Understanding And Using The British Legal System , livre ebook

Straightforward Publishing - Jeremy Farley

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116 pages

English

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Description

A Guide to Understanding and Using The British Legal System updates the previous edition to 2022 in the light of ongoing changes in law and also practice. The book covers the workings of the legal system and also how the individual can take action in various ways. It also covers the effects of the CORONAVIRUS on the legal system. The book is comprehensive and should provide those wishing to take action, whether experienced or new to the area of personal litigation, with a knowledge of the way forward.

Informations

Publié par	Straightforward Publishing
Date de parution	28 juillet 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781802361650
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0300€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Understanding and Using the British Legal System
Jeremy Farley
Editor: Roger Sproston

Easyway Guides
Easyway Guides
Straightforward Co Ltd 2022
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electronic or mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright holders.
ISBN: 978-1-80236-090-5 ePUB ISBN: 978-1-80236-165-0 Kindle ISBN: 978-1-80236-157-5
Printed by 4edge www.4edge.co.uk
Cover design by BW Studio Derby
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained within this book is correct at the time of going to press, the author and publisher can take no responsibility for the errors or omissions contained within.
CONTENTS
Introduction
CH. 1 Understanding the legal system-How it Works in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
CH. 2 The Legal Profession
CH. 3 Legal Aid and Advice
CH. 4 The Small Claims Court
CH. 5 Accidents and Compensation
CH. 6 The Law and the Consumer
CH. 7 Children and Adults
CH. 8 The Law and Divorce or Dissolution
CH. 9 Making a Will and Dealing with Probate
CH. 10 Landlord and Tenant-The Law Generally
CH. 11 Taking Back Possession of a Property
CH. 12 The Police-Getting Arrested-Police Complaints
Useful websites and addresses
Index
INTRODUCTION
We are all bound by the law and the British legal system. The framework of the law affects us in many ways, directly and indirectly. Right throughout our lives we will need to have a basic knowledge of the law. In this way, we can operate as citizens more effectively and we can also have a greater understanding of our rights and obligations.
The book, updated to 2022 , is not a detailed textbook on the law. The purpose is to outline the law, in enough depth, and ensuring that the reader has understood the law and can then apply that law in a practical way.
This book covers, in the main, the legal system as it operates in England and Wales, although there is reference to Scottish and Northern Irish Law throughout.
This edition considers the advent of COVID 19 and its effects on the legal system. The main effect has been on access to justice and the increasing backlog of cases building up, and the need to hear those cases.
The book is divided into 6 parts, dealing with the legal system and how to use it, consumer law, the family, bereavement law, housing law and access to housing and finally, the police and your rights.
No book can cover all the law, and if it try s then it will be diluted to such an effect as to be worthless. An attempt has been made here to outline the operation of the legal system and to describe the players in that system, such as solicitors and barristers and to describe the framework of financial aid that can be accessed through the legal help scheme. There is a detailed chapter on putting together a small claim and going to court with that claim. For many people, the small claims court is the most common method of seeking redress against an individual or company.
The chapters that follow cover accidents and compensation, Divorce, and the law, including Civil partnerships and same Sex couples, the law and the consumer (particularly relevant now in 2022, as the travel industry lurches from crisis to crisis), legal relationship between children and adults, financial provisions for children. We are also including a new section on landlord and tenant, given the importance of housing and housing rights in the current day. We also cover the law and neighbours, landlord and tenant and, finally, the law and the police, what to do if you are arrested and how to complain.
The more complicated our society becomes, the more it becomes controlled by laws and regulations, the more that the individual needs to know to be able to be effective. This book cannot hope to be totally comprehensive but does cover as many key areas as possible.
Jeremy Farley 2022
Chapter. 1
Understanding the Legal System-How it Works
HM Courts and Tribunals Services is an arm of the Ministry of Justice. The agency is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales. and non-devolved tribunals in Scotland and Northern Ireland. For more information on HM Courts and Tribunal Service, go to www.gov.uk/organisations/hm-courts-and-tribunals-service .
This book deals mainly with the legal systems in England and Wales and there are separate legal processes and systems in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Problems arising because of COVID 19
