The system of justice

The system of justice in England and Wales, in both civil and criminal cases, is (as it is in North America) an adversarial system. In criminal cases there is no such thing as an examining magistrate, who tries to discover the real truth about what happened. In formal terms it is not the business of any court to find out 'the truth'. Its job is simply to decide 'yes' or 'no' to a particular proposition (in criminal cases, that a certain person is guilty of a certain crime) after it has heard arguments and evidence from both sides (in criminal cases these sides are known as the defence and the prosecution).

There are basically two kinds of court. More than 90% of all cases are dealt with in magistrates’ courts. Every town has one of these. In them, a panel of magistrates (usually three) passes judgement. In cases where they have decided somebody is guilty of a crime, they can also impose a punishment. This can be imprisonment for up to a year, or it can be a fine, although if it is a person's ‘first offence’ and the crime is not serious, they often impose no punishment at all (►; The sentence of this court is...).

Magistrates' courts are another example of the importance of amateurism in British public life. Magistrates, who are also known as Justices of the Peace (JPs), are not trained lawyers. They are just ordinary people of good reputation who have been appointed to the job by a local committee. They do not get a salary or a fee for their work (though they get paid expenses). Inevitably, they tend to come from the wealthier sections of society and, in times past, their prejudices were very obvious. They were especially harsh, for instance, on people found guilty of poaching (hunting animals on private land), even though these people sometimes had to poach in order to put food on their families' tables. In modern times, however, some care is taken to make sure that JPs are recruited from as broad a section of society as possible.

Even serious criminal cases are first heard in a magistrate's court. However, in these cases, the JPs only need to decide that there is a prima facie case against the accused (in other words, that it is possible that he or she may be guilty). They then refer the case to a higher court. In most cases this will be a crown court, where a professional lawyer acts as the judge and the decision regarding guilt or innocence is taken by a jury. Juries consist of twelve people selected at random from the list of voters. They do not get paid for their services and are obliged to perform this duty. In order for a verdict to be reached, there must be agreement among at least ten of them. If this does not happen, the judge has to declare a mistrial and the case must start all over again with a different jury. A convicted person may appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeal (generally known just as the Appeal Court) in London either to have the conviction quashed (i.e. the jury's previous verdict is overruled and they are pronounced 'not guilty') or to have the sentence (i.e. punishment) reduced. The highest court of all in Britain is the House of Lords.

The duty of the judge during a trial is to act as the referee while the prosecution and defence put their cases and question the witnesses, and to decide what evidence is admissible and what is not (what can or can’t be taken into account by the jury). It is also, of course, the judge’s job to impose a punishment (known as ‘pronouncing sentence’) on those found guilty of crimes.

► The sentence of this court is…

If it is someone's first offence, and the crime is a small one, even a guilty person is often uncondition­ally discharged. He or she is set free without punishment.

The next step up the ladder is a conditional discharge. This means that the guilty person is set free but if he or she commits another crime within a stated time, the first crime will be taken into account. He or she may also be put on probation, which means that regular meetings with a social worker must take place.

A very common form of punish­ment for minor offences is a fine which means that the guilty person has to pay a sum of money.

Another possibility is that the convicted person is sentenced to a certain number of hours of community service.

Wherever possible, magistrates and judges try not to imprison people. This costs the state money, the country's prisons are already overcrowded and prisons have a reputation for being 'schools for crime'. Even people who are sent to prison do not usually serve the whole time to which they were sentenced. They get ‘remission’ of their sentence for 'good behaviour’.

There is no death penalty in Britain, except for treason. It was abolished for all other offences in 1969. Although public opinion polls often show a majority in favour of its return, a majority of MPs has always been against it. For murderers, there is an obligatory life sentence. However, 'life' does not normally mean life.

► Some terms connected with the legal system

acquitted found not guilty by the court

bail a sum of money guaranteed by somebody on behalf of a person who has been charged with a crime so that he or she can go free until the time of the trial. If he or she does not appear in court, the person 'standing bail' has to pay the money.

convicted found guilty by the court

defendant the party who denies a claim in court; the person accused of a crime

on remand in prison awaiting trial

party one of the sides in a court case. Because of the adversarial system, there must always be two parties in any ease: one to make a claim and one to deny this claim.

plaintiff the party who makes a claim in court. In nearly all crim­inal cases the plaintiff is the police.

verdict the decision of the court

Task 2. Answer the questions on the text.

1. Why is the system of justice in England and Wales called an adversarial system?

2. What is the primary task of court?

3. What are the main duties of a judge?

4. What are the two kinds of court in Britain?

5. Who can be appointed to be a magistrate?

6. What kinds of cases are heard solely by magistrates’ courts?

7. What punishments can be imposed by magistrates’ courts?

8. Describe the legal procedure for hearing serious cases. What is the role of magistrates’ and higher courts here?

9. Who can be appointed to be a judge at a higher court (a crown court)?

10. Who takes a decision regarding guilt or innocence in a higher court?

11. Who can serve as a juror? Describe their job.

12. Why may a convicted person want to appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeal?

 

Task 3. Find English equivalents of the following in the text:

· система, основанная на принципе состязательности;

· формально говоря;

· мировой суд;

· коллегия мировых судей выносит решение;

· назначить наказание;

· первое правонарушение;

· мировой судья (2);

· назначаться на должность местным комитетом;

· издержки возмещаются;

· Обычно они происходят из более богатых слоев общества;

· Их предубеждения были очевидны;

· суровый по отношению к кому-л.;

· нанимать, брать на работу;

· передать дело в суд высшей инстанции;

· выбирать случайным образом;

· быть обязанным выполнять свою работу;

· Чтобы вердикт по делу был вынесен, …;

· объявить, что решение по делу не было вынесено;

· осужденный;

· обратиться в Апелляционный суд;

· опротестовать приговор;

· Решение суда присяжных заседателей отменяется;

· уменьшить меру наказания;

· выступать в качестве третейского судьи / арбитра;

· излагать свою точку зрения по делу;

· допрашивать свидетелей;

· решать, какие показания могут быть приняты в качестве доказательства;

· зачитать приговор;

· полностью освободить от ответственности за совершение преступления;

· условное наказание;

· назначить пробацию (условное наказание с регулярным посещением соцработника);

· уменьшить срок наказания за примерное поведение.

 

Task 4. Translate the sentences into English using the active vocabulary of Task 3.

1) Система правосудия Великобритании основана на принципе состязательности. В судебном процессе участвуют 2 стороны: сторона защиты и сторона обвинения. Сначала они излагают свою точку зрения по делу и допрашивают свидетелей (судья решает, какие показания могут быть приняты во внимание присяжными заседателями). Потом суд присяжных заседателей выносит свой вердикт: виновен, невиновен или оправдан за отсутствием доказательств (в Шотландии). Чтобы вердикт по делу был вынесен, хоты бы 10 присяжных должны придти к единому решению (в противном случае судья объявляет, что решение по делу не вынесено). Если вынесен вердикт виновности, судья назначает наказание и зачитывает приговор. Осужденный может обратиться в Апелляционный суд, чтобы опротестовать приговор.