Hear 100 cases a year which are appeals and can be civil or criminal cases. A case can only be appealed if there is a point of law involved. Any decision made in the Supreme Court becomes a precedent for all lower courts.

Sit in both civil and criminal courts. they hear 7000 leave to appeals against sentence or conviction and these are dealt with by only one judge. They normally sit as a panel of three decisions Radeon points of law then become precedent for all courts below them.

The main role is to try cases of first instance judges will sit by themselves for these cases. They also hear some appeals mainly from civil cases in the County Court.

Sit in the County Court to hear civil cases and the Crown Court to try criminal cases. In a criminal case they will sit with a jury they will decide the facts and the judge will decide the law, if the jury come back with a guilty verdict then the judge will decide the sentence.

Appointed for a period of five years - mainly used in the the Crown Court to try criminal cases, but some sit in the County Court to decide civil cases.

Try criminal cases in the Magistrates' Court, the sit on their own and decide the facts and the law they will also need to decide the sentence if the defendant is found guilty.

Set out in the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990and was amended in the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 the qualifications are based on legal qualifications and legal experience.

Before 2005 the superior judges were chosen by the lord chancellor but that meant that selection of judges were not independent from political influence but now from the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 It was decided that the Judicial Appointments Commission would deal with the selection and then recommend to the Lord Chancellor who should be appointed.

Once a candidate has been selected the appointment is made by the queen this keeps it separate from government.

They cannot be dismissed by government which is set out in the Senior Courts Act 1981 and the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. this means they can only be removed by the monarch following a petition presented by both Houses of Parliament.

The Lord Chancellor with the consent of the Lord Chief Justice has the power to dismiss inferior judges for incapacity or misbehaviour.

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 as well which was confirmed in Sirros v Moore 1975. This allows judges to perform his duties without the fear of repercussions cussions.

Superior judges cannot be dismissed by the government and in this way they can be truly be independent of the government they can make decisions which may displease government without the threat of dismissal.

Independence from the legislature - judges generally not involved in law making. Full time judges are not allowed to be part of the House of Commons although for part time judges and recorders it is not as strict.

Judges must not try a case where they have an interest in the issue involved. The Pinochet case in 1998 reinforced this rule. judges must be completely impartial when making decisions.