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103-563: A consistory court is a type of ecclesiastical court , especially within the Church of England where they were originally established pursuant to a charter of King William the Conqueror , and still exist today, although since about the middle of the 19th century consistory courts have lost much of their subject-matter jurisdiction. Each diocese in the Church of England has a consistory court (called in

206-511: A divisional court —a bench of two or more judges. Exceptionally the court may sit with a jury, but in practice normally only in defamation cases or cases against the police. Litigants are normally represented by counsel but may be represented by solicitors qualified to hold a right of audience, or they may act in person. In principle, the High Court is bound by its own previous decisions, but there are conflicting authorities as to what extent this

309-529: A consistory court that constitutes contempt of the consistory court, that person is liable to be punished by the High Court as if that person had been guilty of contempt of the High Court. The consistory court of a diocese has jurisdiction to hear and determine: The exercise of the faculty jurisdiction forms the very great majority of the work of the consistory courts today – the rest of the statutory jurisdiction being largely concerned with rather technical matters of ecclesiastical law and only rarely invoked. As

412-822: A decision of the Arches Court of Canterbury. Each Consistory court is presided over by a single judge who is styled the Chancellor of the Diocese (or in Canterbury the Commissary-General ). The chancellor is appointed by the bishop of the diocese by letters patent following consultation with the Lord Chancellor and the Dean of the Arches and Auditor. Ecclesiastical jurisdiction in

515-407: A faculty. The jurisdiction also extends to all the goods appertaining to such a church, as well as to its fabric and any fittings annexed to the realty, and also to the churchyard. It is because of the existence of the faculty jurisdiction that the "ecclesiastical exemption" from listed building control is provided for in heritage protection legislation, Parliament having taken the view that there

618-444: A general rule, land and buildings become subject to the jurisdiction of the consistory court by virtue of being consecrated by the bishop of the diocese. In the case of more recently built churches there will be a formal record of consecration; in the case of ancient churches, there is a legal presumption that they have been consecrated. All parish churches, and certain other buildings and land even though not consecrated, are subject to

721-694: A matter involving doctrine, ritual or ceremonial. The chancellor must also, if the appeal lies to the Court of Arches or the Chancery Court of York, decide whether to give permission to appeal. In faculty cases, a further appeal lies from the Court of Arches or the Chancery Court of York to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council but only with the permission of the Judicial Committee. A decision of

824-451: A petition to allow the grant of a way leave to a utility undertaker) legal representation is usually engaged by the petitioners. Where the petitioners are private individuals or parochial church councils they may not have the resources to instruct solicitors and counsel; though it is not uncommon for counsel to appear pro bono . The registrar of the diocese is also the registrar of the consistory court. The qualification for appointment as

927-432: A priest in confession, repentant, and explain his act and the fact that he acted in secret, the confessor would write to the tribunal laying out the simplest outline of facts, keeping the person's identity secret, and would most likely be empowered to lift the excommunication and impose some private act of penance on the person. In the Church of England , the ecclesiastical courts are a system of courts, held by authority of

1030-511: A registrar is a general qualification within the meaning of section 71 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. He was usually also the legal secretary to the bishop, and now must be a legal adviser, and is registrar to the archdeacons . He must be learned in ecclesiastical law , and be a communicant of the Church of England. He is appointed by the bishop after consultation with the Bishop's Council and

1133-606: A school or community hall made available for the purpose. Historically some consistory courts were housed in the cathedral church of the diocese and some cathedrals still contain court rooms, although these are now used for other purposes. For example, the former consistory court at St Paul's Cathedral is now the Chapel of the Order of St. Michael and St. George . One of the oldest surviving complete ecclesiastical courtrooms in Great Britain

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1236-611: A seven-year general qualification under the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 section 71 or have held high judicial office. Specialist courts in the Province of Canterbury are the Court of Faculties , the Court of Peculiars and the Court of the Vicar-General of the Province of Canterbury . In the northern province there is the Court of the Vicar-General of the Province of York . The next court

1339-423: A short wig, collar and bands. On ceremonial occasions chancellors wear a full-bottomed wig and the silk gown is worn over a court coat, court waistcoat with lace jabot and knee breaches, silk stockings and patent leather pumps with buckles. The consistory court itself is styled "this venerable court". Most have a mace , carried by the apparitor , who is usually a member of the staff of the diocesan registry and who

1442-571: A small salary for their general duties to the court in some of the larger dioceses and archdioceses.   Consistory courts are the King's courts with the ultimate appellate authority being either His Majesty in Council or a Commission of Review directed by His Majesty under the Great Seal. They are superior courts in the sense that it need not appear in any proceedings or judgements of a consistory courts that

