Judiciary in England and Wales is not Reflective of Society - Research Paper Example

Judiciary in England and Wales is not reflective of society Over the years, judicial diversity has been an issue of concern for Wales and England. Reform initiatives and debates for judicial diversity are critical features of various common law jurisdictions. The country faces gender and ethnicity diversity as the major dimension of inclusiveness in the judicial system. Critics have raised general arguments in rationalizing judicial diversity as well as the essence of having judicial appointments and procedures adhering to the requirements of equal opportunity laws and equality. Diverse compunctions of the judiciary have higher capacitates of responsiveness to experiences and needs of different legal system subjects. On the other hand, such a judiciary appears reflective of various cultures and backgrounds of the nation served. Another feature of diverse judiciaries is that they are more accountable and responsible in articulating issues of complex legal democracies. Proper co-existence with other forms of government necessitates inclusion of gender as a judicial diversity dimension. However, gender is a major issue in analyzing the composition of the judiciary of England and Wales. This paper aims at assessing existing literature on the ethnic and gender composition in the English and Wales’ judiciary. The essay will also illustrate the previous efforts of the government in achieving diversity in the judiciary. Gender is a critical dimension of judicial diversity illustrated by the proportions of positions awarded to the males and females on the judiciary. There are different ways of rationalizing judicial diversity where judicial appointments follow policy and law that promotes equal opportunities. The judiciary needs to show sensitivity to the experiences and needs of the different elements of legal systems where the judiciary requires illustration of diversity for service as well as diverse judiciary with increased accountability of legal democracies.1 The current preclusion the gender incorporation dictates the alternative dimension regarding judicial diversity. Features of judicial initiatives towards achieving ethnic and gender diversity are assessed through qualitative and quantitative perceptions and experiences of judicial bias. Nowadays, diversity and equality in England and Wales are matters that professional bodies face and deliberate in their annual reports. Law Society’s websites illustrate commitment towards playing leading roles to eliminate discrimination through promoting equality of opportunities and diversities in activities and regulation of representative bodies and employment. Monitoring and recording ethnicities of members and staffs and is an acceptable approach. In alternative situations, critics observe those ethnic minorities’ members through organizing them in the legal profession. Quantitative data in the analysis of judicial diversity plays an essential role in highlighting the inequalities of the England and Wales judiciary. There is an overwhelming composition of white and male occupants fetched from narrow educational and social background. The approach to maintaining records is a slow progress in terms of achieving the goals of diversity. Reasons are given for to absence of inclusiveness in the debates and initiatives that relate to ethnic and sexual diversity for judicial diversity discussions. Lack of familiarized data indicating impacts of balanced judicial composition for gender and ethnic individuals argues towards having increased confidence in the system of making judgments.2 The England and Wales people developing such decisions require a reflective image of the English community. The principle that the application of juries across England and Wales is developed is based on the equality of practice and policies. The argument is in support of exclusive participation of the citizenry for important judicial base on Human Rights Act 1999.3 Another reason for the situation is that different viewpoints in making better decisions and law. The argument focuses on the quality of judicial systems and decisions. The institution of crime management encounters classic problem of merit where Oxbridge judges (white and male) have higher chances of rising to top positions comparatively easily. On the contrary, it is prudent to consider the exceptional women and ethnic minorities in the public confidence on systems. Greater diversity attracts best skills and experience of judges from wide varieties of backgrounds meaning increased quality of judgment. Judges have the ability and capacities of influencing each other’s decisions.4 The government of United Kingdom continues to express support towards an inclusive judiciary. Selection committees are actively engaged in implementing diverse talent past the traditional sources. Evidence presented suggests most of the appointments within the appellate courts are not made across other branches of the judiciary such as the solicitors and academics. The reason given for such practice is that the scope of decision-making in appellate situations requires a high level of intellectual skills and lack of past judicial experience should be addressed with readily available mechanisms.5 The system lacks serious support towards the implementation of quotas. The outcome is that public confidence has been continually undermined in selection processes and patronization of minority groups. However, the major targets are identified through the existing systems of promotion and staffing. The concept of cultural diversity within the judiciary of Wales and England is an emerging trend that a procedural issue. The reproach observes that most of the citizenry and the society are not convinced of the quality of decisions made in courts of England and Wales. Past submissions for review by House of Lords shows that diversity refers to issues of equality and human rights and inclusiveness of all legal profession members.6 Equal opportunities should be presented as a way of aspiring and appointing a new member to the judicial office. The view of democratic governance is that current profiling of judiciary components in Wales and England sends a message that inequitable opportunities exist. Evidence points at the scope of activities in diverse judicial and cultural backgrounds. In conclusion, different data sources used in developing this paper introduces the conceptual design and opening up towards informed debate as well as impact of reflection on the challenges and nature of ethnical and gender diversity in the judiciary. Restraints of the essay illustrate that no opportunities are ingredients of broad elements of diversity and performance. More research should be enhanced as a way of generating options and sustained ways of including varied decisions in the society. The paper offers a useful platform for implementation of diversity and raising awareness of future research projects within the scope of awareness of complexities of identity and idiosyncrasies of each institutional and jurisdictional setting. However, sensitivity of the different context multiplied by difference of culture and interests of the judiciary. The goals of inclusiveness and diversity present solicitors and barristers include the management of lower judiciary echelons where career prospects at particular levels remain at high levels. Bibliography Grillo R. D. Legal Practice and Cultural Diversity (3rd edn, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2009). Rackley Erika, Women, Judging and the Judiciary: From Difference to Diversity (2nd edn, Routledge, 2012). Russell Peter, And O'Brien David, Appointing Judges in an Age of Judicial Power: Critical Perspectives from Around the World (2nd edn, University of Toronto Press, 2006). Russell Peter, And O'Brien David, Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy: Critical Perspectives from Around the World (6th edn, University of Virginia Press, 2001). Seibert-Fohr Anja, Judicial Independence in Transition (2nd edn, Springer Science & Business Media, 2012). Shetreet Shimon, and Turenne Sophie, Judges on Trial: The Independence and Accountability of the English Judiciary (4th edn, Cambridge University Press, 2013). Read More