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Legal Personnel - Coggle Diagram

- - - - The commission is entirely responsible for assessing merit and selecting candidates for appointment
      - No candidate can be appointed unless recommended by the commission
      - Appointments made solely on merit
      - The commission must consult the Lord Chief Justice and another judge of equivalent experience before recommending a candidate
    - - Intellectual capacity
      - Ability to understand and deal fairly
      - Authority and communication skills
      - Efficiency
      - Personal qualities
        
        Independence of mind
        
        Sound judgement
        
        Integrity
        
        Decisiveness
        
        Objectivity
        
        Willingness to learn
    - - Constitutional reform Act 2005
      - Inferior level judges
        
        Completely separate form the government
      - The Lord Chief Justices' role
      - Recommends superior-level judges for appointment to the Lord Chancellor
        
        Accept
        
        Reject
        
        Ask the panel to reconsider
      - Selects over 500 people each year
  - - - Knowledge of substantive law, evidence and procedure
      - The acquisition and improvement of judicial skills
      - Social context
    - - Human awareness
      - Perception of unrepresented parties
      - Awareness of other viewpoints
  - - - Judge - High Court Judge
      - Role
        
        Sit in one of the three Divisions
        
        Hear first instance cases and decide liability and remedy
        
        Some appeal work
      - Qualifications
        
        7 years legal experience or be a circuit judge for 2 years
        
        Barrister or solicitor
    - - Judges
        
        High Court Judges
        
        Circuit Judges
        
        Recorders
      - Role
        
        Decide the law
        
        Try cases with a jury
        
        Pass sentence on guilty defendants
      - Qualifications
        
        Barrister or solicitor
        
        7 years legal experience or be a recorder or district judge for 3 years
    - - Qualifications
        
        7 year legal experience or be an existing High Court Judge
        
        Barrister or solicitor
      - Role
        
        Hear appeals
        
        Criminal cases against conviction and/or sentence
        
        Civil cases - the finding and or the amount awarded
      - Judge - Lords Justices of Appeal
    - - Judge
        
        Circuit judges
        
        District judges
      - Role
        
        Civil cases - decide liability and remedy
        
        District judges hear small claims
      - Qualifications
        
        5 years legal experience
        
        Barrister or solicitor
    - - Judge - Justices of the Supreme Court -
      - Role
        
        Hear appeals on point of law
        
        Both civil and criminal cases
      - Qualifications
        
        Barrister or solicitor
        
        15-year Supreme Court qualification or hold high judicial office
    - - Qualifications
        
        5 years legal experience
        
        CILEx Fellows can be appointed as deputys
        
        Barrister or solicitor
      - Judge
        
        District Judge
      - Role
        
        Criminal cases - decide law and verdict
        
        Pass sentence on guilty defendants
        
        Some family work
  - - - Judicial Conduct Investigation Office
      - The Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice have the power to take disciplinary action
        
        Warning
        
        Reprimand
        
        Suspension from office
        
        Removal from office
  - - - Independence from the executive
      - Independence from the legislature
    - - Immunity from being sued for actions taken in the course of their judicial duties
        
        Sirros Moore
      - Security of tenue
      - Financial independence - paid from the Consolidated Fund
    - - Judicial review
      - Human rights
- - - - Private practice in partnerships
      - Can brief a barrister if the case is complex (fraud)
      - Deal directly with clients
      - Carry out a wide variety of work but likely to specialise in one area
    - - Law Society
      - Solicitors Regulatory Authority
    - - Professional Skills Course
      - Admitted to Roll of Solicitors
      - Two-year training contract
      - Solicitors Qualifying Examination from 2021
      - Legal Practice Course
      - Degree-entry - Graduate Diploma in Law for non-law degree entrants
  - - - Briefed by solicitors but can carry out direct-access work in civil cases
      - Mostly advocacy work but can write opinions and draft documents
      - Self-employed, based in chambers
    - - Bar Council
      - Bar Standards Board
    - - Bar Professional Training Course
      - Complete 12 training sessions
      - Join an Inn of Court
      - Call to the Bar
      - Degree-entry followed by Bar Course Aptitude Test
      - 12-month pupillage
  - - - Work for solicitors or other legal organisations
      - Carry out similar work to solicitors but in less complex matters - they are also paid at an hourly rate, but it is lower
    - - CILEx Regulation Board
    - - Professional Diploma in Law
      - Professional Higher Diploma in Law
      - Work for at least 5 years in a legal organisation
- - - - Recommended by local advisory committees
      - Senior Presiding Judge formally appoints
    - - Initial training with mentor appointed
      - Regular subsequent training and specialist training e.g. chairing a bench or family work
      - Supervised by the Magisterial Committee of the Judicial College
      - Regular appraisals
    - - Need to live or work in or near the local justice area
      - Key qualities required
        
