The English Court Structure

The modern organization of the courts began with the Judicature Act of 1873 and has continued through the Courts Act of 1971. Currently, the court structure is as follows:

• House of Lords: The supreme court of appeal for civil cases in UK and criminal cases outside Scotland.
• Privy Council: An appellate court which derives jurisdiction from the right of all the monarch's subjects to appeal to the Crown for redress.

Supreme Court Judicature:

1. Court of Appeal: This court has two divisions; Civil and Criminal and both hear appeals from the High Court.
2. High Court: This court has three division, Queen's (or king's) Bench, Chancery, and Family (formerly probate). Also note that there are divisional courts under each division.
3. Crown Court: A criminal court with general jurisdiction. Handles most of the serious criminal cases.

Cases from the courts listed above are widely reported in the various reporters.

• County Courts/Magistrates Courts: These 'inferior' courts are not widely reported but do handle the bulk of the case load. Civil actions heard by County courts, criminal and civil actions by Magistrates courts.