English Legal System Flashcards
(28 cards)
What does civil law deal with?
Going against the people within a community
What does criminal law deal with?
Going against the government
What are private individuals
People acting only for themselves, not affiliated with any organisations
Who has the burden of proof in civil cases?
Defendant
Who has the burden of proof in criminal cases?
Prosecution
What does public law focus on?
The relationship between the state and the citizen
What does private law focus on?
The interest of private individuals
What is common law?
Judge-made law developed through past cases.
What is equity?
Remaining fair when handing out a sentence
What are Dicey’s 3 principles?
1) Parliament can legislate on any subject matter
2) Parliament cannot be bound by previous decisions or bind decisions of future parties
3) Parliament cannot be overruled
What are the key elements of the Scotland Act 2016
- Transferred powers from Parliament to the Scottish government
- Allowed to amend sections of the Scotland Act 1998
- Ability to use amendments to transfer all powers to the Scottish government
What are the key elements of the Wales Act 2017
- Transferred powers from Parliament to the Welsh government
- Allowed to make amendments to the Wales Act 2007
What is a constitution?
A set of rules + principles followed by a country written in 1 document
What is an unwritten constitution?
Rules and principles within a country not written in a document.
What cases may impact Parliamentary Sovereignty?
- Scotland Act 2016 - Transferred power to Scotland, allowed to amend abortion laws + further benefit from income tax
- Wales Act 2017 - Transferred power to Wales, allowed to make decisions on their place within Parliament + issues w/ taxes
- EU Law and the ECHR - Murderer refuted WLO under S.3 of HRA arguing it was torture, Parliament then allowed parole
- International Law and treaties - Written agreements between states, UK must adhere to international jurisdiction of the law.
What are the key rights outlined in the ECHR?
- Freedom from slavery
- Right to a fair trail
- Freedom from torture
What happened in the case of Vinter in relation to the ECHR?
- Argued that a WLO (whole life order) without parole went against Article 3 ECHR (prohibition of torture).
- UK then allowed parole as their rights were being taken
What are the 3 separations of powers?
- The Legislative (parliament)
- The Judiciary (judges)
- The Executive (government, prime minister + cabinet)
- The Crown (monarch)
What is the role of the legislative?
- Debates laws
- Makes + changes laws for the executive to officially enforce.
What is the role of the judiciary?
- Interpret laws in line w/ parliament’s intention
- Determine outcome of disputes
- Work within a variety of tribunals
- Oversee public + private law in civil + criminal courts
What is the role of the executive?
- Propose new laws to Parliament
- Put laws passed by Parliament into action
- Make decisions on national issues
- Direct government policy
What is the role of The Crown?
- Head of state + commonwealth
- Represents country during events
- Approves laws
- Overlooks government
Why is separation of powers important?
Ensures these branches are independent of each other + no one is ‘more powerful’ than the other (maintains balance)
What are the 3 specialist divisions within the high court?
Kings bench division (claims over 100k): contract disputes, personal injury
Chancery division (claims over 100k): property disputes, trusts, estates
Family division (more complex/serious issues): marriage, divorce, family matters
