The law of England

The Law of England is constantly changing, which is mainly due to the constant developments of society. Parts of the Legal System are always up for reform and there are and will always be criticism with the way in which the English Legal system works. Law making is an essential part of the Law of England today and is constantly being reviewed and reformed in order to keep up to date with today’s legal and moral values, the constant advances in technology and to maintain public order.

The Law of England is divided into written law, namely Statutes, and unwritten law which is the Common Law. These are made up of two categories which are Criminal and Civil Law and are governed by Common Law, which is where the Law of England originated from, Legislation and European Community Law (EC). Nevertheless, there are sometimes conflicts between Common Law and Legislation, yet Legislation will always prevail as will European Community Law when National Law conflicts. Nevertheless, when there are conflicts of cases within the Common Law in the Law of England the highest rank of court will always prevail.

Legal History

Natural Law is the permanent underlying basis of the Law of England which was derived from Ancient Greece philosophers whereby a man was given perfect justice by nature and all laws should conform to this. Theories of Natural Law have been an important part of legal history in the Law of England and it is distinguished between positive law which is the body of law imposed by the state. The law of England dates back to the Anglo-Saxon era in which the Roman Empire brought Law and Order into the country and lasted more than 600 years. Roman Law now forms the basis for the English Legal system and the Latin terminology which derived from The Roman Empire is still used today, an example of such is in the Latin term Res Gestae which means in the Law of England ‘the thing done’. Post Anglo-Saxon times the first written laws where in 800 and where tort laws. Yet the first statute was not established until 1215 which was the Magna Carta founded by King John.

Common Law

The Law of England is based on Common Law principles derived primarily from past court decisions, also known as the Latin term stare decisis. During the first three centuries after the Norman Conquest (1066) the Royal Courts developed the Common Law rules by sending Royal Representatives out on a regular basis to check the conduct of local affairs which involved them participating in local courts. They were known as circuits and eventually took over the work of local courts. The first two permanent courts establishing the Law of England where The Court of Exchequer, sitting at Westminster and The Court of Common Pleas. The judges from the two courts where then joined and began to work together in numerous cases. Subsequently, the third Royal Court emerged which was The Court of Kings Bench.
Consequently, The Law of England established The Doctrine of Judicial Precedent which means that where a principle of law is established in one case it is binding on all future cases. Furthermore, where there are conflicting judgments on a point of law, then the courts must follow the hierarchal of the Courts, thereby the House of Lords judgements overriding all lower court decisions.

Statutes

Although the Law of England is based on the Common Law, it is the Statutes (Acts of Parliament) and Statutory Instruments (Legislation which is secondary to Statute) which are the most important enforceable body of rules governing society. Yet, statutes are never solely relied upon in the Law of England unless they have been interpreted by the Courts. An Act of Parliament must have been passed by both houses of Parliament in the form of a Bill and agreed to by the Crown. Nevertheless, even where this development has taken place, it does not always mean that it is good law and may in time be up for review and eventually be reformed which is a process that is always being undertaken by the Law Commission which is the statutory independent body created by the Law Commissions Act 1965 to keep the Law of England under review and to make any recommendations for reform where necessary.

European Community Law

The United Kingdom joined the European Community (European Union) in 1973 and since then The Law of England has been required to incorporate all European Community Law into it. This in effect takes away some of the British Sovereignty as EU law will always prevail over UK law in conflicting situations. Similarly, The European Convention of Human Rights has the same effect as the Law of England must not conflict with Human Rights. Effectively, these change the dynamic of the Law of England considerably as they have got to be taken into account at all times when for instance Law making and when passing judgment on a point of law. Since what was once a rule of law may have changed due to it conflicting with EU law and Human Rights.

Overview

The Law of England dates back to some time and although there have been many reforms of the law, legal history is still an essential part of the English Legal System today. It sets the foundation of the present legal system and its Latin terms are still in use. Furthermore, although Statutes are the main rules of law, they work simultaneously with Common Law and no Statutes are relied upon without looking at the relevant legal principles of the Common Law. Similarly, The European Community and the Human Rights Act within the Law of England are essential elements of the legal system as they are to be conformed with in all instances. Overall, The Law of England has changed dramatically over the years and will continue to do so as the law is constantly being updated and reviewed in order to comply with today’s societal morals and values, the constant changes in technology and the way in which the world operates.