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69-551: Before the Kentucky Constitution of 1850, the primary administrator of a county was the justice of the peace . The 1850 constitution provided for the office of a county judge, elected by the citizens. The county judge presided over certain county courts, most notably the court of claims, the forerunner of the fiscal court. The fourth state constitution, enacted in 1891, reorganized county governments into much of their present form. Judicial, legislative and executive leadership

138-554: A JP in Queensland was Matilda (Maud) Hennessey of Mackay on 24 April 1918. Justices of the peace and bail justices, who are also volunteers, are appointed to serve a semi-judicial function in all areas of the Victorian community. The main official roles in the Victorian community include witnessing statutory declarations, witnessing affidavits and hearing bail matters outside court hours (bail justices only). The first woman to become

207-583: A JP in Victoria was Mary Catherine Rogers who, in 1920, became the first woman councillor in Australia when she was elected in the City of Richmond . Justices of the peace provide a service to the community as independent witnesses of statutory declarations, powers of attorney and affidavits. JPs, who are also volunteers, are selected through an extensive interview, written exam and practical testing. They are recommended by

276-534: A JP. They must not charge a fee or accept a gift for providing JP services, tell people what to write in a statutory declaration or affidavit or write it for them or give them legal advice. Ways to find a JP in New South Wales include: 1. Search the JP Public Register. The register lists all JPs for each postcode area and provides a telephone contact number for JPs who serve the community directly. 2. Check

345-530: A certain locality over several generations (see List of political families in the United Kingdom ). Owning land was a prerequisite for suffrage (the civil right to vote) in county constituencies until the Reform Act 1832 ; until then, Parliament was largely in the hands of the landowning class. The gentry ranked above the agricultural sector's middle class: the larger tenant farmers , who rented land from

414-508: A commission ( letters patent ) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the same meaning. Depending on the jurisdiction , such justices dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions. Justices of the peace are appointed or elected from the citizens of the jurisdiction in which they serve, and are (or were) usually not required to have any formal legal education in order to qualify for

483-416: A court session, a justice can perform other judicial functions, such as issuing search warrants. In Ontario , justices of the peace can preside over judicial interim release (bail) hearings and other criminal hearings. JPs can also exercise jurisdiction over provincial regulatory offences and municipal by-law prosecutions. JPs must retire by reaching the age of 65, but may continue working until 75 subject to

552-574: A justice of the peace can be the highest governmental representative, so in fact 'gubernatorial', in a colonial entity. This was the case in the Tati Concessions Land , a gold-mining concession (territory) in the Matabele kingdom , until its annexation by the British Bechuanaland protectorate. A justice of the peace in Australia is typically someone of good stature in the community who

621-616: A major element of the English (later British) governmental system, which in modern times has sometimes been termed a squirearchy (i.e., dominance of the land-owning gentry ). For example, historian Tim Blanning notes that while in Britain the royal prerogative was decisively curbed by the Bill of Rights 1689 , in practice the central government in London had a greater ability to get its policies implemented in

690-526: A paid stipendiary magistrate . The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 stripped the power to appoint normal JPs from those municipal corporations that had it. This was replaced by the present system, where the Lord Chancellor nominates candidates with local advice, for appointment by the Crown . Until the introduction of elected county councils in the 19th century, JPs, in quarter sessions , also administered

759-469: A pattern in many families that while the eldest son would inherit the estate and enter politics, the second son would join the army, the third son go into law, and the fourth son join the church. A newly rich man who wished his family to join the gentry (and they nearly all did so wish), was expected not only to buy a country house and estate, but often also to sever financial ties with the business which had made him wealthy in order to cleanse his family of

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828-714: A police magistrate in the Women's Court of the City of Edmonton (Alberta) on 19 June 1916. In British Columbia , pursuant to the Provincial Court Act , all judges are justices of the peace, and hence all of them are peace officers . In the Northwest Territories , justices may hear summary conviction matters, municipal by-laws, and certain criminal matters. However, in more populated provinces justices usually preside over bail hearings and provincial offences courts. When not in

