Brexit, the separation of powers and the role of the supreme court.

The library of the Supreme Court.
Photo:Ana Alfaro/ Supreme Court via a CC-BY-NC-ND 2.0 licence

The Supreme Court’s role has changed since it was created. Byron Karemba (University of Leeds) looks at how Brexit is altering it further and makes the case for a new conception of the judicial function based on the separation of powers.

When the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (UKSC) was created, there was great emphasis by the architects of the Court that it would largely assume the same constitutional status and functions as the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords. For example, in the course of shepherdingthe Constitutional Reform Act through Parliament, Lord Falconer insisted that:

As to whether we envisage the Supreme Court having the power to give advisory opinions, no, we do not. Our legal system has never operated on the basis that hypothetical questions are put to courts. We should not see the courts as having an advisory function; they are bodies which resolve disputes between people […] Nor do I believe it would be a particularly good idea for the Government to be able to refer issues to the courts for advisory opinions.

Full story at LSE