 |
|---|
The States of Election has only one purpose, to elect a new Jurat to the Courts in Guernsey.
The first record of a Jurat in Guernsey was in 1179, and a roll of honour listing Jurats since 1299 is in the Royal Court. [1]
A Royal Commission of 1607 identified a body of "...the Bailiff and Jurats, with the Constables and Dozens of every parish" to elect the Jurats of the Royal Court. In the 1770s the term States of Election was used. [2]
A prospective candidate must be proposed and seconded. [3] Only someone receiving over 50% of votes cast at the secret ballot can be elected.
Originally, if elected, the duty was for life. In 1950 this was changed to retirement at 70, with the possibility of an extension to 75. Changed again in 2008, to retirement at 70 with an extension to 72 possible, the number of Jurats was increased from 12 to 16. [1]
Only one vacancy may be filled at any one meeting of the States of Election.
The duty is unpaid and each person voting should do so based on their conscience.
Election as a Jurat is the highest honour that Guernsey can confer on a resident of the Island. [1]
The Reform (Guernsey) Law, 1948, as amended set out the constitution of the election committee: [2]
The Reform (Guernsey) (Amendment) Law, 2003 permits changes to the number of Douzaine representatives if the population of parishes change. The Royal Court (Reform) Law 2008 made it possible for new Jurats to retire at 72 and for the number of Jurats to increase to 16. It also created the position of 'Juré-Justicier Suppléant'.
Politics of Guernsey take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic British Crown dependency.
Jersey – the largest of the Channel Islands – has been an island for around 6,000 years. Early inhabitation is evidenced by various neolithic monuments and hoards. In the 10th century, Jersey became part of Normandy. When the Normans conquered England in the 11th century, Jersey remained a part of the Duchy of Normandy, but when Normandy and England were finally split in the 13th century, the Channel Islands remained loyal to the English Crown, splitting Jersey politically from mainland Normandy.
The Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown dependency, unitary state and parliamentary representative democracy and constitutional monarchy. The head of the civil administration and judiciary is the Bailiff Timothy Le Cocq, while the Chief Minister Kristina Moore is the head of government. The current monarch and head of state is King Charles III.
The bailiff is the chief justice in each of the Channel Island bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey, also serving as president of the legislature and having ceremonial and executive functions. Each bailiwick has possessed its own bailiff since the islands were divided into two jurisdictions in the 13th century. The bailiffs and deputy bailiffs are appointed by the Crown on the advice of the Secretary of State for Justice and may hold office until retirement age.
The title Bailiff of Guernsey has been used since at least the 13th century and indicated the leading citizen of Guernsey.
The Bailiff of Jersey is the civic head of the Bailiwick of Jersey. In this role, he is not the head of government nor the head of state, but the chief justice of Jersey and presiding officer of Jersey's parliament, the States Assembly. The Bailiff is also the President of the Royal Court. It is similar in role to the Bailiff of Guernsey.
Guernsey elects a legislature at the national level. The islands of Alderney and Sark also elect their own parliaments.
The jurats are lay people in Guernsey and Jersey who act as judges of fact rather than law, though they preside over land conveyances and liquor licensing. In Alderney, however, the jurats are judges of both fact and law in both civil and criminal matters.
Sir Philip Martin Bailhache KC is a Jersey politician and lawyer who has served as a Deputy for St Clement since 2022 and the leader of the Jersey Liberal Conservatives party.
The States Assembly is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable of each of the twelve parishes.
The States of Guernsey, officially the States of Deliberation and sometimes referred to as the Government of Guernsey, is the parliament and government of the British Crown dependency of Guernsey. Some laws and ordinances approved by the States of Guernsey also apply to Alderney and Sark as "Bailiwick-wide legislation" with the consent of the governments of those islands. All enactments of the States of Guernsey apply to Herm as well as Guernsey, since Herm is directly administered by the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
The Bailiwick of Guernsey includes the island of Guernsey and other islands such as Alderney, Sark, Herm, Jethou, Brecqhou, and Lihou. Each parish was established, probably in the 11th century, as a religious area, each having its parish church. Administratively each parish is now administered by an elected council known as a Douzaine.
The law of Jersey has been influenced by several different legal traditions, in particular Norman customary law, English common law and modern French civil law. The Bailiwick of Jersey is a separate jurisdiction from that of the United Kingdom, and is also distinct from that of the other Channel Islands such as Guernsey, although they do share some historical developments. Jersey's legal system is 'mixed' or 'pluralistic', and sources of law are in French and English languages, although since the 1950s the main working language of the legal system is English.
Politics of Alderney takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic British Crown dependency, whereby the President of the States of Alderney is the head of government. Alderney is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey but is largely self-governing.
Daniel de Lisle Brock (1762–1842) was Bailiff of Guernsey from 1821 until his death 1842.
The Courts of Jersey are responsible for the administration of justice in the Bailiwick of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands. They apply the law of the Island, which is a mixture of customary law and legislation passed by the legislature, the States Assembly.
The judiciary of Jersey is a branch of the government of Jersey that interprets and applies the laws of Jersey, to ensure equal justice under law, and to provide a mechanism for dispute resolution. The Bailiff of Jersey is the President of the Royal Court. Individual trials are heard by the Bailiff, the Deputy Bailiff or a Commissioner. The Master of the Royal Court deals with some preliminary matters in civil cases. The Court is supported by the Judicial Greffier who acts as the registrar. In addition to the judge, the Royal Court includes a number of volunteer Jurats. The Jurats decide issues of fact in criminal and civil trials, hand down sentences in criminal trials and award damages in civil trials. All judges in Jersey are bound by a code of conduct, introduced in 2007, which requires them to "uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary and perform their duties with competence, diligence and dedication".
The Courts of Guernsey are responsible for the administration of justice in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands. They apply the law of the Island, which is a mixture of customary law dating back as far as the 10th century and legislation passed by the legislature, the States of Deliberation.
The Law of Guernsey originates in Norman Customary Law, overlaid with principles taken from English common law and [French law], as well as from statute law enacted by the competent legislature(s) -- usually, but not always, the States of Guernsey
Jersey has an unwritten constitution arising from the Treaty of Paris (1259). When Henry III and the King of France came to terms over the Duchy of Normandy, the Norman mainland the suzerainty of the King of France. The Channel Islands however remained loyal to the British crown due to the loyalties of its Seigneurs. But they were never absorbed into the Kingdom of England by any Act of Union and exist as "peculiars of the Crown".
Bailiwick of Guernsey articles | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| History |
|  | ||||
| Geography |
| |||||
| Education |
| |||||
| Politics | ||||||
| Economy |
| |||||
| Culture |
| |||||