Judges

    Cards (7)

    • The judiciary
      The judges as a group
    • Appointment of judges
      1. Depends on legal qualifications and having a certain number of years relevant legal experience
      2. Made by the Judicial Appointments Commission, which is a body independent from the Government
      3. The JAC advertises posts, interviews candidates and recommends appointments to the Lord Chancellor
      4. The formal appointment is made by the Crown
    • These appointment arrangements were put in place by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005
    • Types of Judges
      • The head of the judiciary is the Lord Chief Justice
      • Superior judges: Justices of the Supreme Court, Lords Justices of Appeal, High Court Judges
      • Inferior Judges: Circuit Judges, Recorders, District Judges, Tribunal Judges
    • Role of Judges
      • Judges have very wide powers, including the power to set a new precedent for future cases and the power to award substantial damages
      • There are limits to the powers of the judiciary, such as not being able to challenge the method by which an Act of Parliament is passed, and not being able to insist that a case is brought before the courts
      • The basic functions of any judge are to resolve disputes in a fair and unbiased way by applying the law
    • Trials
      1. HCJs: some multi track cases
      2. Circuit Judges: some fast track and some multi-track cases
      3. District Judges: small claims cases and some fast track cases
      4. In multi-track cases, the judge's functions include case management, listening to evidence, deciding points of law, liability, damages/remedies, and costs
    • Appeals
      1. Supreme Court Justices hear appeals from the Court of Appeal and occasionally the High Court
      2. Lords Justices of Appeal hear appeals from trial in the High Court
      3. HCJs hear appeals from Circuit Judges in some fast track and some multi-track cases
      4. Circuit Judges hear appeals from a District Judge in small claims cases and some fast track cases
      5. The functions of the appeal judges include reviewing the law used by the lower court, reviewing remedies and costs, and rarely rehearing evidence
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