered someone’s detention. The person started a claim for false imprisonment against the judge. The Court of Appeal held that, although the detention had been unlawful, no action could be taken against the judge, as he had acted in good faith.
they can also not be sued for defamation.
Sirros v Moore
Case in Crown Court, the judge wrongly ordered someone’s detention. The person started a claim for false imprisonment against the judge. The Court of Appeal held that, although the detention had been unlawful, no action could be taken against the judge, as he had acted in good faith.
they can also not be sued for defamation.
how are superior judges independent from the government?
Superior judges can’t be dismissed by the government, so can be seen to be completely independent from the government in this sense.
They can make decisions which may displease the government without fear of dismissal. Why is that important?
S3 of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 now guarantees judicial independence.
The Lord Chancellor and other ministers must not seek to influence particular judicial decisions.
Judges are also now recommended by the Judicial Appointments Committee, which helps to keep independence
how are judges independent from the case?
Judges cannot try a case that they have any interest in the issue involved.
Case of Pinochet reinforced this rule. (one of the judges had an interest in this case).
Judges have to be seen to be completely unbiased.
In Pinochet, the case was retried with a new panel of judges.
why is it important that judges are independent to make any decision?
Protects the individual from abuse of power by the executive.
If the government could influence a decision, opponents of the government could be imprisoned without reasonable cause.
An independent judiciary is vital for a democracy.
Judges often have to decide if an act is reasonable or not. They need to be able to do this without any fear of repercussions.
Judges must be able to be impartial in their decisions and have no external influences from the media, large companies, or the executive.
what are the advantages of judicial independence?
Fairness – decisions are made solely on the basis of the facts and the law.
Judiciary are able to protect citizens against unlawful acts of government.
There can be an impartial judicial review of acts by the government.
The public have confidence in our judicial system. They know their cases will be decided fairly and in accordance with the law.
