专八人文知识精讲(11)：英国法律与司法机构

1. Civil Courts in England and Wales
英格兰和威尔士的民事法庭

Magistrates' Courts have limited civil jurisdiction, The main courts of civil jurisdiction are County Courts, the High Court deals with the more complicated civil case. Its jurisdiction covers mainly civil and some criminal cases. It has three divisions: (1) the family Division; (2) the Chancery Division; (3) the Queen's Bench Division.
治安法庭只有一定的民事审判权。主要行使民事司法权的是民事法院，高等法院处理更为复杂的民事案。主要包括民事案和一些刑事案，高等法院有三个分支：（1）家事庭；（2）大法官庭；（3）王室庭。

2. Civil Courts in Scotland
苏格兰的民事法庭

The Civil Courts are the sheriff court and the Court of session.
民事法院包括郡法院和巡回法院（最高中心法院）。

3. Civil Courts in Northern Ireland
北爱尔兰的民事法院

County Court are primarily civil law courts. The magistrates' court also deal with certain limited classes of civil cases. The high Court of Justice the superior civil law court.
郡法院主要是民事法院。治安法庭也审理某些有限类型的民事案件。高等法院就是高级民事法院。

IV. The Judiciary
司法机构

There is no ministry of justice in the United Kingdom. Central responsibility lies with the Lord Chancellor the Home Secretary and the Attorney General. In England and Wales, lay magistrates are appointed on behalf of the Crown by the Lord Chancellor who is advised by committees in each county. The Lord Chancellor recommends the High Court and circuit judges. The highest judicial appointments and made by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister.
英国没有司法机构。中央政府的司法工作主要由大法官、内政大臣和检察总长负责。在英格兰和威尔士，大法官根据各部委员会的建议任命外行人员为治安官。大法官推荐高等法官和巡回法官。最高级别的司法官任命由女王根据首相的建议做出。

V. Police
警察

The police service for United Kingdom is organized and controlled on a local basis under the Home Secretary and the Scottish and Northern Ireland Secretaries. London's Metropolitan Police Force is directly under the control of Home Secretary. Police officers are not allowed to join a trade union or go on strike. They do not normally carry firearms.
在内政大臣和苏格兰及北爱尔兰国务大臣的指导下，英国警察分地组建，并以地方管理为基础。但伦敦警察署直接与内政大臣管辖。警察不得加入工会或罢工。他们通常不佩带手枪。

VI. Treatment of offenders
对违法者的处理

The chief aims of the penal system are to deter the potential lawbreaker and to reform the convicted offender.
刑罚制度的主要目的是阻止潜在的违法者，并改造已判的违法者。

Capital punishment ( a sentence of death ) for murder has been abolished in the U.K, through proposal for its reinstatement are regularly debated by Parliament, and it remains the penalty for treason and piracy.
英国已废除对谋杀罪的死刑，但议会仍经常辩论要恢复死刑，判国罪和海盗罪仍可判死刑。