- CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM ACT
- The SC was established under the Constitutional Reform Act (2005) – opened in 2009.
- Established a much more independent appointments process – created new Judicial Appointments Commissions, made up of legal professionals and several non-professional members.
- Although the Lord Chancellor has the power to reject the proposed candidate, they can only do this once, and must accept the second nominated candidate.
- Appointments to the Supreme Court are recommended by a dedicated Supreme Court selection commission, which consists of one member of the JAC, the President and Deputy President of the Supreme Court, and individuals from the various judicial appointment bodies of Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales.
- The Lord Chancellor does not sit on the commission.
- Reducing the influence of the prime minister and Lord Chancellor keeps the judiciary separate from the executive.
- INDEPENDENCE/NEUTRALITY PROTECTED
- Judges have life tenure, keeping their jobs until retirement at age 75 – they cannot simply be fired for decisions that the government disagrees with.
- An independent review body sets their salary – salaries are not controlled by the government – cannot be used to influence judges.
- The sub judice rule, which prevents MPs, Lords, the media, pressure groups, and the public from discussing a current or impending court case – anyone that breaks this rule can be charged with ‘contempt of court’ – Daily Mirror £10,000 in 2012 for breaking contempt of court laws.
- Judges have years of experience, often working for many years as barristers.
- g., before Lord Reed was in SC he was senior judge in Scotland for 13 years.
- There are also political restrictions placed upon judges – not allowed to engage in active politics.
- Judges are also expected to declare any personal interests they may have in a case before it starts, to ensure that they are not biased.
- LORD CHANCELLOR
- Historically, the Lord Chancellor was a member of all three branches of government.
- Many argued that this overlap between the executive and judiciary posed a risk to judicial independence.
- The CRA (2005) divided the job into three separate positions: the Lord Chancellor, the Lord Chief and the Lord Speaker.
- The CRA also requires the Lord Chancellor, a senior member of the government, to swear an oath to “respect the rule of law” and “defend the independence of the judiciary”.
In 2011, the Lord Chancellor, Ken Clarke, wrote to the Home Secretary and Prime Minister, to remind them of their duty to respect judicial independence, after they criticised the Supreme Court’s decision to allow people on the sex offenders’ register to apply to have their inclusion reviewed.