The legal profession, particularly the court system has been badly affected because of the pandemic. At the time of writing it (the Coronavirus) has caused a massive backlog in hearing court cases and several suggestions have been put forward, such as the setting up of remote courts and Nightingale Courts . These courts are temporary centres designed to reduce the backlog of cases.
The setting up of Remote Courts
The response to an investigation of the possibility of setting up remote High Court has been overwhelmingly positive, according to a report on the effects of the Covid-19 lockdown. Nearly 80 per cent respondents in the survey, which questioned judges, lawyers and ordinary people who have used the digital civil courts, thought that the system brought in rapidly to stem the spread of coronavirus had worked well. Nightingale Courts
Nightingale courts will tackle backlog of half a million cases
Emergency Nightingale-style courts are to be opened to help to tackle a backlog of more than half a million criminal cases that have built up because of the coronavirus pandemic. Ten sites were initially identified after officials from the Ministry of Justice searched the country for suitable accommodations, including in the town halls and university lecture theatres where cases could be held within social distancing guidelines.
Barristers strike
As we write, in May 2022, further problems have arisen with Barristers fighting back over the severe cuts in legal funding. In addition to the pandemic, thousands of criminal barristers in England and Wales are on strike over low pay and the state of legal aid funding in the UK. The main issue is that of funding. From April 2022, nearly 2,500 criminal barristers imposed a no-returns policy, which refusing cases passed to them by other barristers who were set to appear but cannot do so because another trial has overrun.
This is likely to have a ripple effect within the criminal justice system, stopping other trials and heaping more delays on a system already suffering backlogs from the pandemic . It has been reported that more than 60,000 cases are waiting to be heard in England and Wales. Over the years, legal aid funding has been cut and frozen, with the CBA suggesting the real incomes for criminal defence advocates have fallen by 28% over the past two decades. According to The Times, 83% of criminal barristers incurred personal debt or used savings during the coronavirus pandemic .
Data from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) shows that 22% of junior criminal barristers have quit since 2016 and the number of junior barristers specialising in crime fell by 11% between 2016-17 and 2019-20, from 2,553 to 2,273.
A major factor for this is low pay. Newly trained criminal barristers earned a median pre-tax profit of just 12,200 in 2019-20, according to Garden Court North Chambers, a collection of human rights barristers. By comparison, the average median household income in the UK for the same year was 30,500.
Legal terms explained
There is a detailed glossary of terms at the back of this book which deals with commonly used legal jargon. However, it is useful to highlight the most common terms right at the outset, as they will be used frequently throughout the book:
Claimant - when legal proceedings are brought, the person or persons, or organisation, bringing the case is called the claimant.
Defendant - The individual or organisation being sued, and therefore defending, is called the defendant.
Solicitor - a solicitor is the lawyer you will (or might) see for legal advice relating to your case. This person will have undertaken many years of study and passed all the necessary legal examinations. We will be discussing solicitors in more depth a little later.
Barrister - A Barrister is a lawyer who is a specialist in what is known as advocacy, i.e. speaking in court. A Barrister will have been called to the bar by one of the Inns of Court and passed the barristers professional examinations. A solicitor will instruct a barrister to represent you in court proceedings. However, barristers will not normally be the persons giving individuals legal advice in the first instance. The legal profession is, basically, split into two, barristers and solicitors, both of whom are lawyers.
Writ - A judicial writ is issued to bring legal proceedings. Civil cases are started in the courts by issuing and serving a writ. This document is completed either by an individual bringing the case or by a solicitor on behalf of the individual. It is issued by the court.
Litigant in person - a litigant is bringing legal proceedings or suing. A litigant-in-person is someone who chooses to represent themselves in court, without a lawyer.
Damages - Civil claims in the courts are for damages, which is money claimed from the defendant to compensate the claimant for loss arising from the action of default of the defendant. An example might be the sale of a good that has caused injury to a person, and it is alleged that the good was faulty at the time of purchase.
The structure of the court system
The court system in the United Kingdom deals, in the main, with civil and criminal cases. They are heard in either the county court (civil cases) and the Magistrates and Crown Courts (criminal cases). Civil cases are those that typically involve breaches of contract, perso