897-459: A public listing of scheduled JP services to find when JPs are available at scheduled times and locations across the state. In the early years of the Colony of New South Wales , justices of the peace had far greater responsibilities and broader roles in the administration of justice than now. In South Australia, there are two types of justices: justice of the peace and special justices. A justice of

966-430: A word indicating high birth, high status, or gentleness. The term gradually came to be used for the lower ranks of the aristocracy , which along with the peerage had previously been considered part of the nobility . In the 16th and 17th centuries, writers referred to the peerage as the nobilitas major ( Latin for "greater nobility") and the gentry as the nobilitas minor (Latin for "minor nobility"). Eventually,

1035-570: Is authorised to witness and sign statutory declarations and affidavits and to certify copies of original documents. There are no Federal level JPs in Australia, as this power is devolved to the State and Territory Governments. Where a Federal Government document or task requires the services of a JP, the rules of each individual State or Territory government will dictate if they have the authority to assist. Criteria for appointment vary widely, depending on

1104-596: Is for life, unless a JP resigns, is suspended/dismissed from office, or resides outside of the ACT for a period of more than 12 consecutive months. JPs for the ACT also cover the Australian External Territory of Norfolk Island , and the Internal Jervis Bay Territory , subject to local law variations in those two jurisdictions. In the state of Queensland , a "justice of the peace (qualified)" has

1173-568: Is not a punishment, but a preventive measure, intended to ensure that people thought likely to offend will not do so. The justices' alternative title of " magistrate " dates from the 16th century, although the word had been in use centuries earlier to describe some legal officials of Roman times. In the centuries from the Tudor period until the onset of the Industrial Revolution , the JPs constituted

1242-495: Is often informally referred to as "The Judge ", is usually addressed as "Judge", and is styled as " The Honorable ". The judge/executive is the presiding officer and a voting member of the Fiscal Court, enabling him to exercise a role in the legislative process. Newspapers usually render the title as "judge-executive" because they dislike using slashes. In Kentucky 's consolidated city-county governments, most powers assigned to

1311-423: Is one step down from the gentry, but above, say, a husbandman . So while yeoman farmers owned enough land to support a comfortable lifestyle, they nevertheless farmed it themselves and were excluded from the "landed gentry" because they worked for a living, and were thus "in trade" as it was termed. Apart from a few "honourable" professions connected with the governing elite (the clergy of the established church ,

1380-430: Is synonymous with peer . However, this popular usage of nobility omits the distinction between titled and untitled nobility. The titled nobility in Britain are the peers of the realm, whereas the untitled nobility comprise those here described as gentry. David Cannadine wrote that the gentry's lack of titles "did not matter, for it was obvious to contemporaries that the landed gentry were all for practical purposes

1449-576: The feudal lordship of the manor , and the less formal name or title of squire , in Scotland laird . Generally lands passed by primogeniture , while the inheritances of daughters and younger sons were in cash or stocks, and relatively small. Typically the gentry farmed some of their land through employed managers, but leased most of it to tenant farmers . They also exploited timber and minerals (such as coal), and owned mills and other sources of income. Many heads of families also had careers in politics or

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1518-800: The post-nominals JP and BJ respectively after their names. The primary role of a bail justice is to hear bail applications, including after-hours bail, (under the Bail Act 1977 (Vic) ) and to hear applications for Interim Accommodation Orders for children (under the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic) ) within Victoria. Bail justices can also witness Victorian statutory declarations and affidavits. Bail justices are appointed for terms of four years and may be re-appointed repeatedly until they attain 70 years of age. They are often required to attend call outs and rule on bail applications or protection applications for children in danger on weekends and late at night when

1587-472: The "Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage, and Companionage". As well as listing genealogical information, these books often also included details of the right of a given family to a coat of arms . They were comparable to the Almanach de Gotha in continental Europe. In the 1830s, one peerage publisher, John Burke , expanded his market and his readership by publishing a similar volume for people without titles, which

