From House of Lords to Supreme Court: Judges, Jurists and the Process of Judging

FROM THE SOCIETY OF LEGAL SCHOLARS – A CHOICE COLLECTION OF PAPERS ON THE MOMENTOUS TRANSITION FROM LORDS TO SUPREME COURT
An appreciation by Phillip Taylor MBE and Elizabeth Taylor of Richmond Green Chambers
This book is a joy and a gem, being a collection of inspired, inspiring, certainly thought provoking and often controversial papers delivered at a significant event held in 2009.
We refer to the Society of Legal Scholars Annual Seminar held at the Law Society in November 2009, which you might say bookmarked the transition from the House of Lords to the new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Bringing together academics, practitioners and the judiciary, it also, quite appropriately, commemorated the Centenary of the Society of Legal Scholars.
It was in 1909 that the first meeting of the Society took place in exactly the same room, the aim being then and now, to maintain and nurture the relationship between academic and practicing lawyers
The book is a compilation of the actual papers delivered by the twelve expert contributors to the seminar. The result is a wealth of erudition and insight which is particularly valuable to practitioners, academics and certainly students alike. It must have been a privilege to attend this historic occasion, but if you weren’t there – here it is in essence, in this book. A couple of examples here will give you an idea of the flavour of its contents.
There’s the keynote address from the Hon Michael Kirby entitled ‘A Darwinian Reflection on Judicial Values and Appointments to Final National Courts’. The argument here, in favour of variety and evolution when it comes to appointing judges to our highest courts, is also taken up by Dr Aileen Kavanagh. Her chapter: ‘From Appellate Committee to UK Supreme Court: Independence, Activism and Transparency’ also questions whether increased transparency will necessarily translate into increased public confidence in the judiciary. Hmm!
Perhaps it’s too early to comment on that and the debate of course continues. On this and a range of other equally pertinent topics, the book delivers divergent and closely argued points of view.
You could also regard the book as a handy research tool, with its extensive tables of cases and of legislation -- some of it from other jurisdictions -- and the invaluable index.
Suffice to say that the book more than achieves its stated aim: ‘to reflect upon the jurisprudence of the House of Lords and to consider the prospects for judging in the new Supreme Court.’ Yes, a choice collection of papers on this momentous transition!