Church of England. Court of Arches

The Court of Arches is the court of appeal for the province of Canterbury. A precise date for the establishment of the court cannot be established, but by the time of Archbishop Pecham (1279) it appears to be well established as a court of appeal for the province from diocesan and lower courts (See I.J.Churchill 'Canterbury Administration' (London: SPCK 1933) vol. 1 pp.424ff for a discussion of the origins and early history of the court). Cases might come before it by way of a direct appeal from a definitive sentence, or by devolution through defect of justic either suffered or feared in a lower court, or by appeal for protection of the court of Canterbury.

After the Restoration the jurisdiction of the court of Arches was in all matters pertaining to the jurisdiction of ecclesiastical courts in general. The cases are divided into two categories: the 'instance' cases between two parties, which include cases of defamation of character and of matrimonial and testamentary cases (until 1858), and 'ex officio' cases prosecuted by or on behalf of the judge. The latter include cases of lay and clerical discipline or 'correction', and parish affairs (ie church fabric, faculties, church rates, tithes etc). There are also a few cases of officials of inferior courts being sued for illegal practices, and proctors suing for the payment of their fees.

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