The Courts of Assize, or Assizes, is the name of criminal courts in several countries. In France, Belgium and Italy the court is still in use. The Assizes is the highest court. The word assize refers to the sittings or sessions (Old French assises) of the judges, known as "justices of assize". Criminal law (also known as penal law) is the body of law that punishes criminals for committing offences against the state. ... Old French is a term sometimes used to refer to the langue doïl, the continuum of varieties of Romance language spoken in territories corresponding roughly to the northern half of modern France and parts of Belgium and Switzerland during the period roughly from 1000 to 1300 A.D...

France

In France and other countries working along the same system, Assize Courts (cour d'assises) use juries to judge the most serious crimes, such as murder or rape. It is chaired by a senior judge called the president of the court. This article is confusing for some readers, and needs to be edited for clarity. ... A judge or justice is an official who presides over a court. ...

In France, the assize court has 9 jurors plus 3 professional judges on first instance, and 12 jurors plus 3 professional judges on appeal. List of possible jurors are drawn at random from the electoral rolls, but the prosecution and the defense can refuse some jurors (without having to bring any justification). For certain crimes (large-scale drug trafficking, terrorism, or other severe attempts on the security of the state), the court consists in 5 professional judges. This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ...

England and Wales

The Courts of Assize, or Assizes, were periodic criminal courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the Quarter Sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The Assizes heard the most serious cases, which were committed to it by the Quarter Sessions (local county courts held four times a year), while the more minor offences were dealt with summarily by Justices of the Peace in petty sessions (also known as Magistrates' Courts). Criminal law (also known as penal law) is the body of law that punishes criminals for committing offences against the state. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... Historically, the Courts of Quarter Sessions, or Quarter Sessions, were periodic courts held in each county and county borough in England and Wales until 1972, when together with the Assizes courts they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court of England and... The Courts Act 1971 is a UK Act of Parliament reforming and modernising the courts system. ... Role Her Majestys Crown Court is, together with the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal, one of the constituent parts of the Supreme Court of Judicature in England and Wales. ... A Justice of the Peace (JP) is a magistrate appointed by a commission to keep the peace, dispense summary justice and deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions. ... Magistrates Courts in Hong Kong deal with criminal jurisdiction over a wide range of indictable and summary offences meriting up to 2 years of imprisonment and a fine of HK$100,000. ...

The word assize refers to the sittings or sessions (Old French assises) of the judges, known as "justices of assize", who were judges of the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court of Justice who travelled across the seven circuits of England and Wales on commissions of "oyer and terminer", setting up court and summoning juries at the various Assize Towns. Old French is a term sometimes used to refer to the langue doïl, the continuum of varieties of Romance language spoken in territories corresponding roughly to the northern half of modern France and parts of Belgium and Switzerland during the period roughly from 1000 to 1300 A.D... One of the ancient courts of England, the Kings Bench (or Queens Bench when the monarch is female) is now a division of the High Court of Justice of England and Wales. ... Her Majestys High Court of Justice (known more simply as the High Court) is, together with the Crown Court and the Court of Appeal, part of the Supreme Court of England and Wales in England and Wales: see Courts of England and Wales. ... Oyer and terminer is the Anglo-French name, meaning to hear and determine, for one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sits. ...

History

Justices of the Court of King's Bench travelled around the country on five commissions: of assize, of nisi prius, of oyer and terminer, and of gaol delivery. By the Assize of Clarendon of 1166, King Henry II established trial by jury by a grand assize of sixteen men in land disputes, and provided for itinerant justices to set up county courts. Prior to Magna Carta in 1215, writs of assize had to be tried at Westminster or await trial at the septennial circuit of justices of eyre, but the great charter provided that land disputes should be tried by annual assizes. One of the ancient courts of England, the Kings Bench (or Queens Bench when the monarch is female) is now a division of the High Court of Justice of England and Wales. ... The Assize of Clarendon was an act of King Henry II of England of 1166, whereby trial by jury became the norm in England, replacing unfair alternatives such as trial by combat. ... // Events Marko III succeeds Yoannis V as patriarch of Alexandria. ... Henry II (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189) ruled as Count of Anjou, Duke of Normandy, and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland, eastern Ireland, and western France. ... Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count. ... Magna Carta placed certain checks on the absolute power of the English Monarchs. ... // Events A certified copy of the Magna Carta June 15 - King John of England forced to put his seal to the Magna Carta, outlining the rights of landowning men (nobles and knights) and restricting the kings power. ... Westminster is the area located immediately to the west of the ancient City of London, in the centre of the wider conurbation of London. ...

