Coke was subsequently elevated to the position of Chief of Common
Pleas and then to Chief of the King's Bench. But there Coke
propounded a doctrine of the supremacy of the law over the king as
well as over Parliament. For instance, Coke would not agree to
stay any case in which the king had a concern in power or profit,
to consult with him. But the other eleven justices did agree.
Since James I believed in the divine right of kings, he therefore
dismissed Coke from his position as Chief Justice of the King's
Bench. James even believed that he could suspend any law for
reasons known only to him and issue proclamations that were not
limited to the reinforcement of old laws, but made new offenses
with punishment of fine and/or imprisonment.
Coke then became a member of Parliament and led the Commons, where
he exalted the authority of Parliament vis a vis the king; that
is, the king could not make any changes in law, religion, or
taxation without consent of Parliament. James arrested Coke and
two other members of the Commons and put its leader John Pym under
house arrest for their outspoken opinions against the King's
intended alliance with Catholic Spain and intended taking of a
Spanish wife. Because of the deadlock that developed between the
king and Parliament, certain matters could not be addressed by
legislation and were left to be decided judicially. This made
judicial review important.
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