1545-408: A throne at the front of the ecclesiastical courtroom, presiding over the well where the proctors and litigants would sit. The diocesan registrar would sit on a slightly lower bench to the chancellor's right, which would contain a small table allowing them to record the details of the court cases brought by the proctors, similar to a clerk in a temporal common law court. Inside a wooden enclosure before

1648-588: Is no further appeal. If they disagree, then the case can be appealed to the Roman Rota, which serves as the tribunal of third instance . The Rota is a court of fifteen judges called auditors who take cases in panels of three and serve as the final arbiters of most cases. There is no appeal from a court case that the Pope has decided personally. The Roman Curia has two other tribunals which either deal with specialized cases or which do not deal with cases at all. The first

1751-557: Is now organised into three divisions: the King's Bench Division, the Chancery Division, and the Family Division. A list of hearings in the High Court's divisions is published daily. The King's Bench Division (KBD) – or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female – hears a wide range of common law cases and also has special responsibility as a supervisory court. It includes subdivisions such as

1854-516: Is presided over by the local archdeacon. The next court in the hierarchy is the bishop's court, which is in the Diocese of Canterbury called the Commissary Court and in other dioceses the consistory court . The Commissary Court is presided over by a commissary-general; a consistory Court is presided over by a chancellor. The chancellor or commissary-general must be thirty years old and either have

1957-640: Is so. Appeal from the High Court in civil matters normally lies to the Court of Appeal, and thence in cases of importance to the Supreme Court (the House of Lords before 2009); in some cases a "leapfrog" appeal may be made directly to the Supreme Court. In criminal matters, appeals from the King's Bench Divisional Court are made directly to the Supreme Court. The High Court is based at the Royal Courts of Justice on

2060-636: Is the Apostolic Penitentiary . This tribunal has no jurisdiction in what is known as "the external forum", meaning cases and events which are publicly known, only matters of the "internal forum", which involve entirely confidential and secret matters, including (but not limited to) what is confessed in the Sacrament of Penance . It primarily deals with cases that arise only within the confessional and which by their nature are private, confidential or whose facts are secret. Such cases are normally brought before

2163-724: Is the Apostolic Signatura , a panel of five cardinals which serves as the highest court in the Roman Catholic Church. Normal cases rarely reach the Signatura, the exception being if a party appeals to the Pope and he assigns the case to them or if the Pope on his own initiative pulls a case from another court and gives it to them. The court mainly handles cases regarding the use of administrative power, including penal cases which were decided using executive instead of judicial power, which

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2266-671: Is the archbishop's court, which is in Canterbury called the Arches Court , and in York the Chancery Court . Each court includes five judges; one judge is common to both courts. The common judge is called the Dean of Arches in Canterbury and the Auditor in York; he or she is appointed jointly by both archbishops with the approval of the Crown, and must either hold a ten-year High Court qualification under

2369-505: Is the consistory court at Chester Cathedral . Probably the oldest known example (1617) is in the Chapel of St Nicholas, King's Lynn, Norfolk. Until the latter part of the nineteenth century there were legal practitioners in England known as "advocates" who practised solely in ecclesiastical and admiralty law and formed a chartered institution called Doctors' Commons . After the transfer of much of

2472-501: Is the tribunal of the metropolitan bishop . In the case where the appeal is from a first instance decision of the metropolitan's own tribunal, the appeal is taken to a court which the metropolitan designated with approval of the Holy See , usually another nearby metropolitan, thus ensuring that appeals from one diocese are never heard by the same diocese. As an example, a case in the Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts , would be appealed to

2575-504: Is the usual case. It also handles disputes between dicasteries and other tribunals over jurisdiction, complaints that a Rotal decision is null and should be retried, and matters regarding advocates and inter-diocesan tribunals. There is normally no right of appeal from the decision of the Apostolic Signatura (can. 1629 #1); however, laypersons and clerics have, on rare occasions, convinced the Pope to hear their case afterwards. This

2678-410: Is to represent the diocese as the prosecutor in penal cases and who also can intervene in contentious cases if they concern the "public good", acting as a watch dog for the people of the diocese. Another important officer is the defender of the bond, another canon lawyer whose job is to present reasons to the tribunal why a marriage is valid in cases of alleged nullity and why an ordination is valid in

