[MUSIC] In this video, we're going to look at how the courts are arranged or structured in the legal system. You may find, as I explain the court system, that at first it seems rather illogical and complex. It's true that the court system is complicated and, in places, confusing. This is because its developed over many years rather than being designed from scratch. First, I want to say a brief word about the hierarchy of the courts, a subject that will be discussed in more detail later on in the course. If you look at a diagram of the court system, you will see that some courts are above others. For example, the Supreme Court is at the top of the hierarchy. This is important, not just for determining which courts can hear appeals from courts lower down, but also for determining which courts can set binding precedents. The concept of binding precedent very broadly means that courts lower down on the hierarchy must follow decisions made by the higher courts. This is a real feature of common law which is not found in civil law systems. So for example, magistrate's courts and the county court are bound to follow decisions of the high court, the court of appeal and the supreme court. But there is a lot more to it than this. And we will return to court hierarchy and binding precedent later on in Week 5. There are a couple of important distinctions in the court structure. The first, is the difference between the appellate courts, the courts that hear appeals and the trial courts, or the courts of first instance. Trial courts will hear a case and make a ruling on fact and law. And appellate courts have the job of reconsidering whether the law has been correctly applied in a case which has already been heard in a lower court. But this is not a hard and fast distinction. Some courts can hear both cases at first instance, and also appeals. Another distinction is between civil courts and criminal courts. Again, this is not a clear cut distinction. Some courts can have both a civil and a criminal jurisdiction. This can be confusing, but essentially it reflects the fact that the institutions of common law are historical and have changed over time. We've already discussed in Week 1 what the differences are between civil and criminal law. To recap briefly, civil court cases arise when an individual or an organization believes their rights have been infringed. Civil justice is mainly dealt with in the county court, and in the case of more substantial or complex cases, in the high court. The jurisdiction of the civil courts covers a very wide range, from quite small or simple claims, such as claims for damaged goods or recovery of debt, to large claims between multinational corporations. Courts in a civil jurisdiction don't have the power to imprison a losing party. They ordinarily, but not always, award financial compensation or damages as a remedy. The amount of damages awarded depends on the circumstances of the claim. Now let's move on to criminal courts. Criminal cases come to court after a decision has been made to prosecute somebody for an alleged crime. This decision to prosecute is usually made by an independent body called the Crown Prosecution Service. In the vast majority of cases, magistrates sitting in the magistrates' court hear the evidence and, as a panel, make a decision on guilt or innocence. For more serious cases, District Judges in the magistrates' court or a Circuit Judge in the Crown Court will hear evidence. In the case of the Crown Court, this will involve a jury trial. So with this basic tool then. I want to look in more detail about civil and the criminal courts. [MUSIC].