The work of the British Law Commissions : law reform? now? / Shona Wilson Stark.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wilson Stark, Shona, author.

Series:

Studies in international law

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Great Britain. Law Commission.

Great Britain.

Law reform--Great Britain.

Law reform.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (288 pages)

Place of Publication:

Portland, Oregon : Hart Publishing, 2017.

Summary:

The Law Commission (of England and Wales) and the Scottish Law Commission were both established in 1965 to promote the reform of the laws of their respective jurisdictions. Since then, they have each produced hundreds of reports across many areas of law. They are independent of government yet rely on governmental funding and governmental approval of their proposed projects. They also rely on both government and Parliament (and, occasionally, the courts or other bodies) to implement their proposals. This book examines the tension between independence and implementation and recommends how a balance can best be struck. It proposes how the Commissions should choose their projects given that their duties outweigh their resources, and how we should assess the success, or otherwise, of their output. Countries around the world have created law reform bodies in the Commissions' image. They may wish to reflect on the GB Commissions' responses to the changes and challenges they have faced to reappraise their own law reform machinery. Equally, the GB Commissions may seek inspiration from other commissions' experiences. The world the GB Commissions inhabit now is very different from when they were established. They have evolved to remain relevant in the face of devolution, the UK's changing relationship with the European Union, increasing pressure for accountability and decreasing funding. Further changes to secure the future of independent law reform are advanced in this book

Contents:

1. Introduction

I. Lifting the Law Reform Bonnet

II. Beyond Great Britain

III. Overview

IV. Some Final Preliminaries

2. The Origins of the Law Commissions

I. Pre-1965

II. How Soon is 'Now': Why 1965?

III. Pressures for a Scottish Law Commission

IV. The Law Commissions Act 1965

V. Consequent Issues

3. The Scope of Commission Activity

I. The 1965 Act and Discretion

II. The Need to Control and Facilitate the Exercise of Discretion

III. Previous Deficiencies in the Control and Facilitation of the Commissions' Exercise of Discretion

IV. The Project-Selection Criteria

V. Developing and Strengthening the Criteria

VI. Conclusion: Clarifying and Securing the Scope of Commission Activity

4. The Extent of Implementation

I. Preliminary Issues

II. Reasons for Non-Implementation

III. The Importance of Being Implemented

IV. Attempts to Improve Implementation

V. Conclusion: Quality Over Quantity

5. The Codification Task

I. Definition of Codification

II. Reasons for Tasking the Commissions with Codification

III. Pre-Existing Obstacles to Codification

IV. Developments Reducing the Need for Codification

V. The Commissions' Codification Track Records

VI. Conclusion: Substance Over Style

6. From Harmonisation to Devolution and Brexit

I. Collaborative Projects

II. Individual Projects

III. Devolution

IV. Conclusion: Separate Commissions Working in Sync

7. Law Reform... Now?

I. Servicing our Law Reform Machinery

II. Proposed Amendments to the 1965 Act

III. Final Remarks for Great Britain and Beyond

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN:

9781509906949

1509906940

9781509906932

1509906932

9781509906925

1509906924

OCLC:

991429986