AC1.1

• role of government


  create and abolish laws
• role of Parliament


  scrutinising and legitimising legislation, passing laws, calling government to account, representing voters and other groups and controlling government power
• parts of Parliament


  house of commons, house of lords, the monarchy
• house of commons


  where laws are made and reviewed, legislation is scrutinised, calls the government to account

  
  

  members are elected by the public
• house of lords


  question and challenge the work of the government, help shape laws, investigate issues through debates

  
  

  members are chosen based on their expertise; some are hereditary
• democracy


  the UK is a parliamentary [term] meaning that it's governed by the people through voting
• who can vote?


  any UK citizen over the age of 18 who isn't a convicted criminal
• initial process


  before a Bill becomes a statute or law it has to undergo several stages and be agreed by both houses
• green paper


  it's a consultative document that interested parties are invited to put forward their views on
• consultation stage


  the Government makes a draft of the Bill at this stage
• first reading


  the stage where Bill is shared by the Government through reading out its title in the HOC or HOL
• second reading


  the main debate stage where all MPs or Lords discuss the Bill and another vote takes place where the Bill may be voted out
• committee stage


  the stage where a smaller group of MPs review the Bill in detail and make any amendments
• report stage


  the stage where any amendments made in the committee stage are reported to everyone in either house
• Third reading stage


  the stage when the final votes are made to decide whether the Bill progresses
• royal assent


  the stage when the Monarch sign-off on the Bill as a new law or Act of Parliament
• judicial precedent


  this is a law made by a judge when they have to make a judgment on how to act on a case

  
  

  the new law must be followed in similar future cases

  
  

  lower courts must follow the decisions made by higher courts
• original precedent


  when a judge forms a new precedent because there's no previous cases for them to base their decision on
• binding precedent


  when a precedent from an earlier case must be followed
• persuasive precedent


  one that isn't binding on the court so the judge is allowed to just consider the existing precedent
• benefits of following a precedent


  ensures a fair course of justice and reduces the risk of bias
• exceptions of judicial precedent


  distinguishing and overruling
• distinguishing


  when the judge finds the facts in the present case are different to the precedent of an earlier case and therefore a different decision, than following the previous precedent, can be made
• overruling


  when a court higher up the hierarchy states that a legal decision in an earlier case is wrong and overturns it
• statutory interpretation


  is when judges adapts the meaning of (words in) statutes and apply them to cases

  
  

  literary, golden, and the mischief rule help them interpret the Acts
• literary rule


  when judges use the ordinary meaning of the words in the statute

  however, sometimes the words can have several meanings
• application of the literary rule


  Whiteley V Chappell 1868: defendant charged with impersonating any person entitled to vote

  
  

  court held the defendant as not guilty because they applied this rule and said that because the person impersonated was dead it makes them no longer entitled to vote
• golden rule


  judges use this when the literal meaning of the words lead to an absurd result
• application of the golden rule


  Adler V George 1964: under the Official Secrets Act (1920) it was a criminal offence to obstruct Her Majesty's Forces in the vicinity of a prohibited place

  Adler states he had not broken the law because he was in the prohibited place and not near it

  the court applied this rule to avoid an absurd result and found Adler guilty
• mischief rule


  This allows the court to enforce what the statute was intended to achieve, rather than what the words actually say
• application of the mischief rule

  Corkery V Carpenter 1951: Licensing Act (1872) makes it an offence to be drunk in charge of a carriage on the highway

  
  

  this rule was applied and Corkery was found guilty despite him riding a bicycle