Unit 4- AC 1.1 Flashcards
what happens before a new bill (law) is put forward to parliament?
green and white paper is produced.
green paper- initial report to provoke public discussion, includes questions for individuals to respond to
white paper- sets out detailed plans for legislation, includes draft version of the bill
what are the parliamentary stages of a new law (bill)?
first reading
second reading
committee stage
report stage
third reading
royal assent
what happens in the first reading?
government introduces the bill into the Commons where it receives a first reading
formal announcement of the bill followed by a vote to allow it to move to the next stage
what happens in the second reading?
the main principles are considered and debated by House of Commons and vote is taken
government usually wins this vote due to having majority of MPs
what happens in the committee stage?
bill is examined in detail by a small committee of MPs from different parties
committee reports back to the whole House and often propose amendments to the Bill
what happens in the report stage?
gives MPs opportunity to consider committee’s report and to debate and vote on any amendments they wish to make to the Bill
for major bills the debates may spread over several days
what happens in the third reading?
final chance for House of Commons to debate the Bill’s contents
no amendments are allowed at this stage
the House votes either to pass the Bill or to reject it
what happens after the third reading?
Bill goes to House of Lords where it goes through same stages as in the Commons
If the Lords have amended the Bill, it must return to the Commons so they can decide whether to accept or reject the Lords’ amendments
House of Commons has final say because it is made up of the peoples elected representatives
what happens in the royal assent?
the monarch signs the bill
it is the monarchs agreement to make the bill into an act of parliament or law
new law will now come into force immediately unless it specifies it only applies after a certain date (a commencement order)
what are examples of laws that were made using the parliamentary system?
The Criminal Justice Act 2003
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991
The Crime Sentences Act 1997
what was the Criminal Justice Act 2003?
introduced double jeopardy law after Ann Ming campaign and McPherson inquiry into death of Stephen Lawrence
what was the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991?
bans four breeds of dogs due to over reaction of a media-led moral panic
this meant it wasn’t given due consideration because it was rushed though parliament and many flaws were apparent because it blamed the breed not the deed
what is the Crime Sentences Act 1997?
introduced mandatory minimum sentences for range of repeat offences such as automatic life sentence for a second serious violent offence
what are the judicial processes of law making?
judicial precedent
statutory interpretation
what is judicial precedent?
source of law making where past decisions of judges create law for future judges to follow
based on the principle of standing by what judges have decided in previous cases
where law is the same as in previous cases judges should follow decisions made in the previous one, allowing for consistency and fairness
what is the court hierachy?
supreme court
high court
court of appeal
crown court
magistrates court
what are the two exceptions to precedent?
distinguishing and overruling
what is distinguishing?
the judge finds the facts in the present case are different from the earlier one to allow them to reach a different decision and not have to follow the precedent of the earlier case
example: amount of alcohol someone has had when driving
what is overruling?
a court higher up the hierarchy states a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturns it
example: Supreme court can overrule a lower courts decision when it hears an appeal
what is an example of overruling?
Marital Rape in R v R (1992)
what happened in the case of R v R?
a husband was convicted of attempted rape of his wife
he appealed because there was very old precedents that a husband couldn’t be guilty of raising his wife because the marriage a wife’s consent to sex.
the appeal of court overruled this due to the idea of consent being outdated as couples are seen as being equal in marriage.
what is statutory interpretation?
the way judges interpret acts of parliament.
there are three interpretation rules to help them: the literal rule, the golden rule, the mischief rule.
what is the literal rule?
judges should use the everyday ordinary meaning of the words in the law
what is a negative of a judge adhering to the literal rule?
a word can have several meanings
example: case of R v Maginnis involved illegal drugs, diff judges found diff meanings of the word ‘supply’
some saw it as giving the drug to someone else and others saw it as a reference to the amount of drugs the individual had
this means different punishments could be given by the judge for the same offence
