Star Chamber

This article is about the court. For other uses, see Star Chamber (disambiguation).

The court of Star Chamber (Latin: Camera stellata) was an English court that sat at the royal Palace of Westminster, from the late 15th century to the mid-17th century (c. 1641), and was composed of privy counsellors and common-law judges, to supplement the judicial activities of the common-law and equity courts in civil and criminal matters.

It was originally established to ensure the fair enforcement of laws against socially and politically prominent people sufficiently powerful that ordinary courts might hesitate to convict them of their crimes. It was mainly a court of appeal and could impose any penalty, except the death penalty, in its own right.[1]: 262–263  At various times it had sub-courts for particular areas, notably for appeals of "poor man's causes".[2]: 492 

The Chamber building itself was also sometimes used for other councils, courts, and committee meetings, which may cause confusion as to the role of the court of Star Chamber.[3]: 520 

In modern times, legal or administrative bodies with strict, arbitrary rulings, no due process rights to those accused, and secretive proceedings are sometimes metaphorically called "star chambers".[a] However, the arbitrariness is considered mythological by at least one academic.[5]

  1. ^ Maitland, Frederic William (1911). The Constitutional History of England: A Course of Lectures. Cambridge: University Press.
  2. ^ Guy, J. A. (1976). "Wolsey, the Council and the Council Courts". The English Historical Review. 91 (360): 481–505. doi:10.1093/ehr/XCI.CCCLX.481. ISSN 0013-8266. JSTOR 566623.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference pollard was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Wallace claims NAMA official sought bribe". RTÉ News. 15 July 2015.
  5. ^ Barnes, Thomas G. (1961). "Star Chamber Mythology". The American Journal of Legal History. 5 (1): 1–11. doi:10.2307/844462. ISSN 0002-9319. JSTOR 844462.


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