Britain: An official handbook > 1959

g2 BRITAIN: AN OFFICIAL HANDBOOK
At the winter and summer assizes, civil business as well as criminal may be
taken, but except in a few large towns the autumn assize is confined to criminal
cases.
Crown Courts
Crown courts are new courts established at Liverpool and Manchester by the
Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1956, to act as courts of assize in and for the
West Derby Division of Lancashire and the Salford Division of Lancashire. They
also act as courts of quarter sessions for the cities of Liverpool and Manchester.
The Crown courts are presided over by the Recorders of Liverpool and Man¬
chester, who are whole-time judicial officers.
The Central Criminal Court
The Central Criminal Court at the Old Bailey acts as the court of assize for the
criminal business of London, Middlesex and parts of the home counties. The
judges include: a judge chosen, in rotation, from the Queen’s Bench Division for
each monthly session of the court; the Recorder of London; the Common Serjeant;
and two additional judges of the Mayor’s and City of London Court.
Criminal Appeals
Appeals may be made direct from the magistrates’ court to the High Court on a
point of law; but the more usual kind of appeal is the appeal of a convicted person
against his conviction or his sentence. Appeals of this kind from a magistrates
court are heard in the counties by the Appeal Committee of Quarter Sessions,
consisting of between three and twelve magistrates, and in the boroughs by the
Recorder; in neither case is a jury required.
Appeals against convictions or sentences by quarter sessions, assizes or Crown
courts go to the Court of Criminal Appeal Appeals on questions of law may be
brought as of right, but on other grounds only by leave.
The Court of Criminal Appeal consists of the Lord Chief Justice and a number
of Queen’s Bench judges; three in session is the usual number.
A further appeal from the Court of Criminal Appeal to the House of Lords on a
point of law can be brought if the Attorney-General grants a certificate affirming
that the appeal is of ‘exceptional public importance and that it is desirable in the
public interest that a further appeal should be brought’. Appeals of this kind are
very rare.
Criminal Courts in Scotland
Criminal prosecutions in Scotland are mainly dealt with in the sheriff court
sitting under summary procedure, i.e. the sheriff without a jury. Minor offences
are tried under summary procedure in police courts in burghs and in justice of the
peace courts in counties. Any summary court may sit as a juvenile court when
hearing charges involving only persons under 17 years of age and, in some areas,
there are specially constituted juvenile courts. The sheriff court also sits under
solemn procedure, i.e. the sheriff with a jury, to hear the more serious cases
prosecuted on indictment. _
The most serious cases are taken under solemn procedure in the High Court of
Justiciary, which is the supreme criminal court of first instance. It consists of the
Lord Justice General (who is also the Lord President of the Court of Session),
the Lord Justice Clerk and thirteen Lords Commissioner of Justiciary who are also
judges of the Court of Session. The seat of the court is in Edinburgh, but the
judges go on circuit to preside at trials in other towns. The High Court of Justiciary