The UK judiciary Dr Paromita Chakraborty Surendranath College
The UK judiciary Dr. Paromita Chakraborty, Surendranath College
§ In Britain due to the lack of a written constitution the courts role is limited. There is no judicial review of legislation in the UK. However there is a judicial review in case of executive actions. § In the UK the courts do not exercise both civil and criminal Characteristics of the UK judiciary jurisdiction. § The judges are independent and are appointed by the crown and hold office for life. The parliament cannot also criticize the decisions of the judges. § The UK has speedy trial and the legislation’s are costly. § The house of lords is the highest court of appeal in the UK. The function is exercised by the lord chancellor and the law lords. § The judiciary also protects the rights of the citizens of UK. Since the citizens don’t have any constitutional right.
§ The judges are appointed by the crown but are not Independence of the UK judiciary normally removable by the crown. The judges also have a security of tenure. § The salaries of the judges are fixed and are not voted annually by the parliament. The salaries are paid by the consolidated fund. § A judge cannot be criticized by parliament except for any clear evidence of misbehavior.
§ 1. County courts- these form the bottom of the judicial hierarchy. The decide on a large number of judicial cases. The amount of which cannot exceed 400 pounds. § 2. The high court of justice- they are made of three Civil courts divisions. The queens county bench division are concerned with the most important civil cases, the chancery division is concerned with estates of deceased persons or bankruptcy matters and tax cases. § The probate, divorce and admiralty division is concerned with issues related to divorce and cases of wills. § The court of appeal hears appeals from the country courts and the high courts. § The house of lords is the highest court of appeal.
§ 1. Magistrates courts- they are the lowest courts, it deals with minor criminal offenses. § 2. Courts of quarter sessions- they cover the serious crimes, though these courts are debated from trying a crime that Carrie’s a death sentence or life imprisonment. Criminal courts § 3. Courts of assize- These courts work in counties and big cities three times a year they hear civil and criminal cases. § The court of criminal appeal- it covers appeals that come from the court of assizes and quarter sessions. It is this court that decides whether the appeal needs to be forwarded to the house of lords.
- Slides: 5