Under English ecclesiastical law, the Court of Faculties is a tribunal of the Archbishop of Canterbury

Archbishop of Canterbury

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...

, and is attached to the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The jurisdiction conferred upon the Archbishop of Canterbury

Archbishop of Canterbury

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...

 by the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 is exercised by the Court of Faculties. This includes the appointment and removal of notaries public, and the granting of those licences and faculties which are the concern of the Archbishop of Canterbury, such as special and ordinary marriage licences. The Lambeth degrees are also conferred by the Court of Faculties. The Master of the Faculties

Master of the Faculties

The Master of the Faculties is a functionary in the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury and has some important powers in English law, in particular the appointment and regulation of public notaries. The position is always held by the Dean of Arches....

, who is appointed by the Archbishop, subject to the approval of the Crown, is also the Dean of the Arches.

The court:

1. creates rights as to pew
   Pew
   A pew is a long bench seat or enclosed box used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a church, or sometimes in a courtroom.-Overview:Churches were not commonly furnished with permanent pews before the Protestant Reformation...
   
   s, monument
   Monument
   A monument is a type of structure either explicitly created to commemorate a person or important event or which has become important to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, or simply as an example of historic architecture...
   
   s, and rights of burial
   Burial
   Burial is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over.-History:...
   
   ;
2. grants licenses such as marriage
   Marriage
   Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
   
    licenses, a faculty to erect an organ in a parish church, to level a churchyard, or to exhume bodies buried in a church cemetery
   Cemetery
   A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
   
   . These rights are granted under 25 Hen VII c. 21; and
3. issues notaries public
   Notary public
   A notary public in the common law world is a public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with estates, deeds, powers-of-attorney, and foreign and international business...
   
   , after the passage of the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 (UK), which was a direct result of the Reformation
   English Reformation
   The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
   
    in England
   England
   England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
   
   . Notaries public in some Commonwealth
   Commonwealth of Nations
   The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
   
    jurisdictions such as New Zealand and the State of Queensland, Australia are still appointed through the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury by the Court of Faculties.
4. issues faculties for the creation and conferral of Lambeth degrees.

See also ecclesiastical court

Ecclesiastical court

An ecclesiastical court is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages in many areas of Europe these courts had much wider powers than before the development of nation states...

.