Courts of England and Wales

Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and Senior Courts of England and Wales

• Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
• Highest appeal court in England and Wales
• Previously held by the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords
• Separate administration from other courts
• Chief Executive appointed by the President of the Supreme Court
• Also highest court of appeal for devolution matters
• Senior Courts of England and Wales
• Originally created as the Supreme Court of Judicature
• Renamed to Senior Courts of England and Wales in 1981
• Consists of Court of Appeal, High Court of Justice, and Crown Court
• Administered by HM Courts and Tribunals Service
• Calls for a Wales criminal justice system

Court of Appeal and High Court

• Court of Appeal
• Deals with appeals from other courts and tribunals
• Divided into Civil Division and Criminal Division
• Decisions binding on all courts, except the Supreme Court
• Part of the Senior Courts of England and Wales
• Administered and supported by HM Courts and Tribunals Service
• High Court
• Functions as a civil court of first instance and appellate court
• Divided into Kings Bench, Chancery, and Family divisions
• Formation of Business and Property Courts within the High Court
• Based in the Rolls Building with regional centres in major cities
• Handles specialist jurisdictions and disputes

Subordinate courts

• County Court
• Purely civil jurisdiction across England and Wales
• Family Court
• Deals with family law matters
• Magistrates courts
• Handle minor criminal cases and preliminary hearings
• Youth courts
• Handle cases involving young offenders

Special courts and tribunals

• Specialist courts, often referred to as tribunals, exist alongside regular courts in the UK
• Examples include employment tribunals, which have an appeal process to the Employment Appeal Tribunal
• The Employment Appeal Tribunal is a superior court of record, and appeals from there go to the Court of Appeal
• The Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 established the First-tier Tribunal and the Upper Tribunal, absorbing many pre-existing tribunals
• In the absence of a specific appeals court, decisions of a tribunal may be challenged through judicial review in the High Court

Coroners courts and Ecclesiastical courts

• Coroners courts
• Determine the cause of death in cases where there are suspicions or when deaths occur abroad or in the care of central authority
• Coroners also have jurisdiction over treasure trove
• Responsible for investigating and determining the circumstances surrounding certain deaths
• Do not handle criminal trials but focus on determining cause of death and related matters
• Ecclesiastical courts
• Church of England had jurisdiction over marriage and divorce cases, testamentary matters, defamation, and more
• Jurisdiction has narrowed primarily to church property and errant clergy
• Each diocese has a chancellor who acts as a judge in the consistory court
• Appeals from consistory courts go to the Arches Court in Canterbury and the Chancery Court in York
• Further appeals can be made to the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

Courts of England and Wales Data Sources