tribunal

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Strictly, a court of justice, but used in English law for a body appointed by the government to arbitrate in disputes, or investigate certain matters. Tribunals usually consist of a lawyer as chair, sitting with two lay assessors.

In English law, there are various kinds of tribunal. Administrative tribunals deal with claims and disputes about rights and duties under statutory schemes; for example, industrial tribunals (dealing with employment rights, such as unfair dismissal claims) and rent tribunals (fixing fair rents for protected tenants). Mental health review tribunals make decisions about patients detained in mental hospitals. Domestic tribunals are the internal disciplinary bodies of organizations such as professional bodies and trade unions. Tribunals of inquiry are set up by the government to investigate matters of public concern; for example, the King's Cross Fire Disaster Inquiry and the Cleveland Child Abuse Inquiry 1988, and the Prison Overcrowding and Riots Inquiry 1990.

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