Rule of Law in the UK: An Analysis of Bingham's Principles | Essays (university) Public Law

Rule of Law essay (Bingham)

Introduction

Rule of law upholds the UK constitution. Prof. Jowell deems it “a resilient and effective

force behind the evolution of UK constitution.” Mathews states, “Only in a country

where the rule of law means more than formal legal validity, will subjects be able to

enjoy real protection from official tyranny and abuse.” The rule of law underpins

democracy in the UK. The premise is that everyone, including the government, is

subject to the law and accountable for their acts. The rule of law is essential for social

justice and equality. The 2005 Constitutional Reform Act (s.1) affirms the rule of law.

Rule of law is debated as content-free (there shouldn’t be any rules to the concept) or

content-rich (there should be rules to use the concept of rule of law). Tom Bingham, a

former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, considers eight essential principles

must be recognized to maintain the rule of law in a democratic society. This essay will

investigate these principles and their impact on UK law. (170 words)

Theories of Bingham

Bingham believes that the first rule of law is that regulations must be accessible to

obtain and comprehend. Rules must be expressed in plain language and easy to identify.

UK laws are available online, in print, and in legal databases. This ensures that everyone

understand and can readily check up their regulations. Accessible and clear laws ensure

justice for everybody, regardless of their economic status or background. It ensures

individuals know their rights and may litigate. Without clear, simple rules, the legal

system would be difficult to utilize and many individuals would struggle to achieve

justice.

"Questions of legal right and liability should ordinarily be resolved by application of the

law and not the exercise of discretion" is Bingham's second rule, emphasizing the

importance of the rule of law and the need to follow it with a fair and consistent way. In

order to uphold the rule of law, legal judgements must be made using the law and not

personal preferences. In a democracy, laws are transparent and reflect the people's

elected representatives' desires. Because of this, rules should be enforced fairly and

consistently regardless of the regulators' presumptions. Legal rights and obligations

define the rule of law. Legal rights allow people to defend their interests and avoid

harm, whereas legal responsibility forces them to behave legally. These principles

underpin justice. They ensure accountability and legal protection.

"The laws of the land should apply equally to all, except where objective differences

require differences" demonstrates the importance of the rule of law and how laws

should be administered fairly and impartially. Regardless of their ethnicity, gender,

religion, or economic standing, the law should treat everyone equally. This ensures that

no one is above the law and that everyone observes the same rules in a fair and just legal

system. However, actual differences between individuals may warrant different legal

treatment. Rules may vary depending on a person's age, health, or other objective

elements relevant to the situation. This proves the law can't be rigidly implemented.

The fourth principle is "Ministers and public officers at all levels must exercise the

powers conferred on them in good faith, fairly, for the purpose for which the powers

Partial preview of the text

Download Rule of Law in the UK: An Analysis of Bingham's Principles and more Essays (university) Public Law in PDF only on Docsity!

