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23 January 2020 / Dr Michael Arnheim
Issue: 7871 / Categories: Features , Constitutional law
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Time to recognise the sovereignty of Parliament?

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Policy v principle: Dr Michael Arnheim puts the case for codification
  • Codification is not just parliamentary legislation but parliamentary legislation in a coherent, logical, predictable—and principled—framework.

The role of law in the UK—and with it the power of the judges—has grown hugely at the expense of government and politics over the past half century. As judges are unelected, virtually irremovable and accountable to nobody, this is a serious blow to democracy.

There is, according to Lord Sumption (a Justice of the UK Supreme Court (UKSC) from 2012 to 2018) a ‘persistent habit of looking for legal solutions to what are really political problems’, leading to greatly enhanced power in the hands of unelected, irremovable and unaccountable judges. This is contrary to parliamentary sovereignty and democracy alike. This situation is connected with the ‘disarray and a marked lack of reliable principle’ identified by Lord Neuberger in the field of tort, but which is actually to be found more generally in UK law.

Solution

Yet a solution lies

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Ashurst's Chief Risk Officer joins Walkers

Excello Law—John Osborne

Excello Law—John Osborne

Northern family lawyer John Osborne joins Excello

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

Trio of promotions announced at Kidderminster law firm mfg Solicitors

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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) continues to show that failing to disclose regulatory issues can attract harsher consequences than the original misconduct itself
Rejecting a generous settlement can prove an expensive mistake, as two recent high-profile cases demonstrate
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