ABSTRACT
This chapter explains why tribunals were introduced and discusses the differences between courts and tribunals. A tribunal, like a court of law, is a forum in which disputes are settled by an impartial adjudicator. There are over 70 tribunals in England and Wales, although few of these hear more than 500 cases a year. All tribunals are established by statute under which their jurisdiction, membership and procedure is defined. The new Tribunals Service was created as an Executive Agency of the Ministry of Justice and was operated under the responsibility of the Secretary of State, who is accountable to Parliament. The Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council (AJTC) replaced the Council on Tribunals and was a non-departmental public body until its abolition in 2013. In relation to legal representation, the government White Paper favoured its reduction in tribunal hearings.
