IANAL or legal expert, but: Magistrates' courts are where criminal cases are first dealt with in English law. If the offence is indictable then the next step w

IANAL or legal expert, but: Magistrates' courts are where criminal cases are first dealt with in English law. If the offence is indictable then the next step will be to move the case to the crown court (unless the offence is an "either way" offence and the summary procedure is elected instead). So it would make sense to me that extradition hearings are dealt with, in the first instance, by a magistrates' court; after all the court is not actually determining guilt, but merely whether there's a prima facie evidence of guilt. There are procedural safeguards in place, namely that one may appeal to the High Court (and then, ultimately, the Supreme Court) if the magistrate's court send the case to the Secretary of State for approval and the latter approves the extradition.