ENGLISH LEGAL SYSTEM

English Legal System

English Legal System

In Cutter v Eagle Star Insurance Co Ltd [1998] 4 All ER 417, the House of Lords adopted a literal interpretation of the word 'road' for the purposes of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The different interpretations open to the court, and the reasons for this interpretation are explained here. Prior to 1930 there was no effective regulation of road usage in the UK. The principle sources of law in the present day are all to be found in Acts of Parliament, regulations or EU directives, and the decisions of the courts. The common law of Scotland and England play little part in modern Road Traffic Law.

For most purposes the main regulatory statute is the Road Traffic Act of 1988. This is a UK statute and is interpreted and enforced, in general, consistently within the whole of the UK. Occasionally differences occur in interpretation, but these differences aren't worth considering for present purposes.

Similarly, a number of relatively minor laws apply to England and not to Scotland, again these are not considered here. The Road Traffic Act 1988 contains all the main motoring offences and is consistently applied across the UK by the Courts. It's to this Act that we'll refer.( Sweet & Maxwell, 2004 7)

One further Act, the Road Traffic Offenders Act of 1988, is also important as it regulates the penalties for many motoring offences. We've attempted to summarise the most common of RTA offences, but haven't even considered providing a comprehensive overview of the law of the road. The subject is a particularly large and technical one. For most people, their driving license is not only important for leisure but vital for employment. The Courts understand this but don't always, or aren't allowed to, consider this factor in sentencing.

Parliament has very often provided for compulsory driving bans for many offences, especially those with a significant public safety element such as drunk driving and dangerous driving. The Courts have no discretion but to enforce bans. Additionally there's considerable public pressure for habitual offenders to be treated severely, and the courts recognize this. It's now far from unusual to see recidivistic offenders given jail sentences and lengthy bans, sometimes for life, from driving.( Sweet & Maxwell, 2004 8)

Except in the most minor of matters, it's always worthwhile seeking out the advice of a Solicitor in these matters. The complex and technical nature of this area ...