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2(b) What are the advantages and disadvantages of having Lay Magistrates as opposed to professional judges? Some professional judges do sit in magistrates' courts and are known as District Judges. However, most of the work of these courts is carried out by unqualified individuals - the Lay Magistrates. The purpose of having Lay Magistrates is primarily to promote the idea of justice being carried by the common man - not just by a select and educated minority. The advantage of having Lay Magistrates is that defendants are more likely to respect the decisions of their 'peers' as opposed to a distant and unfamiliar judge. The use of Lay Magistrates encourages local participation in the legal and judicial system and it supports the idea of fairness and equality in the United Kingdom. Such involvement of lay people does, therefore, increase faith in the UK legal system. Nevertheless, the cases in magistrates' courts...

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