AC 1.1

• AC 1.1 Describe processes used for law making

  Government processes of law making

  Parliament = House of Commons, House of Lords and the Monarch

  • UK is a parliamentary democracy
  • Most laws are made by passing Acts of parliament
  • Laws made up by parliament are often referred to as 'legislation' or 'status'
• AC 1.1 - House of Commons

  • 650 members for parliament (MP)
  • elected every 5 years by their constitutes to represent them
• AC 1.1 - House of Lords

  • Non elected body
  • currently has 785 sitting members (Dec 2023)
  • Mix of: Life peers, hereditary peers, Archbishops/bishops, (Lord spiritual), non affilliated members - Dosen't belong to a party
  • These can be party members COE bishops and/or experts in a particular field
• AC 1.1 - Monarch

  • Performs a symbolic function only
  • The last monarch to refuse the Royal assent was Queen Anne 1707
• AC 1.1 - The government

  • Parliament job is to represent the people
  • Government job is to run the country
  • Government is formed by the political party that has a majority of the 650 MPs
  • PM is the leader of the majority party
  • Most proposals for new laws came from the government
  • A proposal for a new law is called a bill
• AC 1.1 - Green paper

  • Traditionally printed on green paper
  • Consultation documents used by government departments to stimulate discussion
  • Identity why changes might be needed and proposes reform options
  • seek options from interested parties by including questions
  • Government will consider responses
  • EG = Higher education and Research bill 2016
• AC 1.1 - White paper

  • After consultation the government usually publish a white paper
  • Traditionally printed on plain white paper without covers and draw on the consultation process
  • Outline clear proposals for law reform
  • Often include a draft version of the bill they intend to put before parliament
  • They may reflect opinions received during the consultation stage
  • EG = Financial services Act 2012
• AC 1.1 - Public bills

  • Affect the whole country
  • Presented to parliament in the King's speech part of the government's legistative programme
  • Immigration Act 2016
  • European union (withdrawl) Act 2018
• AC 1.1 - Private bills

  • Only affect specific organisations or areas of the country rather than the whole country
  • Transport for London Act 2016 extending the powers of TFL is an example
• AC 1.1 - Private members bill

  • Public bill introduced by MPs in the commons or peers in the Lords who are not part of the government
  • Abortion Act 1967 was introduced by MP David Steel to legalise abortion in certain situations
  • Correct horses Act 2015 was introduced by MP Julian Sturdy to provide to local authorities to deal with horses left on land without permission
• AC 1.1 - Hybrid bills

  • These are a cross between a public bill and a private bill
  • The cross rail 2 bill is an example
  • Introduced in 2019
  • Will run between Surrey and Hertfordshire
• AC 1.1 - Legislative process

  The bill is introduced to enter the commons or the Lords and then passes through series of readings and debates
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  • First reading
  • Second reading
  • Committee stage
  • Report stage
  • Third reading
  • Royal assent
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  First reading - First stage of a bill's passage through House of Commons (or Lords) and is the formal introduction of the bill with no debate
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Second reading - First opportunity for MPs to debate the main principles of the bill. It usually takes place no sooner then two weekends after first reading
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Committee stage - Where detailed examination of the bill takes place. Usually starts with in a couple of weeks of a bill's second reading. Although this is not guaranteed. Government bills are usually formally timetabled after they have received a second reading.
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Report stage - Gives MPs an opportunity, on the floor of the house to consider further amendments (proposals for change) to a bill which has been examined in committee. There is no set time period between the end of the committee stage and the start of the report stage.
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Third reading - Final chance for the commons to debate the contents of a bill. Usually takes place immediately after the report stage as the next item of business on the same day.
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Royal assent - Once a bill has completed all the parliamentary stages in both houses. It is ready to receive royal ascent. This is when the king formally agrees to make the bill into an Act of parliament (law). An Act will normally come into effect on midnight on the day it receives royal assent
• AC 1.1 - Legislative stages in the progress of a bill

  Any amendments made in the House of Lords then it has to go to House of Commons because they both have to agree. Known as 'Ping Pong'.
• AC 1.1 - Parliamentary sovereignty

  Beginnings of a 'supreme' parliament

  • Bill of rights 1689 removed much of the powers of the monarch including the ability to ignore parliament statues
  • William III signs the bill of rights giving up much of his power
• AC 1.1 - Parliamentary sovereignty

  Examples of development and challenges to parliamentary sovereignty

  • UK's entry to the European Union
  • Devolution of power to bodies like the Scottish parliament and Welsh assembley
  • Human Rights Act 1998
• AC 1.1 - Membership of the EU

  • Some of parliament's law making powers were transferred to Brussels when the UK joined the European Union in 1973
  • Leaving the EU has enabled parliament to regain full supremacy over UK law making
  • Transition period ended on 31/12/2020
  • European convention on Human Rights (ECHR) - Human Rights Act 1998
• AC 1.1 - Devolution

  • Parliament has transferred some of its law making powers to devolution assemblies in Scotland and Wales
  • Scottish parliament and the National assembley for Wales can legislate on matters for their own countries, such as education and health
• Judicial processes of law making:

  • As well as parliament, judges can make laws
  • Can be done through two processes: Judicial processes and statutory Interpretation
  • It is the Judge - Made law that we refer to as a common law. We also refer to it as case law
• Judicial precedent is a source of law

  • Making were the past decisions of judges create law for future judges to follow
  • Based on the principle of standing by or following what judges have decided in previous cases
  • The idea of standing by a decision or stare decisis
• (Donoghue v Stevenson) - The legal principle that got established in this case was modern law of negligence. Decomposed snail in her drink. Failed duty of care. Manufacturer to consumer
• (Daniel R v White) - Follows the precedent established in Donoghue v Stevenson
• Court of Hierarchy

  Decision is taken in a case by a higher court automatically creates an original or binding precedent for all the lower courts. Lower courts have to follow the binding precedent when dealing with similar cases.
• Three ways to avoid binding precedent:

  • Distinguishing
  • Overruling
  • Reversing
• Distinguishing

  • Precedent from an earlier case is only binding on a precedent case if the legal principle involved is the same and if the facts are similar in both cases
  • Distinguishing means that the judge finds the facts of the case in the precedent case are different enough from the earlier one to follow them to reach a different decision and not have a follow the precedent of the earlier case
• (Balfour v Balfour) = The agreement does not have to be legally enforced. Domestic agreement where it can be presumed that legal intention (to form a contract) does not exist
• (Merritt v Merritt) - Seperated couple. Payments would be made to Mrs Merritt to pay of the mortgage. House would be signed over an payment of mortgage. Mrs Merritt brought a claim to enforce agreement.
• Overruling

  • This is where a court higher up in the hierarchy states that a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturns it
  • EG supreme court can overule a lower court's decision when it hears an appeal
• (R v R) = Overulled Miller = This is about maritial rape had been legal before. The original case was Miller. However this case got tried again. Supreme court overulled the precedent
• Reversing

  • Where a court higher up the hierarchy overturns the decision of a lower court of appeal in the same case
  • EG supreme court may disagree with court of appeal when the same case gets appealed. The higher court 'reverses' the decision of the lower court
• (Royal college of Nursing of UK v DHSS) - Royal college of Nursing disputed a DHSS statement that it was not an offence under Britain's 1967 Abortion Act for nurses to terminate a pregnancy by medical induction if a doctor decided on the termination, initiated it and removed responsibility for it. College appealed to court of appeal and reversed judge's decision
• Statutory Interpretation
• Statute = A law passed by parliament
• Interpretation = Judges deciding the meaning of words within statute.