JERSEY Law and Practice Contributed by: Marcus Pallot and Eleanor Davies, Carey Olsen
1. General 1.1 General Characteristics of the Legal System Jersey is one of the relatively few jurisdictions that have a “mixed” legal system. Its legal system is broad- ly based on elements of common, civil and customary law. The legal process is conducted through a combina- tion of both written submissions and oral argument, although principally through oral argument. 1.2 Court System The Royal Court is Jersey’s principal and superior court. It has original and unlimited jurisdiction (equiva- lent to the High Court in England and Wales). The Royal Court has four divisions: • heritage (dealing with land disputes); • probate (dealing with succession disputes); • family (dealing with family and matrimonial dis- putes); and • samedi (dealing with all other matters). In practice, however, these divisions have common judicial personnel, except for certain family division judges. The constitution and procedure of the Royal Court in civil matters are principally regulated by the Royal Court (Jersey) Law 1948 and the Royal Court Rules 2004 (as amended) (RCR). The RCR are supplement- ed by “Practice Directions” issued by the Royal Court, which all parties conducting litigation in Jersey must have regard to. As the customary law court with original and unlimited jurisdiction, the Royal Court has “inherent jurisdic- tion”, which is not limited to that conferred expressly by the RCR. This inherent jurisdiction of the Royal Court is generally called upon as a residual source of powers to be used when it is just, equitable and necessary to do so.
The Petty Debts Court The Petty Debts Court has non-exclusive jurisdic- tion in respect of small civil claims up to a value of GBP30,000. It also has jurisdiction and specialisation as the court dealing with most landlord and tenant matters. The Petty Debts Court offers litigants free mediation services. The Magistrate’s Court As a general rule, all criminal cases in Jersey will initially be brought before the Magistrate’s Court in the first instance. The matter may subsequently be referred to the Royal Court if the Magistrate considers their sentencing powers to be insufficient in respect of the matter in question. In some instances, the Attor- ney General may commence criminal proceedings directly in the Royal Court where the case is particu- larly complex, or if there are otherwise compelling reasons to do so. The Court of Appeal A first instance decision of the Royal Court may be appealed to the Jersey Court of Appeal. The Privy Council There is the possibility of further appeal to the Judi- cial Committee of the Privy Council in London, the island’s apex court (in common with the other Crown Dependencies, the Overseas Territories and certain independent Commonwealth jurisdictions). 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings As a general rule, court proceedings and court judg- ments are open to the public. In exceptional circum- stances, upon the request of a party or parties, pro- ceedings may be held in private if it is necessary in the interests of justice. Many applications in respect of the administration of trusts are heard in private on this basis. Proceedings will only be held in private, and/or judg- ments may be withheld from circulation or redacted or anonymised, if the court is satisfied that that is nec- essary in the interests of justice. The onus to satisfy the court in this regard rests with the party or parties requesting privacy.
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