The lowest courts in the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

are the summary courts, Coroner of Inquests, Licensing Court, Land Court, etc. These courts are presided over by

magistrates The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a ''magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. There are two stipendiary magistrates, the

High Bailiff The High Bailiff () is a legal position held within the Isle of Man. The High Bailiff is the head stipendiary magistrate. The current High Bailiff is Her Worship Jayne Hughes, who took office on 11 March 2019. The High Bailiff and their deput ...

and the Deputy High Bailiff, along with lay justices of the peace. The superior court of the Isle of Man is the High Court of Justice of the Isle of Man, consisting of a Civil Division and an appeal division, called the Staff of Government Division. The judges of the High Court are the

deemster A Deemster () is a judge in the Isle of Man. The High Court of Justice of the Isle of Man is presided over by a deemster or, in the case of the appeal division of that court, a deemster and the Judge of Appeal. The deemsters also promulgate th ...

s, appointed by the King (acting on the advice of the

Secretary of State for Justice The secretary of state for justice is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Ministry of Justice. The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. Since the office's inception ...

in the United Kingdom), and the

judicial officer A judicial officer is a person with the responsibilities and powers to facilitate, arbitrate, preside over, and make decisions and directions with regard to the application of the law. Judicial officers are typically categorized as judges, magis ...

s, appointed by the

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

. The

and the Deputy High Bailiff are ''ex officio'' judicial officers, and additional judicial officers (full-time or part-time) may be appointed. 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

, in less serious cases. More serious criminal cases are heard before a

sitting in the Court of General Gaol Delivery; in a defended case the Deemster sits with a jury of seven (twelve in cases of treason or murder). 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 or Court of General Gaol Delivery) and the Judge of Appeal. Final appeal is to the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. 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 The Lord of Mann () is the lord proprietor and head of state of the Isle of Man, currently King Charles III. Before 1504, the title was King of Mann. Relationship with the Crown Since 1399, the King of Mann, kings and lords of Mann were ...

, 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 The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

, is the jurisdiction of the

King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

of the

English High Court The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...

over the island in matters of

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

. 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 subjects 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.

References

See also