LEGAL PERSONNEL MAGISTRATES

1. LEGAL PERSONNELMAGISTRATES

2. Objectives Explain the role of magistrates within the criminal justice system. Explain the selection, appointment and training of magistrates. Discuss the social, racial and gender composition of the magistracy. Evaluate the arguments for and against magistrates. Discuss reforms to the magistracy.

3. Lay Magistrates • Lay magistrates are volunteers who are not legally qualified. They sit in benches of three in the Magistrates Court and make up 85% of the judicial community. • As of 1st April 2016, there are 17 552 lay magistrates in England and Wales. They are sometimes also referred to as Justices of the Peace. • They do not get a salary but will receive expenses, for example for travel and subsistence and a loss of earnings allowance. • They are required to do a minimum of 26 half day sittings (13 days) per year. • Magistrates use Sentencing Guidelines and case law to assist them to reach decisions about sentencing. • Once appointed a magistrate is assigned to a Local Justice Area, which is near to their home or work, but they all have national jurisdiction under the Courts Act 2003. • There is approximately the same number of male and female magistrates.

4. Lay Magistrates Criminal Jurisdiction • Magistrates hear 95% of all criminal cases, they usually try summaryoffences, such as lesser serious assault and criminal damage, drink driving and football offences. They also deal with lots of traffic cases such as no insurance, failing to stop at an accident, defective tyres etc. They also hear environmental cases such as pollution, health and safety cases and cruelty to animals. • Magistrates have to decide if someone is guilty or innocent, whether a defendant should be allowed to have bail and the appropriate sentence when defendants either plead or are found guilty • Magistrates have the power to impose a prison sentence of up to 6 months, and since s85 Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 can impose an unlimited fine in certain cases. They can refer the case to the Crown Court if a longer prison sentence is required. • All criminal cases start in the Magistrates’ Court, even if only for them to pass the case to the Crown Court.

5. Lay Magistrates Civil Jurisdiction Magistrates also hear some civil and family cases involving: • unpaid Council Tax • TV licence evasion • child custody and adoption • care orders for children Only experienced magistrates who have had special training can hear family cases and cases in the Youth Court.

6. Lay Magistrates Qualifications • In 1998, the Lord Chancellor set out six key qualitiesthat a Magistrate should possess: - good character; - understanding and communication; - social awareness; - maturity and sound temperament; - sound judgement; - commitment and reliability. • Until 2013, the Lord Chancellor was responsible for appointing Magistrates, but they are now appointed by the Lord Chief Justice. • Applicants must: - be aged 18-65; - not have any serious criminal convictions; - not have been banned from driving in the past 5-10 years; - not been declared bankrupt; - not work in a job where there may be a conflict of interest – e.g. police officer.

7. Lay Magistrates Qualifications • Candidates usually apply to become magistrates, either in response to advertisements, or directly to the secretary of a local Advisory Committee or to the Department for Constitutional Affairs. • There follows at least two interviews before the local Advisory Committee, who will be comprised of a maximum of 12 members and a mixture of current and retired magistrates as well as non-magistrates. Interview 1: the panel will assess whether the candidate has the six key qualities and will assess their attitudes to various aspects of criminal justice, such as drink driving. Interview 2: this will test a candidate’s judicial aptitude through the discussion of case studies which would be typical of those heard by Magistrates. • Advertisements may be placed in local papers, community noticeboard, on local radio and in some counties on buses! Recent recruitment initiatives have tried to attract potential magistrates in order to make them as representative of society as possible. • There is more information about the selection process here: https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/lord-chancellors-directions-advisory-committees-part3.pdf

8. Lay Magistrates’ Training • Delivered by the justices’ clerk who is guided by a national syllabus produced by the Judicial College • Training is based on competences and is usually assessed through observations. • Core Training • This involves visits to penal institutions and working through a Core Workbook for self study to equip them with key knowledge. 2. Mentoring Each new magistrate will have a specially trained mentor allocated and they should have 6 formal mentored settings within the first 18 months and also keep a Personal Development Log. • Initial Training • This is where the magistrate will learn the basics of the role and will observe other magistrates. 5. First appraisal The mentor and magistrate will agree after 12-18 months that the new magistrate now demonstrates competence in the role. 4. Consolidation Training This happens at the end of the first year and builds on sittings to prepare magistrates for their first appraisal.

