The System of Magistrates Court as a Good Mean of Delivering Justice - Essay Example

Consider your visit to York magistrates’ court CONSIDER YOUR VISIT TO YORK MAGISTRATES’ COURT AND USE IT IN AN EXPLANATION OF THE EXTENT TO WHICH YOU THINK THAT THE SYSTEM OF MAGISTRATES’ COURT IS A GOOD MEANS OF DELIVERING JUSTICE Titus Rock Manickam Order No. 297150 08 May 2009 CONSIDER YOUR VISIT TO YORK MAGISTRATES’ COURT AND USE IT IN AN EXPLANATION OF THE EXTENT TO WHICH YOU THINK THAT THE SYSTEM OF MAGISTRATES’ COURT IS A GOOD MEANS OF DELIVERING JUSTICE Introduction Law in England is unique and effective, if the trend to administer justice through lay judges is considered. Around 97 percent of the defendants to criminal charges have their cases administered by lay judges, sitting in twos or threes. They say that the law is an ass, but in England it is not an ass, it is swift and elegant like the horse. A short visit to the York Magistrates’ Court assured me of the great benefits in avoiding trials as much as possible. It is not the content of the trial that disturbed me as much as the prevalent atmosphere in the court. A quick look at the scenario made me dread the prospects of getting involved in court cases that once entangled in appeared to take horrible sequences of soul wrenching episodes of questions and answers sessions in which the court was the only winner. It also made me think about the legal procedures and justice dispensation in England. I would have been glad had I known the actual position of the English legal system. The legal system here is user-friendly in that it treats true confessions with equal candor and dispensation of justice that befitted the crime. This translates to any crime that was unintentionally committed since I had made up my mind long ago not to get involved in criminal activities. Who are the Magistrates? The magistrates in England are unique although they are common. They are unique because they are not qualified to be magistrates! They come from all walks of middle-class lives. They may be teachers, doctors, social workers, or just about any person that make a decent living. Known as lay magistrates or justices of peace, they are selected for the roles of justices, jurors, and adjudicate on the basis of evidence surprisingly accepted by qualified solicitors and barristers validating the sentences as qualified and irreversible. As compared to the rest of the world, the law in England depends inexorably on lay judges. This is the tendency in the vast majority of the cases. The few that are dependent on qualified judges surprisingly do not outdo the lay justices’ trends where sentencing is concerned. Moreover, the matter does not end here. If anything, the trend to have lay judges administer justice must increase if one goes by the finding by Auld EJ is considered (Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343043_4.pdf). The Importance of Magistracy Justices are of two types in England. There are the lay magistrates or justices of peace who work without any remuneration. Then there are the stipendiary judges who adjudicate in the Crown Courts. There are about 30,000 lay magistrates and over 100 full-time stipendiary judges in England. The figure is suggestive of the mass appeal of the lay magistrates in comparison to the qualified judges in the Crown Court. Lay magistrates or justices of peace have become so important and common place in the administration of justice in England that they occupy most cases that come for hearing. They handle cases of murder, thefts, burglary, sex offences, frauds, forgeries, arson, etc. It is not as if they are perfect in assimilating evidences and disposing off cases. Rather their presence is often questioned as intrusive and unqualified. There is also the suggestion that the law in England tend to trivialize court procedures (Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343042_4.pdf, pg.2). But even their detractors accept the efficacy of the system that oversees the befitting roles of these lay magistrates. The vastness of the lay magistrates is suggestive of effectiveness of the law system in England and the faith of the common man in the legal system. Ultimately, the legal system survives on the goodwill on the part of either side of the criminal justice order. Of course, for the most part, the average man in England is unaware of the state of affairs in the legal system in England until he has had a brush with the law for some reason. Even after facing trial, the accused normally agrees to plead guilty for various reasons. The reasons may vary from person to person, depending on his or her perception of law and social repercussions. There may be accused who may otherwise benefit from the provisions of law and still opt to plead guilty to save themselves the stigma attached to a trial. There may be other accused preferring to plead guilty to quickly get over case and get the benefits tied with such pleas. Of course, in cases of hardened criminals, one cannot expect preference for plea bargaining and the cases have to go on trial. The incentive for plea bargaining known as ‘adversarial justice’ where the system of justice creates obstacles in the process of law while the accused is being framed (Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343044_4.pdf, pg.2). In the eyes of the law in England, the accused is innocent unless proved guilty beyond all reasonable doubts. Therefore, it is expedient for the accused to plead guilty and get away with a mitigated sentence. However, if the accused is indeed innocent and does not wish to plea bargain then the law takes its course and trial is held. In such cases, normally the accused is set free after he is found indeed innocent through the process of trial. If the accused wants to pursue the case for compensation due to the agony caused, he has to make a separate case. Now coming back to lay magistrates, can one expect justice from them seeing they are novice? Do they know the law? Do they understand the provisions and terms and clauses that lawyers use when arguing cases? The English courts have the practice of having the court clerks of advising lay magistrates. The trend does appear convincing if one takes into account these court clerks are case-hardened and have updated knowledge of law and the intricacies of law. Also, the solicitors manage the case in ways that legally and fundamentally present the case in dynamics of law that may differ from the original scene. However, the accused has little alternative and hence may opt to go along with the solicitor’s version (Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343044_4.pdf, pg.12). The perception of the accused is different from the one the solicitor holds. The solicitor sees the case from the legal point of view. Being aware of the legal cases and implications, the solicitor provides advice and solution according to the sections of the law and the way the incident is best interpreted in the case to satisfy the court as well as the client. The System of Magistrate’s Court is a Good Means of Delivering Justice The English system of court administration is the best in the world because it is geared to protect the accused unless proved guilty and also because the system goes along with the accused to the extent it is satisfied with the parameters of plea bargaining. The system may not be foolproof but it addresses the important question of liberty and justice. There is also quality and fairness. In such a scenario, there is fear of the law. At the same time, the innocent is by and large assured that justice will prevail. Even if the case is one of unintended crime, or crime involving self-defense such as the act of killing a burglar, there is the big possibility of emerging unscathed. To an accused, it is not important if the judge is a lay magistrate or qualified dignitary. The important matter for an accused is to secure justice, if he is not guilty. If he is guilty, he pleads guilty and secures mitigated sentence. This is the scenario in majority of the cases in England. At least 70% of criminal cases never go on trial in England. Their outcome is decided without the need to go on trial. The courts function on the basis of fairness, efficiency and accountability (Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343042_4.pdf) Conclusion The legal system in England means business. The system is capable but it is flexible to allow for plea bargaining. The advantage is visible in the manner of disposal of cases to the tune of minimum 70% without trial. The English people and administration know what they are doing. This is not to suggest that the legal system in England is in proper shape. There are areas where the development of the process of law has not change to the desired level. But looking back, the legal process is far better when compared to what it was half a century before. In the light of this situation, it can be safely stated that it would not matter to me if I inadvertently got caught on the wrong side of the law. Sources: Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343041_4.pdf Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343042_4.pdf Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343043_4.pdf Introduction to Law and Society, xid-343044_4.pdf Read More