1656-413: The "taint of trade", depending somewhat on what that business was. However, during the 18th and 19th centuries, as the new rich of the Industrial Revolution became more and more numerous and politically powerful, this expectation was gradually relaxed. Persons who are closely related to peers are also more correctly described as gentry than as nobility, since the latter term, in the modern British Isles,

1725-405: The 17th century, the gentry was divided into four ranks: In a historiographical survey, Peter Coss describes a number of approaches to deciding who was gentry. One is to view the gentry as those recognised legally as possessing gentility. However, Coss finds this method unsatisfactory because it "seems certain that gentility was widely felt and articulated within society long before legislation

1794-619: The Judges of the Supreme Court are Justices of the Peace within and for of the whole of Bangladesh , Sessions Judges, Chief Judicial Magistrate and Metropolitan Magistrates are Justices of the Peace within their respective jurisdictions. (Justice of the peace for the mafassal ) 22. The Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, appoint such persons resident within Bangladesh and not being

1863-611: The UK. The book series Burke's Landed Gentry records the names of members of this class. The designation landed gentry originally referred exclusively to members of the upper class who were both landlords and commoners (in the British sense)—that is, they did not hold peerages . But by the late 19th century, the term was also applied to peers, such as the Duke of Westminster , who lived on landed estates. The term gentry derives from gentrice ,

1932-585: The WA Police to sign search warrants and authorise the issuing of summonses. The administrative tasks include witnessing affidavits and documents such as wills and statutory declarations. "Visiting justices" are a special group of justices of the peace, appointed to preside over cases within the prison system. JPs for Western Australia also cover the Australian External Territories of Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island . In Belgium ,

2001-403: The additional powers to issue search warrants and arrest warrants and, in conjunction with another justice of the peace (qualified) constitute a magistrates' court for exercising powers to remand defendants in custody, grant bail, and adjourn court hearings. Some justices are appointed as justice of the peace (magistrates' court), usually in remote Aboriginal communities, to perform many of

2070-560: The approval of the Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice . In Quebec, there are two type of justices of the peace, administrative justice of the peace and presiding justice of the peace. Administrative justice of the peace are court officers appointed by the Minister of Justice , and perform duties such as receiving criminal informations and issuing warrants. Presiding justice of

2139-451: The community, the justice was typically a member of the gentry . The justices of the peace conducted arraignments in all criminal cases, and tried misdemeanours and infractions of local ordinances and bylaws . Towns and boroughs with enough burdensome judicial business that could not find volunteers for the unpaid role of justice of the peace had to petition the Crown for authority to hire

County Judge/Executive - Misplaced Pages Continue

2208-464: The county at a local level. Their many roles included regulating wages and food supplies, managing roads, bridges, prisons and workhouses and they undertook to provide and supervise locally those services mandated by the Crown and Parliament for the welfare of the county. To this end they set the County Rate, where one was set at all. Women were not allowed to become JPs in the United Kingdom until 1919,

2277-457: The courts are closed. Candidates must successfully complete a three-day training course run by the Department of Justice. Bail justices, also have some limited powers under federal legislation, including the power to conduct interstate extradition hearings and extending question time for federal police. The most common functions performed by a justice of the peace in New South Wales are to witness

2346-541: The drawing of the Mark Six to ensure fairness. Squirearchy The landed gentry , or the gentry (sometimes collectively known as the squirearchy ), is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income , or at least had a country estate . It is the British element of the wider European class of gentry . While part of the British aristocracy , and usually armigers ,

2415-433: The end of the 19th century, together with the introduction in the 20th century of increasingly heavy levels of taxation on inherited wealth, put an end to agricultural land as the primary source of wealth for the upper classes. Many estates were sold or broken up, and this trend was accelerated by the introduction of protection for agricultural tenancies, encouraging outright sales, from the mid-20th century. So devastating

2484-539: The equivalent of continental nobles, with their hereditary estates, their leisured lifestyle, their social pre-eminence, and their armorial bearings". British armigerous families who hold no title of nobility are represented, together with those who hold titles through the College of Arms , by the Commission and Association for Armigerous Families of Great Britain at CILANE . Through grants of arms, new families are admitted into