        Understanding
        
        Communication skills
        
        Social awareness
        
        Sound judgement
      - Aged 18 to 65 on appointment - can sit till 70
      - Disqualified by criminal record, bankruptcy or work that is incompatible
    - - 12 000 nationally
      - 56% women
      - 12% BAME
      - 3 lay magistrates
      - 84% aged over 50
      - 1% under 30
    - - Criminal cases
        
        Sentence guilty pleas
        
        Deal with ancillary matters
        
        Hear trials of summary offences
        
        Max fine of 6 months imprisonment and a £5000 fine
        
        Sit as a panel of 3
        
        Youth Court - specially nominated and trained - form a panel - informal and private - at least 1 mand and 1 woman
        
        Appeals in the Crown Court - panel made up of 2 lay magistrates and 1 qualified judge.
      - Civil cases
        
        The Family Proceedings Court
        
        There is a special panel to hear these family cases
        
        Adoption orders
        
        Proceedings under the Children Act 1989
        
        Affiliation cases
        
        Protection against violence
        
        Extensive training before lay magistrates can sit in this court
        
        Cases can be emotional and upsetting for parties and therefore the lay magistrates must be very experienced
        
        They will provide a written reason for their decision and can be assisted with extra information provided by someone such as a specialised social worker.
        
        Open cases about non-payment of council tax or television licences
  - - - Summons sent to these people
      - Must attend unless disqualified or excused
      - A central office selects names from the list of electors
    - - A jury member may be checked for criminal record
        
        R v Mason 1980
      - In cases of national security, may be subject to a wider check on background
    - - Members of the armed forces
      - Discretionary
        
        Ill
        
        Business commitments
        
        Other good reasons
    - - Whole panel may be challenged for biased selection
      - Prosecution may 'stand by' any juror
      - Individual defendant may be challenged for cause - knows defendant
    - - Served a prison sentence OR suspended sentence IR a community order - disqualified for 10 years
      - On bail - disqualified for the duration of the bail
      - Sentenced to 5 years or more imprisonment - disqualified for life
    - - Sole arbiters of fact but judge directs them on law
      - Verdict
        
        Must try for a unanimous verdict
        
        If unable to do so, a majority verdict can e accepted of 10-2 or 11-1
      - Decide verdict - guilty or not guilty
    - - Registered to vote
      - Resident in the UK for at least 5 years since age 13
      - Aged 18 - 75 inclusive
    - - Open justice
        
        Trial in public + Explaining issues to jury help the defendant to understand the law and process
        
        Irrelevent events or biased media coverage can affect decision making
        
        R v Young (1995) - Some members used a Ouija board
        
        R v Karakaya (2005) - A juror shared internet search results about the case with other jury members
      - Secret discusssion
        
        Jury free of pressure in making decisions
        
        Lack of reasoning could allow the jury to not fully understand the case - fraud trials
      - Jury equity
        
        Decisions based on fairness + no reasons must be given
        
        R v Ponting (1985) - defendant had acted in public interest so jury refused to convict.
        
        R v Kronlid (1996) - Defence was lawful excuse so jury refused to convict
        
        R v Randle and Pottle
        
        Decisions can be considered wrong - juries acquit too many defendants
      - Impartiality
        
        Secret discussions may result in jury members influencing others in order to reach a verdict - jurors may be influenced by reporting - R v Taylor and Taylor (1993)
        
        Members of the jury are not connected to the case + not case-hardened
      - Public confidence
        
        Long established system + fundamental requirement for a democratic society
        
        Perverse decisions loose confidence - No intelligence tests are used resulting in a lack of understanding - Service is compulsory and unpopular - Jury tampering may occur
      - Representative
        
        Due to random selection, a wide range of ages and backgrounds can be represented
        
        Selection based on electoral register may mean it is unrepresentative