Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876

Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act for amending the Law in respect of the Appellate Jurisdiction of the House of Lords; and for other purposes.
Citation39 & 40 Vict. c. 59
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent11 August 1876
Commencement1 November 1876, except where otherwise expressly provided[1]
Repealed1 October 2009[2]
Other legislation
Amended byStatute Law Revision Act 1883
Repealed byThe Constitutional Reform Act 2005, ss 145 & 146, & Sch 17, para 9 & Sch 18, pt 5
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 (39 & 40 Vict. c. 59) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered the judicial functions of the House of Lords by allowing senior judges to sit in the House of Lords as life peers with the rank of baron, known as Lords of Appeal in Ordinary.[3] The first person to be made a law lord under its terms was Sir Colin Blackburn on 16 October 1876, who became Baron Blackburn.

The Act was repealed by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005,[4] which transferred the judicial functions from the House of Lords to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Following the creation of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the practice of appointing Lords of Appeal in Ordinary was discontinued. The last person to be made a law lord was Sir Brian Kerr on 29 June 2009, who became Baron Kerr of Tonaghmore.

  1. ^ The Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876, section 2
  2. ^ The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (Commencement No. 11) Order 2009 (SI 2009/1604), articles 2(e) and (f)
  3. ^ McKechnie, William Sharp, 1909: The reform of the House of Lords; with a criticism of the Report of the Select Committee of 2nd December, 1908, p.13
  4. ^ The Constitutional Reform Act 2005, sections 145 and 146, and Schedule 17, paragraph 9, and Schedule 18, Part 5