9. Lay Magistrates’ Training • Magistrates continue training throughout their magisterial career: • Appraisals take place every three years to ensure the magistrate maintains his/her competency in whichever court they sit. • Continuation training  takes place once every three years, usually before appraisals. • Update training  on new legislation and procedures is delivered to magistrates as required. • Threshold training accompanies each development in a magistrates’ role, there is a matching training process. For instance magistrates may go through comprehensive training to become a chairman or presiding justice. Alternatively, they may choose to undergo training in the specialist skills needed for family or youth courts. Source: https://www.magistrates-association.org.uk/training-magistrates

10. Retirement and Dismissal • Magistrates usually retire at the age of 70. • s11 of the Courts Act 2003provides that the Lord Chief Justice can remove a lay magistrate from office: - on the ground of incapacity or misbehaviour; - on the ground of a persistent failure to meet such standards of competence as are prescribed by a direction given by the Lord Chief Justice, or - if he is satisfied that the lay justice is declining or neglecting to take a proper part in the exercise of his functions as a justice of the peace. Case Study: ‘Magistrate removed from office after falling asleep at trial’, The Guardian, 27th September 2010. • Complaints about magistrates are made to the same body as the judiciary, that is the Judicial Conduct Investigation Office.

11. Social Composition of Lay Magistrates • As of 1st April 2016, there are 17 552 lay magistrates in England and Wales. In 2012, there were around 25,000 lay magistrates. The steady decline in the overall numbers has been put down to a number of factors: - magistrates no longer hear cases on licensing and anti social behaviour, - crime is falling generally - many crimes are being dealt with using out of court disposals. • Diversity statistics currently show the following: - Gender: Female: 53% Male: 47% - Age: Under 30: 1% Over 50: 80% (the average age is 57, due to the minimum time commitment magistrates have to give) - Ethnicity White: 89% BAME: 11% (Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk 1st April 2016) • There have been some moves to improve the diversity of the magistracy, including recruitment campaigns and increased awareness. Further Reading: ‘Transform Justice: The role of the magistrate’, Penelope Gibbs, January 2016 ‘Magistrates' courts need 'younger, more diverse recruits’ BBC News, October 2016 ‘Supporting Magistrates’ Courts to Provide Justice’, Government White Paper, November 2005

12. Justices’ Clerk • Every Bench of magistrates is assisted by a clerk, or a legal adviser. • Every justices’ clerk has to be qualified as a solicitor or barrister for at least five years • Their role is to advise the magistrates on issues of law and procedure in the Magistrates’ Courts; this is set out in s28 Courts Act 2003 • The clerk is not permitted to assist the magistrates in their decision making Case Study: R v Eccles Justices ex parte Farrelly (1992), convictions were quashed on appeal because the clerk had helped in the decision making process. • s29 Courts Act 2003 guarantees the independence of the justices’ clerk and confirms that they cannot be subject to the direction of the Lord Chancellor or any other person.

13. Evaluation of Lay Magistrates Advantages • Magistrates provide a better representation of society than professional judges – 53% of lay magistrates are women • Magistrates will normally live or work within the area in which they sit, although this is no longer a formal requirement • The use of lay magistrates is cheap as they only have to be reimbursed for their expenses and subsistence. The trial itself in a Magistrates’ Court is also cheaper than in a Crown Court • The availability of a justices’ clerk is also seen as an advantage as there is constant access to advice on points of law and procedure • There are very few appeals from the Magistrates’ Court suggesting that they are doing a good job.

14. Evaluation of Lay Magistrates Disadvantages There are areas of society which are very under represented – for example, lots of magistrates are from the middle classes or hold managerial occupations. This therefore offers the question of whether they do really have a good local knowledge of the poorer areas in their locality. Over the last few years, Magistrates’ Courts have been closing which can cause problems of access for some people and we are therefore increasingly losing the ‘local knowledge’ aspect. Although lay magistrates are more representative than professional judges, the magistracy is often criticised for being “middle aged, middle class and middle minded”. There are measures being put in places to combat this and make the magistracy more representative. There is a low acquittal rate in the Magistrates Court which does suggest that there may be some prosecution bias. This may also be due to the fact that they will see the same representatives from the police and Crown Prosecution Service time and again. Although training is undertaken from a national perspective, there is often seen to be inconsistency in sentencing across different areas. Magistrates are often criticised for relying too heavily on the justices’ clerk.