2781-406: Is usually reserved for cases where they are facing excommunication or some other form of severe censure, such as the loss of the right to teach theology or to administer the sacraments . Facing censure , a theologian and priest got Pope John Paul II to hear his case and even asked the Pope to alter his own decision, though the Pope did not reverse the ruling in either case. The other tribunal

2884-499: The Clergy Discipline Measure 2003 transferred the criminal jurisdiction over the clergy (other than in relation to matters of doctrine, ritual or ceremonial) to new "bishop's tribunals" with modern tribunal procedure and a revised scheme of statutory penalties. During the early modern period it became increasingly common for the bishop of an anglican diocese, or the archdeacon of a rural deanery, to delegate jurisdiction of

2987-600: The Companies Court ) which deal with patents and registered designs and company law matters respectively. All tax appeals are assigned to the Chancery Division. Until 2005, the Lord Chancellor was the de jure head of the Chancery Division, but appointed a Vice-Chancellor who nominally acted as his deputy. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 renamed the Vice-Chancellor to Chancellor of the High Court and made him

3090-648: The Court of Appeal and the Crown Court , are the Senior Courts of England and Wales . Its name is abbreviated as EWHC ( England and Wales High Court) for legal citation purposes. The High Court deals at first instance with all high-value and high-importance civil law (non- criminal ) cases; it also has a supervisory jurisdiction over all subordinate courts and tribunals, with a few statutory exceptions, though there are debates as to whether these exceptions are effective. The High Court consists of three divisions:

3193-547: The Court of Exchequer , the High Court of Admiralty , the Court of Probate , the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes , and the London Court of Bankruptcy – into a new Supreme Court of Judicature (now known as the Senior Courts of England and Wales ). The new Supreme Court was divided into the Court of Appeal , which exercised appellate jurisdiction , and the High Court, which exercised original jurisdiction . Originally,

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3296-795: The Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 , s 71, or have held high judicial office. Two members of each court must be clergy appointed by the Prolocutor of the Lower House of the provincial convocation. Two further members of each court are appointed by the Chairman of the House of Laity of the General Synod; these must possess such legal qualifications as the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain requires. In cases involving church doctrine, ceremony or ritual,

3399-592: The Crown , who is ex officio the Supreme Governor of the Church of England . The courts have jurisdiction over matters dealing with the rights and obligations of church members, now limited to controversies in areas of church property and ecclesiastical disciplinary proceedings. In England these courts, unlike common law courts, are based upon and operate along civil law procedures and Canon law -based jurisprudence. The ecclesiastical courts formerly had jurisdiction over

3502-503: The Holy See , in which case the Roman Rota would hear the case in the second instance. If the case was before the Rota in the first instance, then a different panel of the Rota hears it in the second instance. With the exception of cases regarding personal status, if the first instance and second instance tribunals agree on the result of the case, then the case becomes res judicata and there

3605-607: The King's Bench Division , the Chancery Division and the Family Division . Their jurisdictions overlap in some cases, and cases started in one division may be transferred by court order to another where appropriate. The differences of procedure and practice between divisions are partly historical, derived from the separate courts which were merged into the single High Court by the 19th-century Judicature Acts , but are mainly driven by

3708-511: The Strand in the City of Westminster , London. It has district registries across England and Wales ; almost all High Court proceedings may be issued and heard at a district registry. The High Court of Justice was established in 1875 by the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873 . The Act merged eight existing English courts – the Court of Chancery , the Court of King's Bench , the Court of Common Pleas ,

3811-408: The adversarial system . Based on the same Roman civil law that is behind much European law, the procedure of a canonical court is more akin to the inquisitorial system , with the judges leading the investigation. As a general rule, the defendant has the favorable presumption of law, which means that the defendant will win by default unless a majority of the judges is convinced with moral certainty of

3914-553: The personal estates of deceased persons to grant probate or administration . This jurisdiction of the Ecclesiastical Courts was transferred to the Court of Probate by the Court of Probate Act 1857 . Offences against ecclesiastical laws are dealt with differently based on whether the laws in question involve church doctrine. For non-doctrinal cases, the lowest level of the court is the Archdeaconry Court , which

4017-1016: The Administrative Court, the Commercial Court, the Technology and Construction Court, and the Admiralty Court. Until 2005, the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales was the head of the Division. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 created a President of the Queen's Bench Division . The Chancery Division (housed in the Rolls Building ) deals with business law , trusts law, probate law, insolvency, and land law in relation to issues of equity . It has specialist courts (the Patents Court and

