The High Court
The High Court is a hotch-potch.
It is a composite description embracing three separate kinds of courts -
called divisions - each with separate functions (though they occasionally
overlap).
The 81 High Court judges are distributed between the three divisions,
which have their home in London's Royal Courts of Justice, an eccentric
Victorian Gothic building on the Strand, with outposts in some 25 large
provincial towns and cities.
The biggest of the divisions, with the widest jurisdiction, is the Queen's
Bench (King's Bench).
Its most important function is as the main civil court for disputes
involving more than 5,000 pounds.
Claims for money owing, and actions for damages arising from motor and
work accidents are the High Court's main folder.
It also deals with suits, for libel.
The division also includes a Commercial Court, which specializes in
large commercial disputes, and an Admiralty Court for shipping cases.
The court can also quash decisions of Magistrates' Courts where they
exceed their powers or there are irregularities in the proceedings.
It also takes appeals from lower courts, but only on issues raising
points of law.
The court does not hear witnesses or deal with cases which raise only
factual points.
The Family Division deals with divorce; disputes between warring spouses
involving children, property or money; adoption, wardship, and other
questions affecting children.
The Chancery Division deals with tax, interpretation of wills,
companies, settlements, trusts, and various other issues affecting finance
and property.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
