Judiciary of the Isle of Man

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Isle of Man
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the Isle of Man

Lord of Mann: Elizabeth II Lieutenant Governor: Sir Paul Haddacks Deputy Governor: Michael Kerruish Tynwald President of Tynwald: Noel Cringle Legislative Council President: Noel Cringle House of Keys Speaker: Steve Rodan Government Council of Ministers Chief Minister: Tony Brown Treasury Minister: Allan Bell Home Minister: Martyn Quayle Health Minister: Eddie Teare Education Minister: Annie Craine Industry Minister: David Cretney Tourism Minister: Adrian Earnshaw Transport Minister: David Anderson DAFF Minister: Phil Gawne DLGE Minister: John Shimmin Chief Secretary: Mary Williams Manx Judiciary First Deemster: Michael Kerruish Second Deemster: David Doyle Deputy Deemster: Andrew Corlett Judge of Appeal: Geoffrey Tattersall High Bailiff: Michael Moyle Deputy High Bailiff: Alastair Montgomerie Attorney General: John Corlett Keys Constituencies Local Government Political parties Elections Officials of State Parish Captains
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The lowest courts in the Isle of Man are the Summary Courts, Coroner of Inquests, Licensing Court, Land Court, etc. These courts are presided over by magistrates. There are two such stipendiary magistrates, the High Bailiff and the Deputy High Bailiff, along with lay Justices of the Peace.

The Judiciary of the Isle of Man are appointed by The Queen, Lord of Mann, acting on the advice of the Secretary of State for Justice in the United Kingdom.

The High Court of Justice consists of three civil divisions – the Chancery Division, the Common Law Division and the Family Law Division, and the criminal side is dealt with by the Court of General Gaol Delivery, which deals with serious criminal matters and applications for orders of productions and restraint.

Civil matters are usually heard at first instance by a single deemster sitting in the High Court. Criminal proceedings are heard at first instance before either the High Bailiff or the Deputy High Bailiff or a bench of lay magistrates, in less serious cases. More serious cases are heard before a deemster sitting with a Jury of seven in the Court of General Gaol Delivery.

Civil and criminal appeals are dealt with by the Staff of Government Division. Appeals are usually heard by a deemster (the one not involved with the case previously in the High Court) and the Judge of Appeal.

Final appeal is to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the United Kingdom. This dates back to an ancient right of the Manx to appeal to the Crown of England against the decisions of the Lord of Mann, who in previous times was the supreme insular legal authority, and was explicitly confirmed by the Privy Council in their decision of Christian v. Corren in 1716, several years before revestment.

One special case, that also applies to the Channel Islands, is the jurisdiction of the Queen's Bench Division of the English High Court over the Island in matters of habeas corpus. This dates back to the ancient right of the king to at any time have an account as to why the liberty of any of his subject was restrained, and operated in the Isle of Man pre-revestment, as it did across all the king's dominions despite the other competencies of the Kings's Bench being restricted to England.^[1]