The Bailiff is the chief justice in each of the Channel Island bailiwicks of

Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...

and

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

, also serving as president of the legislature and having ceremonial and executive functions. Each bailiwick has possessed its own bailiff since the islands were divided into two

jurisdictions Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple levels ...

in the 13th century. The bailiffs and deputy bailiffs are appointed by

the Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

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 ...

(not by the governments or legislatures of the islands) and may hold office until retirement age (65 in Guernsey, 70 in Jersey).

Name

After 1212, the

King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

appointed a custodian to manage the Crown's affairs in 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, ...

. At this time, there was no distinction between Warden/Governor and Bailiff, as evolved in later centuries. Officeholder Philip de Aubigné styled his role in 1218 as , being the Latin term for a person who looked after the interests of a Lord. With this meaning, could be translated to the English word 'Warden', by which the office is normally called today and became officially known after 1259. The Warden was normally absent from the island, only regularly visiting for the triennial

assize The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...

. Therefore, the Warden's quotidian duties would have been carried out by a team of deputies, who were islanders and who became referred to as the . As such, one or more . By the end of the 13th century, the modern position of Bailiff appears in record, emerging from this position of .

Roles of the bailiffs

Originally, the bailiff was both legislator and judge, but the position has become increasingly concentrated on the judicial functions. The bailiff presides in the main

trial court A trial court or court of first instance is a court having original jurisdiction, in which trials take place. Appeals from the decisions of trial courts are usually heard by higher courts with the power of appellate review (appellate courts). ...

in his island – the Royal Court of Jersey and the Royal Court of Guernsey, where they sit with Jurats, elected lay judges responsible for making finds of fact. The bailiff of each island is also a member of the court of appeal in his island, and that of the other. The bailiffs are the presidents ( presiding officers) of the legislatures—the States of Jersey Assembly and the States of Deliberation in Guernsey. Constitutional changes introduced in Jersey (2005) and Guernsey (2004) created posts of chief minister and in Jersey (but not in Guernsey) created a ministerial system of government. This has altered the executive functions of the bailiffs but they continue to have a residual executive role (for example, they see any correspondence between the chief minister of their island and the UK government and may be involved in any political decisions affecting the constitutional relationship between the islands and the United Kingdom). Each bailiff continues to be the 'first citizen' of the island, carrying out civil and ceremonial roles. The last lay (that is, not legally-qualified) Bailiff in either jurisdiction was Sir Edgar McCulloch, Bailiff of Guernsey, who served in the role from 1884–1895. By constitutional convention he or she (though to date there have been no women holders of the office) and the deputy bailiff are now invariably selected from among those who have previously held the senior office within the Law Officers of the Crown–the Procureur in Guernsey and the Attorney General in Jersey. Bailiffs and deputy bailiffs in modern times have also invariably been qualified as advocates in their respective islands. A deputy bailiff in each bailiwick may preside in the Royal Court and States chamber when the bailiff is not available. Senior jurats may be appointed as lieutenant-bailiffs to perform some ceremonial duties in lieu of the bailiff on occasion as well as presiding over judicial proceedings generally of an administrative nature. In 1617 a Privy Council decision clarified the division of civil and military responsibilities between the bailiffs and the lieutenant governors in

and

. For the first time, the Crown laid down the bailiff's precedence over the governor in judicial affairs and in the States chamber.

Bailiff of Guernsey

The Bailiff of

was less clearly delineated as to separation of legislative or administrative and judicial functions than that of the Bailiff of Jersey. He was head of the administration in Guernsey and used to preside over a number of States committees. In 2000, the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a co ...

held in ''McGonnell v. United Kingdom'' that there was a breach of Article 6 in Guernsey where the Bailiff or Deputy Bailiff sat as president of the

States of Guernsey The States of Guernsey (), officially the States of Deliberation and sometimes referred to as the Government of Guernsey, is the parliament and government of the British Crown dependency of Guernsey. Some laws and ordinances approved by the ...

when proposed legislation was being debated and then subsequently sat as a judge of the Royal Court of Guernsey in a case where that legislation was relevant. The court, noting that there was no suggestion that the Bailiff 'was subjectively biased', stated that the 'mere fact' that this happened was capable of casting doubt on the Bailiff's impartiality. The Bailiff remains civil head of the island, as well as head of the judiciary, the Presiding Officer of the States of Deliberation'. The Bailiff is ex officio, a Judge of the Court of Appeal and its President. The Bailiff represents Guernsey as civic head of the community in and outside the Island, on occasions of a non-political nature and will greet and welcome members of the Royal Family and dignitaries visiting the Island on behalf of the people of Guernsey. May be appointed as a member of the Court of Appeal of Jersey.

Bailiff of Jersey

The Bailiff of Jersey (,

Jèrriais ( ; also known as the Jersey language, Jersey French and Jersey Norman French in English) is a Romance languages, Romance language and the traditional language of the Jersey people. It is a form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, an isla ...

: ) is the chief justice of the island and the presiding officer of the States Assembly. The position of

bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

was created shortly after the Treaty of Paris 1259 in which the King of England, Henry III, gave up claim to all of the Duchy of Normandy but the Channel Islands. Rather than absorb the islands into the Kingdom of England, a warden (now

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 ...

) and bailiff were appointed to run the island on his behalf.

Current roles

The modern-day roles of the bailiff are as follows: * Chief judge * President of the States Assembly, carrying out functions of a presiding officer * Civic head of the Bailiwick of Jersey * Guardian of the constitution * President of the Licensing Assembly, regulating alcohol sales * Must give permission for certain types of public entertainment to take place.

Notes

References

* * ''Memoirs of Lord Coutanche''