The essence of English common law is that it is made by judges sitting in courts, applying legal precedent (stare decisis) to the facts before them. A decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the highest civil appeal court of the United Kingdom, is binding on every other court.
For example, murder is a common law crime rather than one established by an Act of Parliament. Common law can be amended or repealed by Parliament; murder, for example, now carries a mandatory life sentence rather than the death penalty.
The United Kingdom does not have a single legal system due to it being created by the political union of previously independent countries with the terms of the Treaty of Union guaranteeing the continued existence of Scotland's separate legal system. Today the UK has three distinct systems of law: English law, Northern Ireland law and Scots law. Recent constitutional changes saw a new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom come into being in October 2009 that took on the appeal functions of the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords.[19] The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, comprising the same members as the Supreme Court, is the highest court of appeal for several independent Commonwealth countries, the UK overseas territories, and the British crown dependencies.
Both English law, which applies in England and Wales, and Northern Ireland law are based on common-law principles. The essence of common-law is that law is made by judges sitting in courts, applying their common sense and knowledge of legal precedent (stare decisis) to the facts before them. The Courts of England and Wales are headed by the Senior Courts of England and Wales, consisting of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice (for civil cases) and the Crown Court (for criminal cases). The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is the highest court in the land for both criminal and civil cases in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and any decision it makes is binding on every other court in the hierarchy.
A unique feature of English law is the doctrine of judicial precedents, whereby the reported decisions of the courts form a binding source of law for future decisions. A judge is bound by decisions of courts of superior jurisdiction but not necessarily by those of inferior courts.
The highest appellate court in the UK is the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and its decisions are binding on every other court in the hierarchy which are obliged to apply its rulings as the law of the land. The Court of Appeal binds the lower courts, and so on.
Classification of Law
Criminal
The criminal law is concerned with offences against society at large – crimes. Prosecuted by the State. Punish and deter.
Civil
Civil law is concerned with disputes between private parties, for example, consumer and supplier, employer and employee. Injured party sues. Damages or injunction.
Sources of Law
The principal sources of UK law are:
- Statutes: Legislation from the UK Parliament and devolved parliaments.
- ‘Common’ law: law made through principles established in cases over the centuries during the standardisation of law throughout England and Wales from the eleventh century onwards.
- Law from the EU.
Her Majesty's Courts of Justice of England and Wales are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in England and Wales; they apply English law, the law of England and Wales, and are established under Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The Court of Appeal, the High Court, the Crown Court, the Magistrates' Court, and the County Court are administered by Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice.
The Supreme Court is the highest appeal court in almost all cases in England and Wales. Before the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 this role was held by the House of Lords. The Supreme Court is also the highest court of appeal for devolution matters, a role previously held by the Privy Council.
The Privy Council is the highest court of appeal for a small number of Commonwealth countries, colonies and the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. There are a number of smaller statutory jurisdictions, such as appeals from ecclesiastical and professional bodies. The judges who sit on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council are also the members of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.
The Senior Courts of England and Wales were originally created by the Judicature Acts as the "Supreme Court of Judicature". It was renamed the "Supreme Court of England and Wales" in 1981,[1] and again to the "Senior Courts of England and Wales" by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (to distinguish it from the new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom). It consists of the following courts:
- Court of Appeal (formally Her Majesty's Court of Appeal in England)
- High Court of Justice (High Court, formally Her Majesty's High Court of Justice in England)
- Crown Court