4120-734: The Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved can be appealed from by presenting a petition to the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery that His Majesty appoint a Commission of Review. Ecclesiastical court Jus novum ( c.  1140 -1563) Jus novissimum ( c.  1563 -1918) Jus codicis (1918-present) Other Sacraments Sacramentals Sacred places Sacred times Supra-diocesan/eparchal structures Particular churches Juridic persons Philosophy, theology, and fundamental theory of Catholic canon law Clerics Office Juridic and physical persons Associations of

4223-691: The Diocese of Canterbury the Commissary Court ). Consistory courts have been in existence in England since shortly after the Norman conquest and their jurisdiction and operation was essentially unaffected by the English reformations. Originally, the jurisdiction of consistory courts was very wide indeed and covered such matters as defamation, probate, and matrimonial causes as well as a general jurisdiction over both clergy and laity in relation to matters relating to church discipline and to morality more generally and to

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4326-664: The Eastern Churches in the case of the Eastern Catholic Churches (Byzantine, Ukrainian, Maronite, Melkite, etc.). Both systems of canon law underwent general revisions in the late 20th century, resulting in the new code for the Latin Church in 1983, and the compilation for the first time of the Eastern Code in 1990. Cases normally originate in the tribunal of the particular church (i.e. the diocese or eparchy ) of

4429-490: The Faculty Jurisdiction Rules 2015. The consistory court usually sits "on paper" without formal hearings. Contentious cases can be determined on consideration of written representations if the chancellor considers it expedient and all the parties agree. When hearings are required they can be held in any convenient building; which might be the church to which the proceedings relate or an existing court building or

4532-464: The Family Division sit at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London, while District Judges of the Family Division sit at First Avenue House, Holborn, London. The Family Division is comparatively modern. The Judicature Acts first combined the Court of Probate , the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes and the High Court of Admiralty into the then Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division of

4635-529: The High Court consisted of five divisions, the King's Bench, Common Pleas, Exchequer, Chancery, and Probate, Divorce and Admiralty divisions. In 1880, the Common Pleas and Exchequer divisions were abolished, leaving three divisions. The Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division was renamed to the Family Division by the Administration of Justice Act 1970 , and its jurisdiction reorganised accordingly. The High Court

4738-468: The High Court has used seven circuits, listed below, which are identical to the Crown Court regions. The Senior Courts Costs Office, which quantifies legal costs pursuant to orders for costs, serves all divisions. The Costs Office is part of the High Court, so generally all detailed assessment proceedings commenced in the Costs Office are subject to provisional assessment. Exceptions from provisional assessment are detailed assessment proceedings in which

4841-441: The High Court to hear particular cases, and while sitting are addressed as though they were full High Court judges. Trials in London are also conducted by Insolvency and Companies Court Judges and Masters, who have almost identical trial jurisdiction to full High Court judges but who do not hear committals to prison, criminal cases, or judicial review and do not travel 'on circuit' to outlying courts. High Court justices (usually from

4944-482: The High Court, or The Court of Wills, Wives and Wrecks , as it was informally called. That was renamed the Family Division in 1971 when the admiralty and contentious probate business were transferred elsewhere. The Family Division has faced criticism by allowing allegedly abusive partners to cross-examine their former partners; a procedure already banned in criminal procedure. Peter Kyle , MP for Hove , claimed this amounted to "abuse and brutalisation", and called for

5047-420: The Judicial Committee). Commissions of Convocation are appointed by the Upper House of the Convocation of Canterbury or of York to try a bishop for an offence (except for an offence of doctrine). Both Convocations make the appointment if an archbishop is prosecuted. This would comprise four diocesan bishops and the Dean of the Arches. The Ecclesiastical Courts Acts 1787 to 1860 is the collective title of

5150-461: The King's Bench Division under the names of the Admiralty Court, the Commercial Court, and the Technology and Construction Court, and in the Chancery Division under the lists for business, company and insolvency law, competition, finance, intellectual property, revenue, and trusts and probate. The change was meant to enable judges who have suitable expertise and experience in the specialist business and property jurisdictions to be cross-deployed to sit in

5253-474: The King's Bench Division) also sit in the Crown Court , which try the more significant criminal cases, but High Court Judges only hear the most serious and important cases, with circuit judges and recorders hearing the majority. Historically the ultimate source of all justice in England was the monarch. All judges sit in judgment on the monarch's behalf (hence they have the royal coat of arms displayed behind them) and criminal prosecutions are generally made in

