AC1.1 describe processes used in law making

• What is the order of governmental processes of law making?

  1. green paper
  2. white paper
  3. bill
  4. first reading
  5. second reading
  6. committee stage
  7. report stage
  8. third reading
  9. consideration of amendments
  10. royal assent
  11. law
• House of Commons:

  made up of MP’s voted in by the

  public from their constituency
• House of Lords

  ontains heredity peers whose families are born lords as well as individuals who have been appointed Lords i.e Lord Sugar.
• Green Paper:

  Allows public consultation on a potential

  new law to be discussed.
• White Paper:

  fter consultation a White Paper is created with formal proposals. This allows a draft act (a bill) to be created & presented to Parliament.
• First Reading: 

  1. Name of the bill and main aims read out. Formal vote taken.
• 1. Second Reading: 

  Main debate of bill followed by another vote.
• Committee stage:

   A group of representatives look at the bill to address any issues and suggest possible changes.
• Report stage: 

  Committee report back to the House who then vote on any proposed amendments.
• Third Reading: 

  Final vote on the Bill takes place.
• Royal Assent: 

  Once passed by both houses it is signed by the Monarch.

  This is their agreement to turn the Bill into an Act of

  Parliament/a law.

  The new law then comes into force straight away
• Judicial precedent


  •  Where past decisions are created to be followed in future cases,bases on the principle to standing by a decision ' stare decisi '
  • Referred to as common
  •  There is a court hierarchy system and lower courts (magistrates) must abide by the decisions and rules made by higher courts.
• Distinguishing

  Precedent is binding on a present case if the legal principle and facts are similar. However, if the judge finds the facts different, they can reach a different decision and not follow precedent.
• Overuling

  court higher up the hierarchy states that a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturns it. Eg. The Supreme Court can overrule a lower court’s decision when it hears an appeal.
• Statutory interpretation

  A statute is a written law. Judges can make laws by the way they interpret the statutes or Acts of Parliament. Judges need to interpret the meaning of words and apply them to the cases they are judging.
• Literal rule

  Judges should use the everyday meaning of the words in a statute BUT-words can have several meanings.
• Fisher v Bell (1960)


  Restriction of offensive weapons act 1959 made offence to offer weapons for sale. Bell displayed weapon in shop window, due to wording of the statute, did not sell knife so did not get charged
• Mischief rule

  allows the court to enforce what the statute was intended to achieve, rather than what the words actually say. Eg Licensing Act (1872) makes it an offence to be drunk in charge of a carriage on the highway. In Corkery v Carpenter (1951) , Corkery was found guilty even though he had been in charge of a bike