Which courts are open for public viewing in the UK?
I’m studying contract law so preferably a court dealing with civil cases (like the Queen’s Bench Division). Is it just the lower courts i.e. County Court that the public can attend?
The online courts which are routinely closed to the public are family and youth courts. Others may be closed, for example if they’re hearing an application in camera, very occassionally hearing secret evidence.
If you’re in London, your best bet is to go to the Royal Courts of Justice. Go through the security check, and in the middle of the main hall are a set of boards displaying the daily cause lists which will tell you what’s going on in each of the various court divisions and which court room it’s happening in. Things generally kick off around 10 am, and finish around 4 pm. At RCJ you can see both appeals (criminal and civil) and first instance trials (civil, high court).
The civil trials will tend to be heavy going though.