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what are the functions of the judiciary - Coggle Diagram
what are the functions of the judiciary
acts of unions
Acts of Union (1707)
Guaranteed the continued existence of Scotland's separate legal system
Created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and the UK Parliament
Acts of Union (1800)
Preserved Ireland's separate system of courts
Created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
civil courts
Resolve disputes between private citizens, or between citizens and the state
e.g. breach of contract, property rights, liability for injury
Claimant v Defendant
Court can order the defendant to pay compensation or some other remedy
Criminal courts
Hear and decide cases where people are accused of breaking the criminal law
Prosecution v Defendant
Court can inflict punishments e.g. fines or imprisonment
hierarchy of courts
high- 3 divisions, queens bench, chancery, and family, hear appeals & some 'first instance' cases
crown- jury trial for criminal offences- appeals from magistrates court
magistrates courts ( for criminal offenses+ some civil matters) , family courts (for most family cases), county courts (trial for most civil cases
court of appeal- criminal division, appeal only on points of law
supreme court- appeal only on points of law
European Court of Justice
Highest court in the European Union in matters of European Union law
Interprets EU law and ensures that it is equally applied across all Member States
Sets binding precedents that must be followed by all national courts
European Court of Human Rights
Established in 1959 to uphold the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)
1966 - UK allowed 'individual petition' - the right to take a legal case against the UK to the ECHR
The HRA (1998) requires UK judges to "take into account" the ECHR's decisions
judge
preside over court hearings and dispense justice
uphold the law
ensure citizens are equal under the law- including the government
ensure everyone has access to a fair trial with both sides being able to make their case
Decide on sentencing
Historically, judges had considerable freedom to decide what sentences to hand out
However...
In recent decades Parliament has introduced a number of minimum & mandatory sentences for particular crimes, reducing judges' discretion
Interpret the law
Applying the law often requires judges to provide a definitive interpretation of vaguely written statutes
Words can be ambiguous, with different meanings in different contexts - our understanding of words can also gradually evolve over time
Judges have developed different rules for statutory interpretation:
Literal Rule
The first rule applied by judges - the words of the statute are given their natural and ordinary meaning.
Golden Rule
If a literal interpretation would lead to an absurd outcome, then judges substitute key words or phrases to ensure the Act makes sense and there is a reasonable outcome.
Mischief Rule
Judges consider the 'mischief' that the Act was intended to address and then interpret the Act so that it achieves the purpose intended by Parliament.
Conduct public inquiries into areas of public concern
As judges are independent of the government and politically neutral, they are seen as suitable chairs to lead inquiries into areas of public concern.
2010 Gibson Inquiry
Sir Peter Gibson led an inquiry into claims that British intelligence agencies had been complicit in the torture of terrorist suspects.
2011 Leveson Inquiry
Lord Leveson led an inquiry into the behaviour of the British press following the News International phone hacking scandal.
system
Judiciary - important hierarchy - lower courts must follow precedent set by higher courts - Supreme Court is the highest UK court, hearing appeals from senior courts in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
The UK Supreme Court must follow precedents set by the ECJ on EU law and must "take into account" the decisions of the ECtHR.
Magistrates and judges in lower courts generally preside over court hearings, applying the law, dispensing justice, and deciding on sentencing.
More senior judges actually make law by interpreting statutes, adding to case law, and declaring the common law - set binding precedents.
Higher courts also review the application of the law by public bodies - decisions and actions can be blocked if they are 'ultra vires'.