An Act passed in the reign of King Edward I provided that writs summoning juries to Westminster were to appoint a time and place for hearing the causes with the county of origin. Thus they were known as writs of nisi prius (Latin "unless before"): the jury would hear the case at Westminster unless the king's justices had assembled a court in the county to deal with the case beforehand. The commission of oyer and terminer, was a general commission to hear and decide cases, while the commission of gaol delivery required the justices to try all prisoners held in the gaols. King Edward I of England (June 17, 1239 – July 7, 1307), popularly known as Longshanks because of his 6 foot 2 inch frame and the Hammer of the Scots (his tombstone, in Latin, read, Hic est Edwardvs Primus Scottorum Malleus, Here lies Edward I, Hammer of the Scots), achieved fame... Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ...

Few substantial changes occurred until the nineteenth century. From the 1830s onwards, Wales and the palatine county of Chester, previously served by Court of Grand Session, were merged into the circuit system. The commissions for London and Middlesex were replaced with a Central Criminal Court, serving the whole metropolis, and county courts were established around the country to hear many civil cases previously covered by nisi prius. // Events and Trends Electromagnetic induction discovered by Michael Faraday Dutch-speaking farmers known as Voortrekkers emigrate northwards from the Cape Colony Croquet invented in Ireland Railroad construction begins in earnest in the United States Egba refugees fleeing the Yoruba civil wars found the city of Abeokuta in south-west Nigeria... National motto: Cymru am byth (Welsh: Wales for ever) Waless location within the UK Official languages English, Welsh Capital Cardiff Largest city Cardiff First Minister Rhodri Morgan Area  - Total Ranked 3rd UK 20,779 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 3rd UK 2,903,085 140/km² Ethnicity: 97. ... This article chiefly concerns the Palatine counties of England. ... This article is about the English county. ... London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... Middlesex as a traditional county before 1888. ... Categories: Stub | Legal buildings in London | Local government buildings in London | Legal London ... The County Court is the workhorse of the civil justice system in England and Wales. ...

The Judicature Act of 1873, which created the Supreme Court of Judicature, transferred the jurisdiction of the commissions of assize (land disputes, etc.) to the High Court of Justice, and established District Registries of the High Court across the country, further diminishing the civil jurisdiction of the assizes. 1873 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... This article concerns the Courts of England and Wales. ... Her Majestys High Court of Justice (known more simply as the High Court) is, together with the Crown Court and the Court of Appeal, part of the Supreme Court of England and Wales in England and Wales: see Courts of England and Wales. ...

In 1956 Crown Courts were set up in Liverpool and Manchester, replacing the Assizes and Quarter Sessions. This was extended nationwide in 1972 following the recommendations of a royal commission. 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Northwest England, on the north side of the Mersey estuary. ... Manchester is a city in the North West of England. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... In countries that are Commonwealth Realms a Royal Commission is a major government inquiry into an issue. ...

Republic of Ireland

In the Republic of Ireland the Assizes, modelled on the English system, were replaced in the early years of the Irish Free State by the Circuit Court system in accordance with the Courts of Justice Act, 1924. As in England they heard only serious cases, and were arranged by the counties of Ireland. The Irish Free State (Irish: Saorstát Éireann) was (1922–1937) the name of the state comprising the 26 of Irelands 32 counties which were separated from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland under the Irish Free State Agreement (or Anglo-Irish Treaty) signed by British and... The courts system in the Republic of Ireland consists of the Supreme Court, the High Court and a number of lower courts. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK 50. ... The island of Ireland has 32 counties, with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland being nicknamed respectively the six counties and the twenty-six counties. ...

See also

• Courts of England and Wales
• Assize of Clarendon - for details of the founding of the Assize Courts

Schematic of court system for England and Wales The United Kingdom does not have a single unified judicial system - England and Wales have one system, Scotland another, and Northern Ireland a third. ... The Assize of Clarendon was an act of King Henry II of England of 1166, whereby trial by jury became the norm in England, replacing unfair alternatives such as trial by combat. ...

External links

• A history of the Assizes