Court Room Two: The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (UEB contracted)
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- Synopsis
- In front of the court itself is a long glass wall that allows visitors to look into the court even when all the public seating has been taken. On the glass wall, furthest away from the door nearest the stairs, is an inscribed quotation from Eleanor Roosevelt: "Justice cannot be for one side alone but must be for both."This quote, labelled Q on the court room layout, is engraved on both sides of the glass wall so when looking at it one line will read correctly but the other will be back to front. As well as being a campaigner for civil rights, Mrs Roosevelt was also one of the first creators of the United Nations charter on human rights. One of the main purposes of UKSC (The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom United) was to allow greater public access. Before October 2009, the Law Lords (or Appellate Committee of the House of Lords as they were officially called) were the highest court in the land, and finding your way to the appropriate committee room within the Palace of Westminster was not always straightforward. The court room is entered by two tall doors (approximately 4.6 metres or 15 feet high) at either end of the glass wall. This room used to be two courts sitting one on top of each other, with the old ceiling running from the top of the doors. The architects which oversaw the refurbishment of the Guildhall, Feilden & amp; Mawson, skilfully removed the upper court room and created a single space with a bright and airy atmosphere. The benches and seating are laid out in semi-circles so that the overall layout gives the impression of a circle, creating an atmosphere of debate rather than anything more adversarial. Between the two entrance doors are three rows of public seating. Unlike other courts where the public are in a separate gallery, UKSC visitors sit and observe proceedings at the same level as the judges and lawyers. This was a deliberate decision when the courtrooms were being designed, to add to the sense of inclusiveness. In front of the public seating are nine chairs and benches for the solicitors and their clients. The solicitors are there to advise their client and do not address the justices. In front of the solicitors and their clients are the seven seats and benches for the barristers, or advocates. Barristers, who have rights of audience, i.e. the right to speak in court, are the ones who address the panel of Justices, trying to persuade them that their interpretation of the particular point of law is the correct one. As it is not a criminal court, the UKSC does not have a prosecution or defence, but an appellant (labelled A on the court room layout), who stands on the right facing the justices and a respondent (labelled R on the court room layout) on the left. Each speaks from a lectern in front of them on the bench. In front and facing the barristers is the Justices' bench with five tall Justices' chairs with a long desk, sideways to the bench in-between them, to give plenty of shelf space to put books, papers and documents relevant to the case that day. The seats have to be comfortable as a Justice may have to sit for four hours at a time, listening to complex legal and academic arguments. A case can go on for two weeks, though the average is two days. Behind the Justices, to the left, is one single desk and chair for the Court Usher. To the right of that, in an alcove, are five seats and desks for the Judicial Assistants, young lawyers who act as the Justices' legal researchers for one legal year. Court Room Two, in particular, shows off the identity of the new Supreme Court through an Illuminated glass reproduction of the UKSC emblem on the wall high up above the Justices' bench and also on the carpet in a more informal version designed by the artist Sir Peter Blake.
- Copyright:
- 2011
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Excellent
- Publisher:
- RNIB
- Date of Addition:
- 05/08/17
- Copyrighted By:
- RNIB
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
- Art and Architecture
- Submitted By:
- Ian Green
- Proofread By:
- N/A
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.