2553-677: The expression Landed Gentry as a description of the untitled upper classes in England (although the book also included families in Wales, Scotland and Ireland, where, however, social structures were rather different). Burke's Landed Gentry continued to appear at regular intervals throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. A review of the 1952 edition in Time noted: Landed Gentry used to limit itself to owners of domains that could properly be called "stately" (i.e. more than 500 acres or 200 hectares). Now it has lowered

2622-532: The first woman being Ada Summers , the Mayor of Stalybridge , who was a JP by virtue of her office. In October 1920 Summers was appointed a JP in her own right, alongside other pioneers including Edith Sutton and Miriam Lightowler OBE in Halifax. Emily Murphy of Edmonton, Canada, preceded her by some three and a half years. As at 2018 in England and Wales, about one-third of JPs are women. In special circumstances,

2691-460: The functions that might otherwise fall to a stipendiary magistrate . In Queensland, a lawyer may be appointed as a Justice of the Peace without further education or qualification and has the full powers of a JP (Magistrate's Court). A commissioner for declarations (C.dec) has powers limited to witnessing documents, witnessing statutory declarations, witnessing affidavits, witnessing and administering oaths and affirmations. The first woman to become

2760-486: The gentry had three main characteristics: (1) landownership, (2) a nobility or gentility (shared with the peerage) that distinguished them from the rest of the population, and (3) a territorial-based collective identity and power over the larger population. From the late 16th-century, the gentry emerged as the class most closely involved in politics, the military and law. It provided the bulk of Members of Parliament , with many gentry families maintaining political control in

2829-410: The gentry ranked below the British peerage (or "titled nobility" ) in social status. Nevertheless, their economic base in land was often similar, and some of the landed gentry were wealthier than some peers. Many gentry were close relatives of peers, and it was not uncommon for gentry to marry into peerage. With or without noble title, owning rural land estates often brought with it the legal rights of

County Judge/Executive - Misplaced Pages Continue

2898-564: The judge/executive are exercised by the Louisville Metro Mayor ( Jefferson County ) and the Urban County Mayor of Lexington - Fayette County . These counties retain, and fill by election, the constitutional office of judge/executive, which retains some minor authorities in those counties. Justice of the peace A justice of the peace ( JP ) is a judicial officer of a lower court , elected or appointed by means of

2967-457: The justices of the peace ( Dutch : vredegerecht , French : justice de paix , German : Friedensgericht ) function as the small claims courts in the country's judicial system ; they stand at the bottom of the Belgian judicial hierarchy and only handle civil cases. There is a justice of the peace in each judicial canton of Belgium , of which there are 187 in total as of 2017. The justices of

3036-498: The land to "guard the peace"; such individuals were first referred to as conservators of the peace , or wardens of the peace. The title justice of the peace derives from 1361, in the reign of Edward III . The "peace" to be guarded is the sovereign's, the maintenance of which is the duty of the Crown under the royal prerogative . Justices of the peace still use the power conferred or re-conferred on them since 1361 to bind over unruly persons "to be of good behaviour". The bind over

3105-486: The landowners, and yeoman farmers, who were defined as "a person qualified by possessing free land of forty shillings annual [feudal] value, and who can serve on juries and vote for a Knight of the Shire . He is sometimes described as a small landowner, a farmer of the middle classes." Anthony Richard Wagner , Richmond Herald wrote that "a Yeoman would not normally have less than 100 acres" (40 hectares) and in social status

3174-403: The military, and the younger sons of the gentry provided a high proportion of the clergy , military officers , and lawyers . Successful burghers often used their accumulated wealth to buy country estates, with the aim of establishing themselves as landed gentry. The decline of the gentry largely began with the 1870s agricultural depression ; however, there are still many hereditary gentry in

3243-542: The nation and preserved as monuments to the lifestyles of their former owners (who sometimes remained in part of the house as lessees or tenants) by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty . The National Trust, which had originally concentrated on open landscapes rather than buildings, accelerated its country house acquisition programme during and after the Second World War , partly because of

