Articles From the Team
What do Judges do and why is the Judiciary so important?
I came across an interesting article in the Lawyer which discussed a new course called ‘The Modern Judiciary: Who they are, what they do and why it matters‘, which is now available to the public to take free of charge: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/the-modern-judiciary
Having completed legal studies, and having worked in the legal sector for the past 15 years it never dawned on me that many people don’t know what Judges do, or why the Judiciary is so important. To some, they are just the men (and increasingly women) who wear strange robes and wigs that sit in Court.
According to the article, The Judiciary of England and Wales alongside King’s College London designed a MOOC (massive open online course) to “increase the public’s understanding of the role of judges”.
The course was launched following an increase in negative perceptions circulated by the media and politicians. Most prominently, the Judiciary received bad press following the ruling that Parliament had to take a vote before triggering Article 50, allowing the UK to begin the process of exiting the EU. This decision was made by three High Court Judges whom the Daily mail dubbed the “Enemies of the People”.
It comes as no surprise then that the Judiciary feel that they need to educate the people (or at least those who are interested) on the role of Judges.
It is vitally important that the public understands what a modern judge’s role is so that they can have confidence in the decisions they make. The work of the judiciary is often surrounded by myth based on an outdated view of judges and I hope that this course will be both interesting and informative.
Lord Burnett, the Lord Chief Justice.
The course provides a great opportunity for people to learn more about the Judiciary and the Judges that are responsible for making such important rulings and decisions. If you are stuck at a loose end during the Coronavirus lockdown or want to pursue further studies without breaking the bank, there are plenty of MOOC’s available for you to explore.
Why not also have a look at:
- Amnesty International’s 3-week ‘Defending Dignity: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/the-universal-declaration-of-human-rights
- UCL and PA Consulting’s 3-week ‘Introduction to GDPR: General Data Protection Regulation’ https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/gdpr
- The University of Leeds’ 2-week ‘Environmental Challenges: Hierarchy in Property Rights’ https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/environmental-challenges-property-rights
- The University of Exeter’s 4-week ‘Understanding Gender Inequality’ https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/understanding-gender-inequality
- University of Leeds and the Institute of Coding’s 6 week programme (2 weeks per module) ‘Collaboration, Communication and Remote Working’ https://www.futurelearn.com/programs/collaboration-communication-and-remote-working