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5356-413: The Standing Committee of Diocesan Synod . There may be a deputy registrar who carries out some of the work of the registrar. There may be a separate clerk of the court, if there might be a conflict of interest for the registrar to act in this capacity. Each consistory court has a seal, which is in the care of the registrar. Consistory courts no longer have criminal (i.e. disciplinary) jurisdiction over

5459-428: The advice of clergy such as parish priests and bishop's assistants. This sometimes led to disputes between the clergy, who were more concerned with forgiving the parishioners' sins from a religious perspective, and the proctors, who were more concerned with using the absolution and punishment of sins as a mechanism to make a greater profit for the church court. Finally, apparitors of the ecclesiastical court would ensure

5562-423: The aforementioned courts have no jurisdiction. Instead, the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved hears the case. The Court is composed of three diocesan bishops and two appellate judges; it has jurisdiction over both of the provinces of Canterbury and York. The Court, however, meets very rarely. Appeal from the Arches Court and Chancery Court (in non-doctrinal cases) lies to the King-in-Council . In practice,

5665-435: The appeal to any extent relates to a matter involving doctrine, ritual or ceremonial then the appeal lies instead to the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved and permission to appeal is not needed. For determining the court to which an appeal lies, on the application of a party to the proceedings in the consistory court the chancellor must give a certificate stating whether or not the proposed appeal relates to any extent to

5768-422: The appearance of ecclesiastical defendants before the chancellor and carry out some of the ecclesiastical punishments upon conviction, similar to the role of a bailiff or constable in a temporal English common law court. The apparitors would typically sit in a chair overlooking the well of the court as well as the entrance to the diocesan courtroom from the nave of the cathedral, allowing them to call litigants before

5871-410: The assistant judicial vicars must be priests with doctorates or at least licentiates in canon law . The other judges need only be clerics with licentiates, but the episcopal conference can permit members of the laity with the same academic qualifications to serve as judges on a panel. There are other officers of the tribunal. The promoter of justice, for instance, is a canon lawyer whose job

5974-399: The bishop only if the Upper House of the Convocation of the province resolves that he is incapable of acting or unfit to act. Chancellors are addressed on the bench as "Worshipful Sir" or "Sir" and are styled "The Worshipful". When sitting, chancellors wear the same black silk gown that was formerly worn by judges in the Chancery Division of the High Court and by certain other judges, with

6077-447: The case is heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council , which includes present and former Lords Chancellor , a number of Lords of Appeal and other high judicial officers. The King-in-Council does not have jurisdiction over doctrinal cases from the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved , which instead go to an ad hoc Commission of Review , composed of two diocesan bishops and three Lords of Appeal (who are also members of

6180-399: The chancellor and registrar would typically be a round table at which the proctors and litigants would sit. In contrast with the rectilinear benches for the attorneys in a temporal English common law courtroom, the round table of the ecclesiastical courtroom symbolized that within the inquisitorial system of the anglican church, the role of proctors and litigants was to help inform the court of

6283-513: The church's listed buildings but in such a way that the needs – particularly those that relate to the mission of the church – are fully taken into account in determining faculty petitions that seek the making of changes to listed churches. The criteria to be adopted by consistory courts when considering proposals for the alteration of churches which are listed buildings under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 are set out in Re St Alkmund, Duffield [2013] Fam 158,

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6386-459: The clergy. The machinery under which the clergy formally could be disciplined in a consistory court was contained in the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction Measure 1963. Courts were convened on only three occasions under that legislation. The last discipline case to be heard by a consistory court was that of Brandon Jackson , the Dean of Lincoln , who was acquitted of sexual misconduct in 1995. A number of disciplinary cases have subsequently been heard by

6489-446: The colour of their formal robes, in contrast to the junior circuit judges who are referred to as purple judges for the same reason. Masters (also judges in the High Court) are addressed as 'Master', regardless of gender, or 'Judge' and they wear dark blue gowns with pink tabs echoing the red of the High Court justices' robes. Within the Chancery Division of the High Court, there are also Insolvency and Companies Court Judges , who hear

6592-405: The confessor and empowers him to impose a penance and lift a penalty. For instance, the act of desecrating the Eucharist is one which incurs an automatic excommunication for the person who so acts (an excommunication from the moment of the act, which no court need actually meet to impose), and the power to lift this excommunication is reserved by the Pope to himself. Should this person then approach

6695-449: The continued independence of the judiciary", and both Houses of Parliament have standing orders to similar effect. High Court justices may be removed before their statutory retirement age only by a procedure requiring the approval of both Houses of Parliament. In addition to full High Court justices, other qualified persons such as retired judges, circuit judges from the County Court , and barristers are appointed to sit as deputy judges of

