Justices of the Peace

Find a list of BVI Justices of the Peace.

Introduction

Justices of the peace are a longstanding feature of the British judicial system. They are, in general, unpaid laymen who are charged with the responsibility to assist the officers of the law and the appointed judiciary in keeping the peace. In some other jurisdictions, Justices of the Peace are Magistrates with the Clerks of Courts, who are lawyers, as their legal advisers.

In the BVI, their overall function is to “at all times act ministerially for the purposes of the preservation of the peace, the prevention of crime, and the detection and committal of offenders".

Definition         

A Justice of the Peace (JP) is a puisne judicial officer appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace.  Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice and deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions.  Justices of the Peace are appointed from the citizens of the jurisdiction in which they serve, and are (or were) usually not required to have a formal legal education in order to qualify for the office.  Some jurisdictions have varying forms of training for JPs (for example Queensland Australia, and the UK).

History

In 1195, Richard “the Lionheart” of England commissioned certain knights to preserve the peace in unruly areas.  They were responsible to the King for ensuring that the law was upheld, and preserved the “King’s Peace," and were known as Keepers of the Peace.

Powers and Duties       

Justices of the Peace are given limited judicial powers under the Magistrate’s Code of Procedure Act (Cap. 44).  That Act makes it lawful for any two justices of the Peace to hear and determine any case in which the Magistrate is interested.  However, a Justice of the Peace cannot by virtue only of being a Justice of the Peace adjudicate charges and complaints in a Court.  This power is reserved to a Magistrate or Additional Magistrate.

The 1977 amendment to the Act gave Justices of the Peace the same power as a Magistrate to issue a warrant of arrest or a search warrant, to grant bail by recognizance with security for the appearance of any person before a Magistrate and to administer oaths in cases allowed by law.

The Common Law powers which a Justice of the Peace has in addition to his statutory powers include administering oaths such as the swearing of affidavits, and are now largely repeated in the Act; but he may not affix a notarial seal unless he also holds an appointment as a notary public.

Visiting Committees of the Prison

Justices of the Peace were also formerly the only persons who could be appointed to the Visiting Committee of the Prison. The Governor may now appoint any fit and proper person.  Members of the Committee have wide powers including the power to visit the prison at any time, interview any prisoner, hear and report to the Governor on any application by a prisoner, try any disciplinary charge against a sub-ordinate officer which is referred to the Committee by the Officer-in-charge and impose disciplinary penalties. These powers are conferred only on those Justices who are members of the Visiting Committee.

Protection in the Exercise of Powers

In recent decades Justices of the Peace have, in practice, not exercised their powers to try cases under the Magistrate’s Code of Procedure Act, reflecting the fact that the offices of the Magistrate and Additional Magistrate have for the most part been filled.  In the exercise of judicial powers under the Act, Justices of the Peace enjoy the same immunities and protection as are accorded to a Magistrate. But the Justice of the Peace is not obligated to exercise the powers conferred on him by the Act.

Who may be Justices of the Peace

Justices of the Peace are appointed either by Warrant signed by the Governor, or by virtue of an office held (ex officio) as stipulated in any Act. The Magistrate’s Code of Procedure Act (Cap. 44) empowers the Governor to appoint any “fit  and proper person” to be a Justice of the Peace.  He may also, for any reason he considers “ good and sufficient”, remove any Justice of the Peace from office.

The Magistrate and Additional Magistrates are Justice of the Peace ex officio.  So is “every Gazetted Police Officer and Inspector stationed in the Territory.”  (The Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police and Superintendents of Police are the Gazetted Police Officers at present.)  Furthermore, the Magistrate’s Code of Procedure Act was amended in 1981 specifically to make every elected member of the Legislative Council an ex officio Justice of the Peace while he or she is a member of that body.

Find a list of BVI Justices of the Peace