Rule of Law essay (Bingham) Introduction Rule of law upholds the UK constitution. Prof. Jowell deems it “a resilient and effective force behind the evolution of UK constitution.” Mathews states, “Only in a country where the rule of law means more than formal legal validity, will subjects be able to enjoy real protection from official tyranny and abuse.” The rule of law underpins democracy in the UK. The premise is that everyone, including the government, is subject to the law and accountable for their acts. The rule of law is essential for social justice and equality. The 2005 Constitutional Reform Act (s.1) affirms the rule of law. Rule of law is debated as content-free (there shouldn’t be any rules to the concept) or content-rich (there should be rules to use the concept of rule of law). Tom Bingham, a former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, considers eight essential principles must be recognized to maintain the rule of law in a democratic society. This essay will investigate these principles and their impact on UK law. (170 words) Theories of Bingham Bingham believes that the first rule of law is that regulations must be accessible to obtain and comprehend. Rules must be expressed in plain language and easy to identify. UK laws are available online, in print, and in legal databases. This ensures that everyone understand and can readily check up their regulations. Accessible and clear laws ensure justice for everybody, regardless of their economic status or background. It ensures individuals know their rights and may litigate. Without clear, simple rules, the legal system would be difficult to utilize and many individuals would struggle to achieve justice. "Questions of legal right and liability should ordinarily be resolved by application of the law and not the exercise of discretion" is Bingham's second rule, emphasizing the importance of the rule of law and the need to follow it with a fair and consistent way. In order to uphold the rule of law, legal judgements must be made using the law and not personal preferences. In a democracy, laws are transparent and reflect the people's elected representatives' desires. Because of this, rules should be enforced fairly and consistently regardless of the regulators' presumptions. Legal rights and obligations define the rule of law. Legal rights allow people to defend their interests and avoid harm, whereas legal responsibility forces them to behave legally. These principles underpin justice. They ensure accountability and legal protection. "The laws of the land should apply equally to all, except where objective differences require differences" demonstrates the importance of the rule of law and how laws should be administered fairly and impartially. Regardless of their ethnicity, gender, religion, or economic standing, the law should treat everyone equally. This ensures that no one is above the law and that everyone observes the same rules in a fair and just legal system. However, actual differences between individuals may warrant different legal treatment. Rules may vary depending on a person's age, health, or other objective elements relevant to the situation. This proves the law can't be rigidly implemented. The fourth principle is "Ministers and public officers at all levels must exercise the powers conferred on them in good faith, fairly, for the purpose for which the powers

were conferred, without exceeding the limits of such powers and not unreasonable" illustrates the value of accountability, transparency, and efficient governance in public authority. Government officials have an immense amount of authority to make decisions that have an impact on people and society. Therefore, they must utilize their power in a fair, sensible, open, and public-interested manner. The idea is that public authorities should utilize their authority with integrity and ethically. They must also utilize their position equitably and not favor any group or person. Individuals must consider about all key elements when making decisions. Bingham's fifth rule is "the law must provide enough protection for fundamental rights" underpins the rule of law. It illustrates that natural rights must be safeguarded by the law. It also illustrates that the law must provide ample methods to recover rights if they are infringed. Human dignity includes the rights to privacy, a fair trial, freedom of speech, expression, and assembly, as well as life, liberty, and security. Constitutions, human rights treaties, and other legal instruments frequently state these rights. If basic rights are violated, the law should provide simple and effective remedies. The law must be plain and simple so people can understand their rights and how to safeguard them. It also requires impartial application of the law. "Means must be provided for resolving, without prohibitive cost or undue delay, bona fide civil disputes that the parties themselves are unable to resolve." It acknowledges that people will always disagree and that there must be a fair and rapid process to resolve them. The idea requires affordable and quick dispute resolution. It states that everyone should have access to justice, not only those who can afford costly lawyers or have the time to understand complex legal procedures. The idea also states that those who can't resolve their own disputes must have options. This is especially significant when one party has less bargaining power or is weaker. "The state's judicial procedures should be fair" is an essential part of the rule of law. This belief is that when individuals dispute, the state should give a fair, clear, and just place to resolve them. The idea is that judgements must be fair in appearance and content. Formally, this implies that the rules should provide everyone a fair chance to state their case and that judgements are made without prejudice or the impression of bias. On a more fundamental level, the procedures should be established such that the ultimate option is fair, equitable, and protects individual rights. The rule of law illustrates that the state must respect national and international law and be responsible to its citizens. International law holds governments to treaties and "customary international law." States must obey foreign accords on human rights, the environment, and trade. States must also accept that customary international law applies to all governments. The rule of law ensures the state to be responsible under both national and international law. International law strengthens accountability under the rule of law. It holds the government responsible and allows public scrutiny of its actions. (873 words) Conclusion The rule of law ensures justice and a fair judicial system. Tom Bingham states that in a democracy, the rule of law must follow eight basic criteria. These principles include accessible and clear laws, equality before the law, law enforcement, preservation of

Rule of Law in the UK: An Analysis of Bingham's Principles, Essays (university) of Public Law

Related documents

Partial preview of the text

Download Rule of Law in the UK: An Analysis of Bingham's Principles and more Essays (university) Public Law in PDF only on Docsity!