6798-541: The convention of that diocese. ) In each disciplinary case, two courts are provided, one for trials and one for appeals. When a charge is first made, it is brought before an initial review committee (similar to a grand jury in secular criminal law) whose job is to determine when a case should be brought and to supervise the Church Attorney who acts as a sort of prosecutor . High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London , known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England , together with

6901-427: The country in set 'circuits', where they hear cases in the 'district registries' of the High Court. The 'main' High Court (in the City of Westminster, London) is not itself a High Court district registry. The High Court previously divided England and Wales into six circuits namely the Midlands, Northern England, North Eastern England, South Eastern England, Wales (including Cheshire ), and Western England. Since 2005,

7004-430: The court and ensure the operation of the cases. Additionally, apparitors might also ensure the appearance of ecclesiastical defendants by overseeing the church prison for the archdeaconry, diocese, or archdiocese. They were generally paid based upon the number of summonses they served each month to litigants, although one apparitor might work for multiple dioceses or archdeaconries when the caseloads were low, or also receive

7107-421: The court by a person's confessor, who writes up the relevant facts of the cases, but only what is absolutely necessary, using standardized Latin pseudonyms. The confidentiality of the person, and the priest's absolute obligation to preserve the secrecy of the Sacrament of Penance, are still in force in such cases. This court, under the authority of the Cardinal Major Penitentiary, who acts in the Pope's name, answers

7210-475: The court was acting within its jurisdiction; but they are inferior courts in the sense that they can be stopped from exceeding their jurisdiction by a prohibiting order granted on judicial review. A consistory court has the same powers as the High Court in relation to the attendance and examination of witnesses and the production and inspection of documents. If any person does or omits to do anything in connection with proceedings before, or with an order made by,

7313-423: The diocesan consistory court to a chancellor, who presided over cases such as probations of estates, excommunications, underpayment of tithables, and other serious moral transgressions within the diocese. This allowed the diocesan bishop and other clergy to focus on spiritual matters and retain an advocate learned in the law to oversee the administration of the inquisitorial court cases. The chancellor typically sat on

7416-497: The diocese, both contentious and voluntary, is committed to the Chancellor under two separate offices, those of official principal and vicar-general : the distinction between the two offices is that the official principal usually exercises contentious jurisdiction and the vicar-general voluntary jurisdiction. A person is eligible for appointment as chancellor only if the person holds or has held high judicial office, holds or has held

7519-450: The dismissal of a cleric , or the annulment of the bond of marriage or of sacred ordination (can. 1425 §1). The bishop can assign up to five judges to a case that is very difficult or important (can. 1425 §2). Otherwise, the judicial vicar assigns cases to the judges and, in those cases which require three or more judges, presides over the panel or assigns one of his assistant judicial vicars to preside, if there are any. The judicial vicar and

7622-556: The ecclesiastical courts were put on a statutory footing by the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction Measure 1963 . The jurisdiction of the consistory courts was not much altered by the 1963 Measure save that criminal jurisdiction over the clergy where the case involved a question of doctrine, ritual or ceremonial was transferred to a new court called the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved (which continues to have that role). A further reform took place more recently when

7725-420: The exercise of jurisdiction over the laity in moral matters had fallen into desuetude . But there was no reform of the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts until the middle of the nineteenth century. In 1855 the defamation jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical court was brought to an end and in 1857 the probate jurisdiction was transferred to the newly created Court of Probate and the matrimonial jurisdiction to

7828-405: The faculty jurisdiction. The consecrated parts of municipal cemeteries are subject to the faculty jurisdiction. A faculty is required for any material alteration in such a church or its churchyard. A faculty is required for the disturbance or removal of human remains that have been buried in consecrated land; it is a criminal offence to remove a body from consecrated land without the authority of

7931-646: The faithful Pars dynamica (trial procedure) Canonization Election of the Roman Pontiff Academic degrees Journals and Professional Societies Faculties of canon law Canonists Institute of consecrated life Society of apostolic life The tribunals of the Catholic Church are governed by the 1983 Code of Canon Law in the case of the Western Church ( Latin Church ), and the Code of Canons of

8034-610: The financial markets. The procedure was introduced to enable fast, efficient and high quality dispute resolution of claims related to the financial markets. The formation within the High Court of the Business and Property Courts of England and Wales was announced in March 2017, and launched in London in July 2017. The courts would in future administer the specialist jurisdictions previously administered in

