The
judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the Summary Court and the Magistrates' Court. The judiciary is strictly independent of the executive and legislature, although it has links with the other branches of the government through the
Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy. The government also employs six lawyers (the Attorney General, Law Commissioner, two Crown Counsels and two Legislative Drafters), a Policy Adviser and one Policy Officer.
Courts The court system of the Falklands is set out by
Chapter VIII of the Constitution and closely resembles the
system in England and Wales. The Supreme Court of the Falkland Islands has unlimited jurisdiction to hear and determine any civil or criminal proceedings, and consists of the
Chief Justice (CJ) who is generally a senior
barrister or
solicitor with a good amount of judicial experience in the United Kingdom. The CJ is not resident in the Falkland Islands but travels to the islands if and when necessary to hear cases. The most serious criminal and civil matters are reserved for the Supreme Court. In civil matters, generally there is no jury however, in criminal matters, the defendant can elect trial by judge and jury or judge alone. There are only a few criminal cases which must be heard before the Supreme Court; these are murder, manslaughter, rape, piracy, treason and arson with the intent to endanger life. The CJ also hears appeals from the Magistrates' Court. From the Supreme Court, appeals are sent to the Falkland Islands Court of Appeal, which is based on the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales. The Court of Appeal consists of a President and two Justices of Appeal, as well as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who serves as an
ex officio member. The President and Justices of Appeal are normally from the UK and are Judges of the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales. Appeals from the Court of Appeal are sent to the
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The Falkland Islands does not have its own
bar or
law society, but has a "Falkland Islands Legal Community". There is no differentiation between being a
barrister or a
solicitor; the private practitioners being called legal practitioners. The Legal Practitioners Ordinance defines who can hold themselves out as being a legal practitioner and therefore have rights of audience before the Falkland Islands courts. Only the Chief Justice of the Falkland Islands can prohibit a legal practitioner from practising. In the court system on the islands, there is a panel of
Justices of the Peace (JPs) who sit in the
Summary Court, which has no
jury. JPs are all non-lawyers and are made up of "upstanding members of the community". They hear the most simple of criminal cases (or sit when the Senior Magistrate is not in the Islands) and they also act as the Licensing Justices who deal with alcohol-related applications, such as extended opening hours, special occasion licences, etc. The Senior Magistrate (SM) is appointed by the Governor and presides over the Magistrates' Court, which again has no
jury. The SM is usually a UK qualified lawyer, with at least 10 years experience as an
advocate and, usually, with some judicial experience. The SM holds office for a maximum of three years and is then replaced. The SM is resident in the Islands and hears the majority of cases from simple criminal and civil matters right up to very serious criminal matters or complex civil cases. The SM also hears appeals from the Summary Court.
List of chief justices • 1987–1997:
Sir Renn Davis • 1998–2007: James Wood • 2007–2015: Christopher Gardner QC • 2015–2017:
Sir Simon Bryan QC • 2018–present: James Lewis KC
Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy The Governor has the power to grant a
pardon to any person concerned in or convicted of an offence, but the Governor can only use this power after consultation with the Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy. The Committee consist of two elected members of the
Legislative Assembly (appointed by the Governor on the advice of the Legislative Assembly), the Chief Executive, the Attorney General and the Chief Medical Officer.
Attorney general The
Attorney General (AG), appointed by the Governor, is the main legal adviser to the Falkland Islands Government. The AG's primary role is to determine the legality of government proceedings and action, and has the power to institute and undertake criminal proceedings before any court of law, to take over and continue any criminal proceedings that may have been instituted by another person or authority, or to discontinue at any stage before judgment any criminal proceedings instituted or undertaken by another person or authority. In the exercise of his or her powers, the AG is not subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority. The Attorney General is also a member of the
Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy and acts as
presiding officer during Speaker elections in the Legislative Assembly, and has a constitutional right to attend all meetings of the Assembly and all meetings of the Executive Council. The current Attorney General is Simon Young, who took office in December 2017. ==Finances==