The UK Legal System

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland consists of four countries forming three distinct jurisdictions each having its own court system and legal profession: England & Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

The United Kingdom was established in 1801 with the union of Great Britain and Ireland, but only achieved its present form in 1922 with the partition of Ireland and the establishment of the independent Irish Free State (later the Republic of Ireland).

The UK joined the European Economic Community (now the European Union) in 1973, since when it has been a requirement to incorporate European legislation into UK law, and to recognise the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice in matters of EU law.  There have been significant constitutional reforms since the Labour government came into power in 1997, which make any description of the UK legal system before then out of date.

The Labour government immediately instituted a process of devolution, i.e. devolving certain areas of government to the component countries of the UK: a separate Scottish Parliament and a Welsh Assembly were established following referendums in the countries concerned. Ireland already had its Assembly, although this was not in operation (see below under Northern Ireland). In the context of these new legislatures the English Parliament is often referred to as 'Westminster'. These devolved governments are dealt with in separate sections.

The UK is a signatory of the European Convention of Human Rights, and this has recently been incorporated into UK law with the passing of the Human Rights Act 1998. This allows for the provisions of the Convention to be applied directly by the UK courts.

There is no written constitution. The Queen is the Head of State, although in practice the supreme authority of the Crown is carried by the government of the day. The legislature is a bicameral Parliament. The House of Commons consists of 659 Members of Parliament (MPs), elected by simple majority vote in a general election every five years, although the Government has the right to call an election at any time before then, and in practice usually brings the date forward to secure electoral advantage.

The House of Lords until recently consisted of life peers, awarded peerages for public service, and a large number of hereditary peers whose membership of the House of Lords depended on their aristocratic birth.

The constitutional law of the UK is regarded as consisting of statute law on the one hand and case law on the other, whereby judicial precedent is applied in the courts by judges interpreting statute law. A third element consists of constitutional conventions which do not have statutory authority but nevertheless have binding force. Much of the relationship between the Sovereign and Parliament is conventional rather than statutory.

Constitutional Reform

The Labour government which came into power in 1997, and is now in its third term of office, has instituted constitutional reforms in three distinct areas:  the reform of the House of Lords, devolution, and the passing of the Human Rights Act 1998.

It began the long-overdue process of House of Lords reform by abolishing the voting rights of all the hereditary peers apart from ninety-two who remain until the House is fully reformed. Proposals put forward by the Royal Commission on the Reform of the House of Lords were published in 2000 as a command paper: A House for the Future with government proposals laid out in The House of Lords: Completing the Reform These proposed a predominantly appointed second chamber with a minority of elected members representing regions of the UK, and attracted much dissension.

On 13 May 2002 the issue of reform was in effect sent back to the drawing board.

The Human Rights Act was passed in 1998, incorporating into UK law rights and freedoms guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights.  Although the UK had been a signatory to the European convention on Human Rights since 1951, the Act provided for the provisions of the Convention to be incorporated into domestic law.  This means that a consideration of human rights affects every area of government. 

The Ministry of Justice  was established in 2007 replacing the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) , which in turn replaced the Lord Chancellor's Department.  It is responsible for the courts, prisons, probation, criminal law and sentencing. 

 The Court System

Civil courts

Civil cases at first instance are heard in the County Courts (for minor claims) or the High Court, which is divided into three divisions: Queen's Bench, Family and Chancery. Cases may be appealed to the Court of Appeal (Civil Division). Cases may be appealed from the County Court to the High Court.

The House of Lords is the supreme court of appeal. Its judicial functions are quite separate from its legislative work, and cases are heard by up to 13 senior judges known as the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, or Law Lords. It shares its function as the supreme appellate court with.

However the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 provides for the establishment of a Supreme Court to replace the judicial function of the House of Lords with an independent appointments system, thereby making a constitutional separation between the legislature and the judiciary.

A further appellate court, sometimes omitted in a description of the system, is the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which hears cases from the British overseas territories and dependencies as well as some specialised domestic appeals.  It also hears cases concerning questions relating to the powers and functions of the devolved legislatures. The 'devolution' function will be transferred to the new Supreme Court.

In addition to the courts there are specialised Tribunals, which hear appeals on decisions made by various public bodies and Government departments, in areas such as employment, immigration, social security, tax and land. The Court Service also contains information on these.

Her Majesty's Court Service (HMCS) is an agency of the DCA responsible for administration of the court system, and was established in 2005 under the Courts Act 2003, bringing together the separate agencies previously responsible for court administration.

There has been extensive reform of civil procedure in recent years. Following on the publication of a major report on Access to Justice by Lord Woolf in 1996, a completely new set of Civil Procedure Rules were put into operation in 1999, as well as new legislation for modernising the courts and legal services. The Legal Services Commission was created under the Access to Justice Act 1999 to provide a Community Legal Service and Criminal Defence Service and administer legal aid.

Criminal courts

Criminal cases are heard at first instance in the Magistrates' Courts, with more serious ones being hears in the Crown Court.  Appeals are heard in the Court of Appeal Criminal Division.  The   Review of the Criminal Courts by Sir Robin Auld was published in 2001, as a result of which consolidated Criminal Procedure Rules were introduced in 2005.   .

The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 provides for the establishment of a Supreme Court to replace the House of Lords as the Court of final appeal.