8137-557: The following Acts: The Ecclesiastical Court in Guernsey predates its first written evidence from the 13th Century. Its powers have been reduced over the centuries but it still meets weekly to prove wills and to grant marriage licences. Ecclesiastical courts in the American Episcopal Church have jurisdiction only over disciplinary cases involving clergy and are divided into two separate systems: one for trials of bishops (at

8240-619: The head of the Division. Cases heard before the Chancery Division are reported in the Chancery Division law reports. In practice, there is some overlap of jurisdiction with the KBD. From October 2015, the Chancery Division and the Commercial Court have maintained the Financial List for cases which would benefit from being heard by judges with suitable expertise and experience in the financial markets or which raise issues of general importance to

8343-439: The historic and architectural character of their listed ecclesiastical buildings.) Much of the work of the consistory courts today involves applying principles of ecclesiastical law to applications ("petitions") for faculties to make alterations to listed church buildings. Those legal principles have been developed in recent years expressly to take account of the desirability of preserving the historic and architectural character of

8446-434: The jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts to new, temporal courts in the 1850s, Doctors’ Commons declined and was eventually closed. Thereafter, counsel (i.e. barristers) were permitted to appear in the ecclesiastical courts and nowadays solicitors also appear. The only limitation that exists in relation to representation is the issue of funding. Where commercial interests are involved in contested faculty proceedings (e.g.

8549-403: The level of the national Episcopal Church) and the other for trials of priests and deacons (at the level of the diocese for original jurisdiction and at the provincial level for appeals). (At least one diocese, however, Diocese of Minnesota , has provided in its canons for a court with broader jurisdiction over a wide range of canonical issues, although such a court has not yet been implemented by

8652-568: The majority of High Court insolvency (both personal and corporate) and company law cases and trials, together with some appeals from the County Court. They too wear dark blue gowns with pink tabs and are addressed as 'Judge' in court. Justices of the High Court, Insolvency and Companies Court Judges and Masters are appointed by the King on the recommendation of Judicial Appointments Commission , from qualified lawyers. The Lord Chancellor, and all government ministers, are statutorily required to "uphold

8755-444: The monarch's name. Historically, local magnates administered justice in manorial courts and other ways. Inevitably, the justice administered was patchy and appeals were made direct to the monarch. The monarch's travelling representatives (whose primary purpose was tax collection) acted on behalf of the monarch to make the administration of justice more even (see Royal justice ) . The tradition continues of judges travelling around

8858-534: The new bishops' disciplinary tribunals established by the Clergy Discipline Measure 2003. An appeal generally lies from the consistory court of a diocese to the Court of Arches or the Chancery Court of York , depending on whether the diocese is in the Province of Canterbury or the Province of York. Permission to appeal is needed, either from the consistory court or from the appeal court. However, if

8961-415: The newly created Divorce Court. Both of these new courts were temporal rather than ecclesiastical courts; but their procedure continued (as it continues to this day) to reflect the ecclesiastical origins of the jurisdiction with, for example, matrimonial proceedings being by way of petition and the "citation" of parties in probate proceedings. A major part of the jurisdiction left to the ecclesiastical courts

9064-504: The office of circuit judge, or has the qualifications required for holding the office of circuit judge. A lay person must be a communicant of the Church of England to be eligible. The chancellor takes the judicial oath , the oath of allegiance and, if a lay person, makes the Declaration of Assent required by Canon G 2 of the Canons of the Church of England. The chancellor may be removed by

9167-504: The parents' consent. In 2002 it made a landmark judgement in the case of Ms B v An NHS Hospital Trust regarding the right of mentally competent patients to withdraw from life-saving treatment. The Family Division exercises jurisdiction to hear all cases relating to children's welfare, and has an exclusive jurisdiction in wardship cases. Its head is the President of the Family Division , currently Sir Andrew McFarlane . High Court Judges of

9270-505: The parties to the case. This tribunal in canon law is called the tribunal of first instance . The bishop of the church possesses the power to judge for his church; however, since the bishop has many different duties in his diocese, most cases are handled by judges whom he appoints, led by a priest known as the judicial vicar or officialis . A single judge can handle normal contentious and penal cases. A college of at least three judges, however, must try cases involving an excommunication,

9373-404: The petitioner's case (can. 1608). This presumption also applies in penal cases (can. 1728). There are few exceptions to this rule; in those cases, the burden shifts to the defendant. Some matters cannot be introduced at the diocesan level and can only be introduced before the following: The appellate tribunal is known as the tribunal of second instance . Normally the second instance tribunal