3312-576: The office. Some jurisdictions have varying forms of training for JPs. In 1195, Richard I ("the Lionheart") of England and his Minister Hubert Walter commissioned certain knights to preserve the peace in unruly areas. They were responsible to the King in ensuring that the law was upheld and preserving the " King's peace ". Therefore, they were known as "keepers of the peace". An act of 1327 had referred to "good and lawful men" to be appointed in every county in

3381-491: The officer corps of the British Armed Forces , the diplomatic and civil services , the bar or the judiciary ), such occupation was considered demeaning by the upper classes, particularly by the 19th century, when the earlier mercantile endeavours of younger sons were increasingly discontinued. Younger sons, who could not expect to inherit the family estate, were instead urged into professions of state service. It became

3450-431: The peace also have original jurisdiction in certain aspects of family law , most notably legal guardianships for incapacitated seniors, and the involuntary commitment of the mentally ill to psychiatric facilities . The judgments made by the justices of the peace can, with some exceptions, be appealed to the tribunals of first instance . In Canada, justices of the peace play a role in the administration of justice at

3519-777: The peace are appointed by commission under the Great Seal , and can try some criminal matters and issue warrants. They are appointed from advocates of at least ten years' standing and serve full-time until the age of 70. In Yukon, justices of the peace are lay officers of the court. They sit in the Justice of the Peace Court, which is part of the Territorial Court of Yukon . The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 ( ACT NO. V OF 1898 ) [2] Chapter II OF THE CONSTITUTION OF CRIMINAL COURTS AND OFFICES [3] 25. In virtue of their respective offices,

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3588-526: The peace have original jurisdiction over cases in which the disputed amount does not exceed 5,000 euro (as of September 2018), except for the matters over which another court or tribunal has exclusive jurisdiction . In addition, the justices of the peace have original jurisdiction over a number of matters irrespective of the disputed amount, such as cases involving the renting or leasing of real estate , evictions , easement , land consolidation , consumer credit or unpaid utility bills . The justices of

3657-508: The peace in South Australia is typically someone of good stature in the community who is authorised to witness and sign statutory declarations , affidavits , waiver rights , search warrants , drug warrants, divorce documents, and to certify copies of original documents and to witness the signing of power of attorney and guardianship documents, providing the JP is satisfied with the capability of

3726-617: The peace in residence at nominated times. South Australia's first women justices were appointed in July 1915. Justices of the peace in Western Australia are appointed by the Governor who authorises them to carry out a wide range of official administrative and judicial duties in the community. As well as presiding in the Magistrates Court, justices of the peace are regularly called upon by

3795-556: The property qualification to 200 acres (0.81 km ) for all British families whose pedigrees have been "notable" for three generations. Even so, almost half of the 5,000 families listed in the new volume are in there because their forefathers were: they themselves have no land left. Their estates are mere street addresses, like that of the Molineux-Montgomeries, formerly of Garboldisham Old Hall, now of No. 14 Malton Avenue, Haworth. The Great Depression of British Agriculture at

3864-405: The provincial level. Justices are generally appointed by the lieutenant governors of Canada's provinces , and by the commissioners of Canada's territories , on the advice of their relevant premier or Attorney General . Canada made the second (first was in South Australia a year earlier) appointment in the then British Empire of a woman as a magistrate, namely Emily Murphy , who was sworn in as

3933-469: The rural outlying regions than could contemporary absolute monarchies such as France – a paradox due especially to JPs belonging to the same social class as the Members of Parliament and thus having a direct interest in getting laws actually enforced and implemented on the ground. Being an unpaid office, undertaken voluntarily and sometimes more for the sake of renown or to confirm the justice's standing within

4002-409: The signatory. A Special Justice (SJ) is a higher level of justice of the peace in South Australia; they sit on the bench of the magistrates' court hearing cases in the petty sessions division. The South Australian Attorney-General has set up a web site to locate justices of the peace. The majority of metropolitan and many regional Councils (Local Government authorities) have a rotational justice of

