AC1.1- Describe the Processes Used For Law Making

Question 1

What are the 2 main sources of law in the UK?

Answer 1

The government via parliament (House of Commons, House of Lords and the Monarch), and the judiciary.

Question 2

How do the Monarch assist in law making?

Answer 2

The King/ Queen grants royal assent by signing a law. They have a purely formal role.

Question 3

Who is the House of Lords made up of?

Answer 3

Contains about 800 peers, including Church of England Bishops and Archbishops, hereditary peers and life peers.

Question 4

What’s the main role of the House of Lords?

Answer 4

They act as a double check on new laws.

Question 5

Who is the House of Commons made up of?

Answer 5

650 members of parliament which are elected by the people at a general election to represent a constituency or a geographical area.

Question 6

Why is the House of Commons the most important part of Parliament?

Answer 6

They are democratically elected representatives of the people, therefore representing the public’s viewpoints.

Question 7

What is the name of laws passed through parliament?

Answer 7

Acts of Parliament or Statutes.

Question 8

What is a Bill?

Answer 8

A proposal for a new law, or for change of an existing law.

Question 9

What are the 3 types of Bill?

Answer 9

Public, private and hybrid. there are also private members bills.

Question 10

Who can introduce a bill?

Answer 10

The government, individual MPs or Lords, private individuals or organisations.

Question 11

What are the 6 stages of law making?

Answer 11

• First reading- name and aims of the bill are read out and a formal vote is taken.
• Second reading- the main debate and another vote.
• Committee stage-

Question 12

Who is a Government Bill introduced by and where?
What’s the likelihood to be passed by Parliament?

Answer 12

Introduced in Parliament by a Minister.
Has a greater chance to be passed by Parliament.

Question 13

Who is a private member’s Bill introduced by and where?
What’s the likelihood to be passed by Parliament?

Answer 13

Introduced in Parliament by any member of Parliament other than a minister.
Less likely to be passed by Parliament.

Question 14

What’s a Green Paper?

Answer 14

The discussion paper.

Question 15

What is a White Paper?

Answer 15

The draft paper of a new law.

Question 16

What is democracy?

Answer 16

Everyone gets to vote on an issue.

Question 17

What is socialism?

Answer 17

A political and social organisation which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.

Question 18

What is capitalism?

Answer 18

An economic and political system in which a countries trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit.

Question 19

What is Judicial Precedent?

Answer 19

When a case appears before them, a judge must make a judgement which forms the law. This must then be followed in future similar cases.

Question 20

What is Statutory Interpretation?

Answer 20

The process by which courts interact and apply legislation. Some amount of interpretation is often necessary when a case involves a statute.

Question 21

What is the advantage of treating cases similarly?

Answer 21

Consistency.

Question 22

What 2 cases are an example of judicial precedent?

Answer 22

Donoghue v Stevenson. 2 friends visited a café and one drank ginger beer with remains of a decomposing snail. Fell ill. Sued manufacturer and won the case.

Daniels v White. Bought a bottle of lemonade and felt burning. Was found to have corrosive metal in it. The case of Donoghue v Stevenson was used as precedent for suing, and the claimant won.

Question 23

What’s a case example of Statutory Interpretation?

Answer 23

Whitely v Chappell. A statute made it an offence ‘to impersonate any person entitled to vote’. The defendant used the vote of a dead man. The statute relating to voting required someone to be alive to be entitled to vote.
The literal rule was applied and the defendant was acquitted.

Question 24

What is the literal rule?

Answer 24

Where words are given their literal, plain English meaning to help interpret statutes.

Question 25

What’s an example of the literal rule of statutory interpretation?

Answer 25

Whitely v Chappell. A statute made it an offence ‘to impersonate any person entitled to vote’. The defendant used the vote of a dead man. The statute relating to voting required someone to be alive to be entitled to vote.
The literal rule was applied and the defendant was acquitted.

Question 26

What is the golden rule of statutory interpretation?

Answer 26

Used to avoid the creation of an absurd result by either ignoring the literal meaning of the words, or choosing a meaning where the wording is ambiguous.

Question 27

What’s a case example of the golden rule?

Answer 27

R v Allen. Allen was charged with bigamy (having 2 wives at the same time). The offences against the person act stated that marrying someone whilst already being married is against the law. This brought a discussion about what the definition of marriage is- whether it means a marriage ceremony or being legally married. they decided on the meaning of going through a marriage ceremony, as with the meaning of being ‘legally married’, no one could be charged under the law as its not possible to be legally married to 2 people.

Question 28

What is the mischief rule?

Answer 28

The mischief rule exists for the courts to give effect to the intention of parliament where a statute was intended to remedy on existing ‘mischief’ in the law. It must be possible to determine the mischief the statute was intended to remedy, it must be apparent that parliament failed to deal with it, and it must be possible to state the additional words parliament should have used.

Question 29

What’s a case example of the mischief rule?

Answer 29

Smith v Hughes. 6 prostitutes charged under the street offences act for loitering or soliciting ‘in a street or public place’. The women argued that because they were signalling from balconies and windows that they weren’t in public places. The court dismissed this defence as the mischief that the law was trying to eradicate was prostitution, and that they were projecting their solicitations onto the street.

Question 30

What is the purposive approach?

Answer 30

When the courts attempt to find the broader purpose behind a piece of legislation rather than the meaning of its words.

Question 31

What is the court hierarchy in the UK?

Answer 31

Supreme –> Criminal –> Court of appeal –> Crown Court –> Magistrates court.
Supreme –> Civil –> Court of appeal –> high court of justice –> county courts