UK's first Supreme Court comes into being

The UK's first Supreme Court came into being today with the swearing in of 11 judges, replacing the House of Lords as the highest appeal tribunal, a move aimed at establishing judicial independence in the country.

The UK's first Supreme Court came into being on Thursday with the swearing in of 11 judges, replacing the House of Lords as the highest appeal tribunal, a move aimed at establishing judicial independence in the country.

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Eleven new Justices took their oaths of office in the new Supreme Court building across Parliament Square in central London at a function attended among others by India's Law Minister M Veerappa Moily.

Law Lords in the House of Lords, upper house of the British Parliament, thus far used to perform the role of final court of appeal for England, Wales and Northern Ireland since 1876. Before then, it was the job of ordinary peers.

The court is independent of Parliament and will hear the most important cases, thereby breaking the convention according to which the legislature used to enjoy judicial powers. After his swearing in, Lord Nicholas Phillips, the President of the new court, said the move was important for "judicial openness".

He said: "this is the last step in the separation of powers in this country. We have come to it fairly gently and gradually, but we have come to the point where the judges are completely separated from the legislative and executive.