4071-404: The signing of a statutory declaration, witness the signing of an affidavit and certify that a copy of an original document is a true copy. JPs are appointed by the Governor of New South Wales for five-year terms. They are volunteers, who come from all walks of life and all sections of the community. JPs are people who are trusted to be honest, careful and impartial when performing the functions of

4140-419: The state attorney-general and appointed by the governor-in-council, and it is their job to authorise and witness statutory declarations and affidavits within the state of Victoria. As of August 2022, there are currently around 3500 JPs and bail justices in Victoria, who collectively sign more than 1.5 million documents and assist more than 350,000 people each year. Justices of the Peace and Bail Justices may use

4209-522: The state. In the Australian Capital Territory (Colloquially, "The ACT"), there is only the single level of 'Justice of the Peace'. They are appointed on an as-needed basis, and a potential appointee must be an Australian Citizen, and both a resident of, and enrolled on the electoral roll, of the territory. They must also not be an undischarged bankrupt, and consent to criminal history checks being undertaken prior to appointment. Appointment

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4278-823: The subjects of any foreign State as it thinks fit to be Justices of the Peace within and for the local area mentioned in such notification. In Hong Kong, the historical functions of justices of the peace have been replaced by full-time, legally qualified magistrates . Nowadays, justices of the peace are essentially titles of honour given by the Government to community leaders, and to certain officials while they are in their terms of offices. They have no judicial functions, and their main duties include visiting prisons, institutions for young offenders and drug addicts, psychiatric hospitals, remand homes, places of refuge, reception and detention centres, administering statutory declarations, and serving as members of advisory panels. They also monitor

4347-628: The terms nobility and gentry came to refer to completely separate classes. The gentry were aristocratic landowners who were not peers. According to historian G. E. Mingay , the gentry were landowners whose wealth "made possible a certain kind of education, a standard of comfort, and a degree of leisure and a common interest in ways of spending it". Leisure distinguished gentry from businessmen who gained their wealth through work. The gentry, did not enterprise or marketeer but were known most for working in management of estates; their income came largely from rents paid by tenant farmers living these estates. By

4416-417: The untitled nobility regularly, thus making the gentry a class that remains open both legally and practically. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the names and families of those with titles (specifically peers and baronets , less often including those with the non-hereditary title of knight ) were often listed in books or manuals known as "Peerages", "Baronetages", or combinations of these categories, such as

4485-472: The widespread destruction of country houses in the 20th century by owners who could no longer afford to maintain them. Those who retained their property usually had to supplement their incomes from sources other than the land, sometimes by opening their properties to the public. In the 21st century, the term "landed gentry" is still used, as the landowning class still exists, but it increasingly refers more to historic than to current landed wealth or property in

4554-596: Was called A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland, enjoying territorial possessions or high official rank , popularly known as Burke's Commoners . Burke's Commoners was published in four volumes from 1833 to 1838. Subsequent editions were re-titled A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry; or, Commons of Great Britain and Ireland or Burke's Landed Gentry. The popularity of Burke's Landed Gentry gave currency to

4623-436: Was in place to tell us so". Other historians define gentry by land ownership and income level, but there is still the problem of whether this should include professionals and town dwellers. Rosemary Horrox argues that an urban gentry existed in the 15th century. For some historians of early modern England, the gentry included families with coats of arms , but Coss notes that not all gentry were armigerous . Coss proposes that

4692-410: Was provided for in the office of the county judge. A 1975 amendment to the constitution eliminated the judicial roles of the county judge at the end of 1977, and a 1976 law changed the name of the office to county judge/executive, effective with those elected in 1977. The judge/executive serves a four-year term and may be re-elected indefinitely. Though he wields no judicial power, the judge/executive

4761-464: Was this for the ranks formerly identified as being of the landed gentry that Burke's Landed Gentry began, in the 20th century, to include families historically in this category who had ceased to own their ancestral lands. The focus of those who remained in this class shifted from the lands or estates themselves, to the stately home or " family seat " which was in many cases retained without the surrounding lands. Many of these buildings were purchased for

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