Judiciary and Supreme Court

• Ultra vires

  'beyond the authority - judicial review can be used to determine whether or not a minister acted beyond the authority given to them by the law
• 2005 Constitutional Reform Act

  Established the Supreme Court to act as the final court of appeal in England, Wales, Northern Ireland - hears civil cases from Scotland

  Clarifies the meaning of the law in hearings - sets precedent
• Reasons behind the Constitutional Reform Act

  • Concerns over the incomplete separation of powers - reduced the power of lord chancellor and placed the power of senior judicial appointments in the hands of the Judicial Appointments Commission
  • Confusion over the work of the law lords - judicial and legislative powers
• The supreme court only applies and clarifies the law - they do not change it. The precedents established become common law and can be overturned by an Act of Parliament
• To qualify to become a Supreme Court Judge, one would need to have either held high judicial office for at least 2 years, or have been a qualifying practitioner for at least 15 years
• Qualifying practitioner - someone who has senior courts qualification: an advocate for Scotland, or a solicitor entitled to appear in a Scottish Court of Sessions, or is a member of the Bar of Northern Ireland, or a solicitor of the Court of Appeal of Northern Ireland
• If a judge meets the qualifying standards, they will be considered by an ad hoc selection commission who make a selection based on merit

  The commission submits a report to the lord chancellor identifying the chosen nominee. The lord chancellor can choose to either reject the selection, request the commission to reconsider their nominee or accept the selection by notifying the PM, who recommends the candidate to the monarch
• The Supreme Court is still very unrepresentative of the population but there will be a delay between recognising inequality and reducing it as such a high position requires a lot of experience which takes time to be obtained
• Rule of Law

  • No one can be punished without a trial (terrorist suspects can be held indefinitely without a trial)
  • No one is above the law (Parliamentary privilege, diplomatic immunity)
  • General priniciple of the constitution results from judges' decisions which set a legal precedent (can be overturned by an Act of Parliament)
• Judicial independence

  Judiciary should be free from political control and allowed to make correct decisions without interference or fear of consequences
• Judicial neutrality

  Judges should operate without their personal beliefs affecting the outcome of a decision