Лекция: The Judiciary

British law comes from two main sources: laws made in Parliament (usually drawn up by government departments and lawyers), and Common Law, which is based on previous judgments and customs. Just as there is no written constitution, so England and Wales have no criminal code or civil code and the interpretation of the law is based on what has happened in the past. The laws which are made in Parliament are interpreted by the courts, but changes in the law itself are made in Parliament.

A person charged by the police with an offence is sent to a magistrates’ court, the most common type of law court in England and Wales. There are 700 magistrates’ courts and about 30,000 magistrates.

Magistrates’ courts are presided over by groups of three unpaid, lay magistrates (also known as “justices of the peace” or JPs), who often have no legal qualifications, although they are given basic training when appointed and are advised on points of law and procedure by a legally-qualified clerk. There are also a few stipendiary magistrates – full-time, legally-qualified magistrates who sit alone. Magistrates hear and decide in cases concerning minor offences and refer more serious cases to the Crown Court, which has 90 branches in different towns and cities. A defendant can always choose, however, to be tried by a jury in the Crown Court.

The Crown Court deals with trials of a more serious nature or appeals from magistrates’ courts and is presided over by a judge, who must be a barrister or a solicitor with at least ten years experience.

Defendants who declare themselves not guilty of a crime are tried by a jury of 12 people. The judge decides on points of law, sums up evidence for the jury and instructs it on the relevant law (as well as determining fines and sentences). It is the jury alone, however, which decides whether a defendant is guilty or not guilty.

Civil cases (for example, divorce or bankruptcy cases) are dealt with in County courts. Appeals are heard by higher courts. For example, appeals from magistrates’ courts are heard in the Crown Court, unless they are appeals on points of law. The highest court of appeal in England and Wales is the House of Lords. (Scotland has its own High Court in Edinburgh, which hears all appeals from Scottish courts.) Certain cases may be referred to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. In addition, individuals have made the British Government change its practices in a number of areas as a result of petitions to the European Court of Human Rights.

The legal system also includes juvenile courts (which deal with offenders under seventeen) and coroners’ courts (which investigate violent, sudden or unnatural deaths). There are administrative tribunals which make quick, cheap and fair decisions with much less formality. Tribunals deal with professional standards, disputes between individuals, and disputes between individuals and government departments (for example, over taxation).