The UK Supreme Court will be at the National Assembly all this week for its inaugural sitting in Wales.
Lady Hale, President of the Supreme Court, will preside alongside the Deputy President and Justices over four days of hearings which will take place in Ty Hywel from 22 July to 25 July. The hearings will be open to the public so they can witness the highest court in the UK in action.
On their arrival in Cardiff on Monday 22 July, the Supreme Court will be welcomed by the Llywydd, Elin Jones AM, and the Counsel General in a special reception at the Senedd.
As part of the opening event, organised by Legal Wales and the Welsh Legal History Society, Dr Sara Elin Roberts will give a lecture on “Hywel Dda and the Welsh Laws”. The Supreme Court will also get the chance to view a facsimile of The Boston Manuscript of the Laws of Hywel Dda, dating back to the 14th Century which is usually kept at the National Library of Wales. Members of the public will also be able to view the facsimile at the National Assembly all week.
The Llywydd, Elin Jones, AM said:
“This week is as a truly historic one, as we host the Supreme Court’s inaugural visit to Wales. The Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the United Kingdom and hears appeals on points of law of the greatest public importance. It also decides devolution issues, notably for us, cases about whether Acts of the National Assembly are within its legislative competence.”
The Supreme Court is the final court of appeal in the UK for civil cases, and for criminal cases from England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It hears cases of the greatest public or constitutional importance affecting the whole population.
It previously sat in Scotland in 2017 and in Northern Ireland in 2018.