Home

justiciary

Justiciary refers to the administration of justice or to the judiciary within a legal system. It may denote the body of judges and courts responsible for applying the law, or the jurisdiction under which such authority operates. The term derives from medieval Latin iusticiarius, via Old French and English, and historically was used to designate an official with broad duties in the administration of justice, such as the justiciar, a royal official who exercised judicial and administrative authority on behalf of the sovereign.

In medieval England, for example, the office of the justiciar at times acted as the king's chief

In Scotland, the term survives in the name of the High Court of Justiciary, the supreme criminal

Today the term is mostly encountered in historical writing, in discussions of legal antiquities, or in the

minister
and
as
the
principal
administrator
of
justice;
in
other
periods
the
term
came
to
be
associated
with
the
general
system
of
royal
justice.
Similar
offices
and
concepts
appeared
in
other
medieval
kingdoms,
including
Scotland.
court
of
the
kingdom.
The
court
sits
to
try
serious
criminal
cases
and
to
hear
criminal
appeals;
its
judges
include
the
Lords
of
Justiciary.
The
usage
reflects
a
broader
historical
tradition
in
which
"justiciary"
names
the
central
authority
or
assembly
charged
with
the
enforcement
of
law
and
the
administration
of
criminal
justice.
formal
titles
of
specific
courts.
It
is
generally
synonymous
with
aspects
of
the
judiciary
or
criminal
justice
system,
though
its
practical
usage
outside
specific
jurisdictions
is
rare.