Discuss The English Legal System

The English Legal System can be defined as a body of rules that is created by the state and is enforced with the state’s authorities through the parliament which is responsible for creating the laws that are applicable in the United Kingdom . The English Legal System is seen as being a matter of sovereignty , rules , courts and enforcement agencies . Besides that , it is also a system that amalgamates various institutions and involves formal or informal resolution of the legal disputes . Cownie and Bradney say “ legal systems are there to determine what will happen when people have disputes . Legal rules are also there so people can order their lives in such a way to avoid such disputes “ . In the nineteenth century , John Austin , an English Jurist born in 1790 pointed out that law is a body of rules fixed and enforced by a sovereign political authority . In another view , Karl Marx , a German philosopher and sociologist born in 1818 developed Marxist view which defined law as a tool of oppression used by capitalists to control the working class . To make its definition simple , the English Legal System simply refers to the law of England and Wales .

The law of England and Wales has been built up gradually over the centuries . There are several methods of developing law and usually is referred to as sources of law . Historically , judges used old anglo saxon and local custom to decide cases . In the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries , Parliament became more dominant which leads to Acts of Parliament becoming the main source of new laws . However , judicial decisions still played a significant role in interpreting the Parliamentary law and helped in filling in the gaps where there was no statu...

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...ace , color , religion and others . A survey was being done in June 2009 by the public about whether they agreed with following statements on human rights and the agreement was shown in percentage . 81% agreed that human rights are important for creating a fairer society in the UK . In another survey , 82% agreed that there should be a set of human rights standards for how public services treat people . 84% of the majority voted that it is important to have a law that protects human rights in Britain .

In a conclusion , the sources of law mentioned as above have established the UK law of today which provide certainty , stability and flexibility . Moreover ,English Legal System is needed in today’s society as society needs a flexible yet strong legal system which can maintain public confidence , adapt to new changes and protect individual’s interest .