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
| Reference | URL |
|---|---|
| Glossary | https://www.alternix.com/blogs/glossary-of-terms/courts-of-england-and-wales |
| Wikipedia | http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courts_of_England_and_Wales |
| Wikidata | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q614305 |
| Knowledge Graph | https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/01jx60 |
