POLS 3130 Chapter Notes - Chapter 6: Canadian Judicial Council, Judicial Independence, Parliament Week
2 Nov 2016
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Document Summary
Judicial independence is the idea that the judge is impartial to the proceedings taking place in front of them: difference between impartiality and independence. Judiciary is supposed to be a check on the government. Relational independence: the formal institutional protections for judges from interference by other individuals in the political system. Behavioural independence: actual judicial behaviour and whether it displays autonomous decision making. Job security, tenure, financial security and some measure of administrative control for individual judges and the judiciary. Job security is essential in order for decisions to be seen as impartial: need to be insulated from whim removal by the government, pre-set terms do not violate this but renewable terms do. If salaries were vulnerable to cuts decisions could not be impartial. Judicial administrative control such as who sits on what panel is also important: some called for a canadian judicial council who would decide court budgets and administration.
