English Legal System

1
English Legal System

• It is not a faultlessly coherent and single,
  logically developed system. It grew piecemeal and
  various parts of it have been reformed and
  reshaped to suit the perceived needs of the
  time.
• Most Civil cases are not hear in the civil
  courts at all but one of the major alternative
  forums which have proliferated in the 20th
  Century.
• Reference Darbyshire, English Legal System 6th
  edition p.1

2
The Court Structure

• Criminal Courts
• Magistrates courts
• The Crown Court
• The Queens Bench Division of the High Court The
  Court of Appeal-Criminal Division
• The House of Lords (Appellate Committee)
• The Privy Council (Judicial Committee)
• The European Court of Justice
• The European Court of Human Rights

3
The Court Structure

• Civil Courts
• Magistrates Court
• The County Court
• The High Court
• The Court of Appeal-Civil Division
• The House of Lords (Appellate Committee)
• The Privy Council (Judicial Committee)
• The European Court of Justice
• The European Court of Human Rights

4
Alternative to the Courts

• Tribunals
• Arbitration
• by contract
• by reference from the court
• By statute
• Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
• Mediation
• Conciliation
• Arbitration

5
Sources

• Acts of Parliament
• Parliamentary sovereignty precludes the courts
  questioning Acts of Parliament where there is no
  conflict with EC Law.
• EC legislation
• The European Convention of Human Rights
• Precedent
• State of law
• Ratio decidendi (reasoning)
• In a court whose decisions are binding
• Obiter dictum is not binding

6
Interpretation of Statutes

• Need for interpretation
• Ellipsis
• Broad Terms
• Politic uncertainty
• Unforeseeable developments
• Miscellaneous drafting errors
• Rules of interpretation
• The Literal Rule
• The Golden Rule (permitting to depart from giving
  their ordinary natural meaning)
• The Mischief Rule (much wider approach)
• Contextual approach

7
Personnel

• Solicitors
• 38.6 Woman
• Barristers