9476-413: The rare cases of alleged nullity of Holy Orders . The tribunal also has notaries who swear in witnesses and commit their testimony to writing. Parties in a case have the right to appoint an advocate who can argue for them at the tribunal. If a person cannot afford an advocate, the tribunal can assign one to them free of charge. Unlike courts of common law tradition, ecclesiastical tribunals do not follow

9579-436: The specialist courts, while continuing existing practices for cases that proceed in them. The Family Division deals with personal human matters such as divorce, children, probate and medical treatment . Its decisions are often of great importance only to the parties, but may concern life and death and are perhaps inevitably regarded as controversial. For example, it permitted a hospital to separate conjoined twins without

9682-938: The system to be changed. Liz Truss , when she was Lord Chancellor , announced plans to end this practice, and proposals were contained in Clause 47 of the Prisons and Courts Bill before Parliament was prorogued for the 2017 general election . The High Court only operates within four traditional periods in the year, known as sittings : The Justices of His Majesty's High Court of Justice are informally known as High Court judges , and in judicial matters are formally styled "The Honourable Mr(s) Justice (Forename) Surname", abbreviated in writing to "Surname J". In court, they are properly addressed as My Lord or My Lady . Since by convention they are knighted upon appointment, socially they are addressed as Sir Forename or Dame Forename . High Court judges are sometimes referred to as red judges after

9785-524: The tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston , but a case originating in the Archdiocese of Boston would be appealed to the tribunal of the Archdiocese of New York , by agreement between the archbishops of New York and Boston. Some cases are automatically appealed (for instance, when a marriage is found to be null ). The appealing party does not need to appeal to the metropolitan; the party can instead appeal to

9888-497: The truth, regardless of the best interest of whom they were hired to represent. Proctors could charge ecclesiastical litigants higher fees for cases that extended for longer amounts of time, so proctors would often ask chancellors to delay adjudication of disputes until further investigation could be conducted, allowing the proctors more time to ask for higher fees from the litigants. Often, proctors would bring cases against parishioners where no dispute previously existed, or even against

9991-409: The use and control of consecrated church property within the diocese. The judge of the consistory court, appointed by the bishop, was the bishop's official principal and vicar-general of the diocese and became known in his judicial capacity by the title " chancellor ". Appeals lay from the consistory court to the provincial court of the archbishop. In the province of Canterbury , the archbishop's court

10094-401: The usual nature of their work, for example, conflicting evidence of fact is quite commonly given in person in the King's Bench Division, but evidence by affidavit is more usual in the Chancery Division which is primarily concerned with points of law. Most High Court proceedings are heard by a single judge, but certain kinds of proceedings, especially in the King's Bench Division, are assigned to

10197-607: Was abrogated by the Church Discipline Act 1840 ( 3 & 4 Vict. c. 86). However, by the Clergy Discipline Act 1892 ( 55 & 56 Vict. c. 32), a clergyman may be prosecuted and tried in a consistory court for immoral acts or conduct. Under this act, either party may appeal to a secular court or the monarch in Council. Following a report in 1954 from the Archbishops’ Commission on Ecclesiastical Courts,

10300-469: Was already in place, in relation to the buildings and land of the Church of England that were in ecclesiastical use, a satisfactory legal regime controlling their use and alteration. (The benefit of the exemption is extended under the current heritage protection legislation to the buildings of other denominations who have satisfied the Secretary of State that they have established adequate regimes for preserving

10403-448: Was historically the official who served the processes of the court and caused defendants to appear by summons. There may also be a deputy chancellor who may exercise the court's jurisdiction in the same way as the chancellor. In order to be appointed a deputy chancellor a person must have the qualifications required to be appointed a chancellor. The procedure to be followed by the court and by parties in faculty proceedings are set out in

10506-400: Was known as the Court of Arches and was presided over by the archbishop's official principal, known as the dean of the Arches. In the province of York , appeals lay to the Chancery Court of York presided over by the archbishop of York's official principal, the auditor. Until 1532 further appeal lay to Rome; thereafter further appeal was to the Crown. By the end of the eighteenth century,

10609-551: Was that which concerned the control of consecrated ecclesiastical property – essentially churches and their churchyards and certain other consecrated places such as municipal burial grounds. The other major aspect of their jurisdiction which remained was their criminal jurisdiction in relation to the clergy – i.e. their jurisdiction to deal with allegations of ecclesiastical offences against the clergy (for example for immoral conduct, neglect of duty or in relation to doctrinal or ceremonial matters). Their corrective jurisdiction over clergy

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