The Court System of England and Wales

British Courts

There are four countries and three separate systems of law in the United Kingdom: the legal system of law and courts of 1.England and Wales; 2.Scotland; 3.Northern Ireland. However, there are some common features to all systems in the U.K.: the sources of law, the distinctions between civil and criminal law.

The sources of law include written law (statutes, Acts of Parliament) and unwritten law (Common law and Equity). Common law is based on judicial precedent. It means that when one judge had decided a point of law, any other judge who has the similar set of facts must decide case in the same way as in the earlier judgement.

The lowest courts are called Magistrates’ courts, or police courts. Magistrates’ courts are presided over by Justices of the Peace (JP), or lay magistrates. They work part-time and are unpaid. The courts consist of between two to seven magistrates. There are about 700 magistrates’ courts and about 30,000magistrates.

More serious criminal cases go to the Crown court, which has 90 branches in different towns and cities. Appeals from Magistrates’ courts are also heard there. The accused have the right to be tried by the jury.

There is the Central Criminal Court of London. It is known as the Old Bailey.

County courts are the main civil courts. The High court hears all those civil cases that cannot be decided by county courts.

The Court of Appeal hears both criminal and civil appeals. But the final criminal appellate tribunal is the House of Lords. Ten judges in the House of Lords are called the «Law Lords».

The legal system also includes juvenile courts (which deal with offenders under seventeen) and coroners’ courts (which investigate violent, sudden or unnatural deaths). There are administrative tribunals which make quick, cheap and fair decisions with much less formality. Tribunals deal with professional standards, disputes between individuals, and disputes between individuals and government departments (for example, over taxation).

Британские Суды

Есть четыре страны и три отдельные системы права в Великобритании: правовая система права и судов 1.Англии и Уэльса; 2.Шотландии; 3.Северной Ирландии. Тем не менее, существуют некоторые общие черты для всех систем в Великобритании: источники права, различия между гражданским и уголовным правом.

Источники права включают писаный закон (статуты, парламентские акты) и неписаный закон (общего права и справедливости). Общий закон основан на судебных прецедентах. Это означает, что когда один судья решил правовой вопрос, любой другой судья, который имеет аналогичный набор фактов должен решить дело так же, как и в ранее вынесенное им решение.

Самые низкие суды называются мировые суды, полиция или суды. Магистратские суды рассматривают мировые судьи (СП), или мировых судей. Они работают неполный рабочий день и неоплачиваемые. Суды состоят из от двух до семи судей. Существует около 700 мировых судов и около 30000 магистратов.

Более серьезные уголовные дела передаются в коронный суд, который имеет 90 филиалов в различных городах. Апелляции из мировых судов также там заслушиваются. Обвиняемый имеет право быть судимым судом присяжных.

Существует Центральный уголовный суд в Лондоне. Он известен как Олд Бейли.
Суды графств являются основными гражданскими судами. Высший суд заслушивает все гражданские дела, которые не могут заслушивать суды графств.
Апелляционный суд рассматривает как уголовные, так и гражданские иски. Но окончательным

Уголовным апелляционным трибуналом является палата лордов. Десять судей в палате лордов называются «лорды».

Правовая система также включает в себя суды по делам несовершеннолетних (которые имеют дело с правонарушителями, не достигшими семнадцати) и суды следователей (которые расследуют случаи насильственной, внезапной или неестественной смерти). Есть административные трибуналы, которые делают быстрые, дешевые и справедливые решения с намного меньшими формальностями. Трибуналы имеют дело с профессиональными стандартами, споры между физическими лицами, и споры между частными лицами и государственными организациями (например, через налогообложение).

The Court System of England and Wales

This text is limited to the system of courts in England and Wales and does not address issues relating to courts in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In Scotland there is the Roman-Dutch Civil Law system adopted in the 16th century and currently found in most of the Continental Europe. As for Northern Ireland the courts have their jurisdiction which is separate from that of the courts in England and Wales although they also follow the Common Law system. There are two main types of court in England and Wales: magistrates’ courts (or courts of the first instance), which deal with about 95 per cent of criminal cases and with some civil matters, and Crown Courts for more serious offences. All criminal cases above the level of magistrates’ courts are held before a jury. There are about 700 magistrates’ courts in England and Wales, served by approximately 28,000 unpaid magistrates or Justices of the Peace (JPs) who are ordinary citizens. A court normally consists of three magistrates, who are advised on points of law by a legally qualified clerk. They may impose a sentence of more than six months imprisonment or a fine of more than 2000 pounds, and may refer cases requiring a heavier penalty to the Crown Court. A Crown Court is presided over by a professional judge, but the verdict is reached by a jury of twelve citizens, who are selected at random. There are some offences where the defendant is given the choice of having his case heard in the magistrates’ court or the Crown Court. A person convicted in a magistrates’ court may appeal against its decision to the local Crown Court, which will hear the appeal without a jury. On points of law he may appeal directly to the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court. Appeals against a decision of the Crown Court go first to the High Court and, in special cases, to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division). The highest court of appeal is the House of Lords. The decisions of law lords on both criminal and civil matters bind all from the High Court, and most appeals from the County Courts, go to the Court of Appeal (Civil Division). In addition to the courts mentioned above there are numerous special courts which have been established to make decisions in particular types of dispute, for example, juvenile courts and coroners’ courts.