3.1.3. Subordinate courts

3.1.3.1. County Courts

County Courts are statutory courts with a purely civil jurisdiction. They are presided over by either a District or Circuit Judge and, except in a small minority of cases such as civil actions against the Police, the judge sits alone as trier of fact and law without assistance from a jury. County Courts are local courts in the sense that each one has an area over which certain kinds of jurisdiction – mostly actions concerning land – are exercised.

The County Court is the workhorse of the civil justice system in England and Wales. There are 218 county courts which deal with the majority of civil cases, as well as some family and bankruptcy hearings. A large number of cases come before the county courts and it is here that all but the most complicated civil law proceedings are handled. The County Courts generally hear matters with a financial value of £50,000 or under.

3.1.3.2. Magistrates’ Courts

A Magistrates’ Court, or court of petty sessions, is the lowest level of court in England and Wales and many other common law jurisdictions. Magistrates’ Courts are presided over by a tribunal consisting of two or more (most commonly three) lay magistrates or Justices of the Peace, or a legally-trained District Judge, sitting in each local justice area, and dispensing summary justice, under powers usually limited by statute. The tribunal that presides over the Court is often referred to simply as the Bench.

The magistrates' courts are a key part of the criminal justice system – virtually all criminal cases start in a magistrates' court and over 95% of cases are also completed here. In addition, magistrates’ courts deal with many civil cases, mostly family matters plus liquor licensing, betting and gaming work.

3.2. The Court System of Scotland and Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland and Scotland there are autonomous judiciary systems. In Northern Ireland the judiciary comprises courts analogous to England and Wales’s ones (Court of Appeal, High Court, Crown Court, County Courts and Magistrates’ Courts). The system of courts in Scotland is rather different (the superior courts are High Court of Justiciary and Court of Session; the lower courts are Sheriff Courts and District Courts).

4. General elections in the uk

When Parliament is dissolved every seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant and a general election is held. Each constituency in the UK elects one MP to a seat in the House of Commons. The political party that wins a majority of seats in the House of Commons usually forms the Government.

General elections are held at least every five years although not all Parliaments run for the whole five year period. MPs are elected from a choice of candidates by a simple majority system in which each person casts one vote. The candidate with the most votes then becomes the MP for that constituency. Candidates may be from a political party registered with the Electoral Commission (an independent body, accountable directly to the UK Parliament, that regulates elections in the UK, promotes voter awareness and works to build confidence in the electoral process) or they may stand as an “Independent” rather than represent a registered party. Any eligible person can become a candidate in a British general election whether they are a member of a political party or not. Although any eligible person can stand, in order to have a realistic chance of success a candidate needs to represent one of the 3 main British political parties or a nationalist or unionist party in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. The elections are preceded by election campaigning which lasts for about 3 weeks with large-scale press, radio and TV coverage. Most voting takes place in polling stations (usually on a Thursday). Each person over 18 has the right to vote, except prisoners, lords and the mentally ill. Anyone eligible to vote can apply for a postal vote. British citizens living abroad are also entitled to a postal vote as long as they have been living abroad for less than 15 years. Candidates eligibility: people wishing to stand as an MP must be over 18 years of age, and a British citizen, or citizen of a Commonwealth country or the Republic of Ireland.

5. By-elections

A by-election takes place when a seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant between general elections. If there are several vacant seats then a number of by-elections can take place on the same day.

A seat becomes vacant during the lifetime of a Parliament either when an MP resigns from Parliament, for example to take up a job which by law cannot be done by an MP, or because an MP has died. The law also allows a seat to be declared vacant because of a Member’s bankruptcy, mental illness or conviction for a serious criminal offence. Until a new MP is elected, constituency matters are usually handled by an MP of the same party in a neighbouring constituency. Traditionally the Chief Whip of the political party whose MP held the vacant seat will begin the procedure for a by-election. This is known as “moving the Writ” and takes the form of a motion in the House of Commons. A new Writ is usually moved within three months of the vacancy occurring.

Glossary

annex (v)	take over territory and incorporate it into another political entity, e.g. a country or state
backbencher	member of the House of Commons who is not a party leader
bail (n)	money that must be forfeited by the bondsman if an accused person fails to appear in court for trial
barrister	British lawyer who speaks in the higher courts of law
canopy	cover (as a cloth) fixed or carried above a person of high rank or sacred object
cede (v)	give something such as ownership to someone
confer (v)	present, e.g. degree, honour
crossbencher	member of the House of Commons who does not vote regularly with either the Government or the Opposition
custody	holding by the police; guardianship over; in divorce cases – the right to house and care for and discipline a child
dissolve	declare void
enact	order by virtue of superior authority; decree
frontbencher	member of the House of Commons who is a minister or an ex-minister
nanny state	government that brings in legislation that it considers is in the people's best interests but that is regarded by some as interfering and patronizing
peerage	rank, status, or title of a nobleman or noblewoman
Privy Council	advisory council to the British crown
prorogue	adjourn by royal prerogative; without dissolving the legislative body
Royal Assent	the British monarch's formal signing of an act of Parliament, making it law
solicitor	British lawyer who gives legal advice and prepares legal documents
summon	call in an official matter
welfare state	government that undertakes responsibility for the welfare of its citizens through programs in public health and public housing and pensions and unemployment compensation etc.
woolsack	sack or bag of wool; specifically, the seat of the lord chancellor of England in the House of Lords, being a large, square sack of wool resembling a divan in form.