The Work of the Law Commission Flashcards
- THE LAW COMMISSION is an independent, permanent and full time law reform body set up by the…
THE LAW COMMISSION is an independent, permanent and full time law reform body set up by the Law Commissions Act 1965. It consists of a Chairman who is a High Court Judge and four Law Commissioners who are experienced practising or academic lawyers, with support staff to assist with research.
- Under Section 3(1) of the 1965 Act, the role of the Law Commission is to…
Under Section 3(1) of the 1965 Act, the role of the Law Commission is to “keep under review all the law” and concentrates on what is sometimes called “pure law”. Areas in need of reform may be referred to it by the government, or it may itself select areas before seeking the government’s approval to draft a report.
- The Commission researches the area of law and publishes a consultation paper describing…
The Commission researches the area of law and publishes a consultation paper describing the current law and options for reform.
Following the response, the Commission will draw up proposals for reform in a final report, often with a draft Bill attached which may go through the legislative process in Parliament to become law
- Under the Law Commission Act 2009, the government must…
Under the Law Commission Act 2009, the government must give reasons for deciding not to implement law reform suggested by the Law Commission.
- Examples of laws passed as a result of a Law Commission report are the Occupiers Liability Act 1984 which made occupiers of land…
Examples of laws passed as a result of a Law Commission report are the Occupiers Liability Act 1984 which made occupiers of land responsible for injuries to trespassers, the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 which set out the law on Voluntary Manslaughter, and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 concerning consumers’ rights in respect of faulty goods.
- The Law Commission has repealed more than 3,000 out of date (obsolete) Acts of Parliament, plus…
The Law Commission has repealed more than 3,000 out of date (obsolete) Acts of Parliament, plus parts of thousands of other Acts, and is called “tidying up the statute book”. It does this by preparing a Statute Law (Repeals) Bill for Parliament to pass. By 2015, **19 such Acts had been passed. **
- The Law Commission consolidates the law in one area by drawing together several Acts of Parliament into…
The Law Commission consolidates the law in one area by drawing together several Acts of Parliament into one Act.
For example the Powers of the Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 brought together several different Acts regarding sentencing.
- The Law Commission codifies laws by bringing together all of the law in an area into one…
The Law Commission codifies laws by bringing together all of the Law in an area into one code. The Law Commission has tried to codify contract, family and criminal law, for example a draft Criminal Code was published in 1989. However, these large schemes have been gradually abandoned in favour of the codification of smaller areas of law.
