1. The Decision to Protect

Who can start criminal proceedings? The general rule is that any individual can bring a prosecution. This is usually referred to as a 'private prosecution. A study done for the Royal Commission showed that private prosecution comprised 2.4 per cent of the overall number. Most of these were for domestic assaults and shoplifting.

The greatest number of prosecution, however, are brought as a result of action instigated by the police. Until recently the police made the final decision to prosecute. Moreover, the police effectively controlled the prosecution. But the system was criticized for its lack of independence. The police had a strong interest to be successful in court.

The pressure group 'Justice' published a report calling for an independent prosecution service which could separate the investigation of crime from its prosecution. The matter was considered by the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure. It concluded that existing procedure was unsatisfactory. That's why The Crown Prosecution Service' was created by the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 and it came into effect nationally on October 1, 1986. The police still investigate criminal offences but from then charges are handed to the Crown Prosecution Service. It may decide to amend or drop any or all of the charges.

The Crown Prosecution Service is under the control of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

2.     Coroner's Court

Coroners investigate violent and unnatural deaths or sudden deaths where the cause is unknown. Deaths may be reported to the local coroner (who is either medically or legally qualified, or both) by doctors, the police, various public authorities, or members of the public. The coroner need not hold inquest if, after a post-mortem examination has been made, he or she is satisfied that the death was due to natural causes.

Where there is a reason to believe that the deceased died a violent or unnatural death or died in prison or in other specified circumstances, the coroner must hold an inquest. It is the duty of the coroner's court to establish how, when and where the deceased died. A coroner may sit alone or sometimes with a jury.

In Scotland the local prosecutor fiscal inquires privately into all sudden and suspicious deaths and may report the results to the Crown (Court) Office. In a minority of cases a fatal accident inquiry may be held before the sheriff. For certain categories (such as death in custody) a fatal accident inquiry is mandatory. In addition, the Lord Advocate has discretion to instruct an inquiry in the public interest in cases where the circumstances give rise to public concern.

Coroners are usually appointed from senior lawyers or medical practitioners. The office of coroner originated in England and France. Early coroners guarded the fines collected by the King, or Crown, and were called 'crowners'. The word 'coroner' comes from that title.

3. Juvenile Courts

The purpose of juvenile courts is to establish and supervise a plan of control and rehabilitation for youths who have broken the law. The largest number of juvenile court cases involves juvenile delinquency.

Experience has shown that the best results are achieved when the courts operate without a trial atmosphere. The staff of the court include psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and other specially trained workers. They investigate the situation and the offender. Then they carry out a plan of rehabilitation. This plan may involve a period of residence in a corrective institution, medical treatment, a foster home for the youth, probation or any other corrective plan. Alternative sentences include community service, making amends to victims, and short-term imprisonment in special sections of state prisons.

Parental liability of parents allowing a child to participate in a gang, to use drugs, or to have access to a gun has increased. Punishment for the parents range from fines to imprisonment.

Another tendency is to try as adults those youths who have committed serious crimes. In 1989, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution does not forbid the death penalty for those who commit murder at the age of 16 or 17.

Juvenile courts now exist in most of the United States, Europe, and Latin America, as well as Israel, Japan, and other countries, though structure and procedure vary. But the main task of all the countries is to prevent criminal behavior of youngsters and children.

4. Tribunals and Arbitration

The formal courts are not the only means of solving disputes. Adjudication often take place outside the court system. The two main forms of outsidecourt adjudication are tribunals and arbitration.

There are over 50 different types of tribunals in the UK. Both the tribunals and the claims they consider are the product of legislation. Tribunals regulate relations between social groups such as employers and employees or between the state and its citizens. An employee may claim that his/her dismissal was not legally justified under the terms of the employment legislation. A claimant may claim that the reduction in his/her benefit was not legally justified. Such disputes should be settled by ordinary courts. And this has been done in some cases. But in many situations ordinary courts lack the necessary expertise or are formal, slow and costly to hear claims. And the legislation has established a tribunal to do the job. Tribunals vary greatly. Most tribunals are called 'tribunals' but some are called 'commissions', others are called 'committees', others still are called 'courts'. Their legal functions also vary. One common feature of almost all tribunals is that they are subject to judicial review by the High Court. There is also a Council on Tribunals which checks that their procedures are open, fair and impartial.

Arbitration is a private means of adjudication. It is used in many different situations from the resolution of complex commercial disputes to minor disagreements between the suppliers of goods and services and the consumers. The parties involved agree to place their dispute in the hands of an independent third party and invest it with the power to decide the issue. The judgement of an arbitrator is known as an "award". The arbitrator decides on the basis of written documents, oral hearings are rare. The advantages of arbitration are similar to tribunals: speed, lower costs, flexibility, informality and adjudication by an expert.

5. Reforming the Law

While it is the function of the civil court system to adjudicate on disputes, its aim is to do it efficiently and fairly. An efficient system must be quick and cheap. Delay and expense can lead to injustice. There was criticism that existing civil procedure was neither efficient nor fair. Statistics supported the criticism. In personal injury cases the average period of time from accident to settlement was five years. In 40 per cent of cases the costs involved were higher than the amount of damages awarded. The government responded to this criticism by undertaking a review of the civil justice system. The purpose of the review was to improve the machinery of civil justice by means of reforms in jurisdiction, procedure and court administration. The main task was to reduce delay, cost and complexity.

Each of the five main classes of civil business, personal injury, small claims, housing, commercial and debt are to be examined in three stages. Firstly, research, secondly, a consultation paper and thirdly, implementation by legislation.

It was proposed to permit solicitors as well as barristers to act as counsel in higher courts; to allow people wishing to take legal action to enter into a 'no win, no fee' agreement with lawyers; and to allow Building Societies and banks to provide conveyancing services (purchase and sale of property service). All these measures are designed to make access to the law easier.

All the proposals were welcomed by the public.

One can see that there are many ways in which the review of civil justice system may benefit the people. Nevertheless, there are many critics and some doubts over the efficacy of the system.