来源：本站原创

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland contains three major legal systems which have been developed indigenously.

The three systems, each with their own legal rules, courts and legal professions, are based geographically and comprise:

England and Wales

These two areas form one jurisdiction. Although there is now to be devolution for Wales

(see A Voice for Wales: The Government's proposals for a Welsh Assembly), Wales has not since early medieval times had a legal system distinct from England.

The national courts (High Court, Court of Appeal and House of Lords) are based in London, but there are local courts (Magistrates’ Courts and County Courts) throughout the country and the Crown Court has many locations.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland has some unusual features in its system, which is centred in Belfast. Many relate to the political instability and violence

which has been endemic in the Province since its establishment. One such feature is the absence of a jury in "terrorist" trials.

But the legal system of Northern Ireland has otherwise grown very similar to that of England and Wales,

especially since the imposition of "Direct Rule" under a British Secretary of State since mid-1972.

See for further information Northern Ireland Public Service Web pages.

See generally Irish Law page. See also Brice Dickson,

The Legal System of Northern Ireland and An Intoduction to the Irish Legal System.

See also for background information on the Irish situation House of Commons, Library Research Papers,

Northern Ireland: political developments since 1972, No: 98/57, May 1998 and IRISH JUDICIAL SYSTEM - Information Booklet from the Irish Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Scotland

Scotland had its own system of laws and courts (based in Edinburgh) before its union with England and Wales in 1707.

The Acts of Union of 1707 expressly allowed these to continue, and so Scotland retains many distinctions from the English system (see Sir William Wallace of Elerslie - Queen Anne & The 1707 Act of Union web page). This might be further encouraged by devolution

which is now to be implemented for Scotland (see The Scottish Devolution web pages and The White Paper: Scotland's Parliament pages).

See generally - A Guide to Scots Law, The Scots Law Site See also Scots Law News

Though many laws apply to just one of these jurisdictions, laws can be applied by Act of Parliament, to all or any combination of them.

In this way, the United Kingdom as a whole or Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) or England,

Wales and Northern Ireland can also be seen as distinct jurisdictions.

It should also be noted that the United Kingdom has more recently (since 1972) incorporated the legal system of the European Union

(formerly, before the Maastricht Treaty of 1992, called the European Communities).

Now the Labour Government has plans to enact as British law the European Convention on Human Rights.

These European sources are considered elsewhere in the UK Online web pages

整理者：JACKIE