II. Complete the open dialogue and learn it by heart

F.	…
S.	The matter is that English law is one of the great legal systems of the world, and a substantial proportion of it is ruled today by laws that came originally from this small island.
F.	…
S.	As a rule English law is characterized by continuous growth, absence of codification, judicial character of the law, independence of judiciary and lawyers, influence of procedure, no reception of Roman law, the doctrine of precedent, practical nature of the law.
F.	…
S.	On the contrary, English law is traceable to Anglo-Saxon times.
F.	…
S.	As a matter of fact English common law, which forms the basis of English law, was of native growth and little influenced by Roman Law, unlike the law of Continental countries and Scotland which was shaped by it.
F.	…
S.	To tell the truth English common law has endured for 900 years and has continuously adapted itself to changing social and economic needs.
F.	…
S.	I don't think so. Old rules of law remain law despite their age, unless expressly repealed.
F.	…
S.	To make a long story short whereas Continental countries have been subject to continual invasions, revolutions, declarations of independence and the like, the geographical separation of England from the Continent, coupled with the Englishman's traditional respect for law, have tended to preserve the independent and uninterrupted growth of English law.

UNIT 14

MAKING A LAW

BEFORE YOU READ

Answer these questions

1. Do you agree that in today's world there is often the need for new laws to be made? Why?

2. Where are most British laws made? Do you think that the procedure of making a law is complex or not? Why?

READING TASKS

A. Understanding main points

Read the text below about making new laws and answer these questions, beginning your answers with the fol­lowing phrases: as a rule …; to tell the truth …; as far as I know …; the matter is that …; as far as I remember …; as far as I am concerned …; frankly/strictly speak­ing …; to make a long story short …

1. What is leg­islation? What is the difference between Acts of Parliament and delegated legislation?

2. How many laws does the Parliament pass every year? Are ministers lawmakers too? Why?

3. What types of Bill do you know? What do they differ in?

4. Where can Bills begin? What stages do they have to go through? Does it make any difference whether the Bill starts in the Commons or the Lords?

5. Why do we say that First Reading is a formal procedure? At what stage is the main debate on the whole Bill held?

6. What can you say about Committee Stage? In what cases does the whole House sit as a committee instead of a select committee?

7. When does the Bill pass to the House of Lords? What stages does it have to go through there?

8. When does a Bill become a new law or Act of Parliament? Do you agree that the royal assent is merely a formality? Why?

9. What is the procedure of passing the bill in the United States?

10. Does the president have the right to veto the bill? Can the bill still become a law if the president vetoes it? When?

B. Understanding details

Mark these statements T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the text. Give your reason using the fol­lowing phrases: as a matter of fact ...; I don't think so …; I'm of the same opinion …; in my opinion …; on the contrary …; strictly speaking ...; to my mind ...

1. Today most laws are made by government departments in Britain.

2. The Parliament sometimes passes a very general law and leaves the Prime Minister to fill in the details.

3. No new law can be made by the Parliament unless it has completed a number of stages in the House of Lords.

4. A public Bill is normally drafted by lawyers in the civil service on instructions from the Prime Minister or another government minister.

5. A private member's Bill deal with local matters and individuals. A private Bill makes law for the whole country.

6. Once a Bill has passed its Third Reading in the Commons it then passes to the House of Lords where it will have to go through the same stages.

7. The House of Lords has the job of reviewing Bills received from the Commons.

8. After an Act has received the Royal Assent, it comes into force straight away.

9. In the USA the Senate is the lawmaking arm of the federal government. Any Congressman in the Senate may initiate new legislation.

10. Once passed by the Senate as a whole, the bill has to be examined by two more standing committees.

MAKING NEW LAWS

In today's world there is often the need for new laws to be made. Today most laws are made by Parliament or government departments. Any law made by these is called, in general terms, leg­islation. Laws passed by Parliament are also known as statute laws or Acts of Parliament. Laws made by government ministers and their departments are called delegated legislation.

Every year the Parliament passes about one hundred Laws directly by making Acts of Parliament. The Parliament sometimes passes a very general law and leaves a minister to fill in the details. Using the powers given to them by the Parliament ministers become lawmakers themselves.

No new law can be made by the Parliament unless it has completed a number of stages in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Bills can begin in the House of Lords or the House of Commons, so they can pass through Parliament in one of two ways:

1. Commons → 2. Lords → 3. Queen \

ACT

1. Lords → 2. Commons → 3. Queen /

There are different types of Bill:

The main sorts of Bill are: public Bill, private member's Bill and private Bill. A public Bill is a Bill dealing with matters of public importance which will affect either the whole country or a large section of it. A public Bill is usually introduced into Parliament by the Government. It will normally have been drafted by lawyers in the civil service on instructions from the Prime Minister or another government minister. The majority of Bills are in this category.

A private member's Bill is a Bill introduced by an individual Member of Parliament. Since time for private members' Bills is limited as they are usually only debated on Fridays, there is a ballot in each session of Parliament to choose which members shall have the chance to present a Bill. Twenty names are selected, although only the first six or seven MPs chosen are likely to get the chance to present their Bill. Very few private members' Bills become law, but there have been some important laws passed as a result of such Bills. It is also possible for a member of the House of Lords to introduce a private member's Bill.

Private Bills deal with local matters and individuals. This is a Bill designed to pass a law which will only affect or benefit individual people or corporations. A private Bill does not make law for the whole country.

Whether the Bill starts in the Commons or the Lords it will have to go through the following stages: First Reading, Second Reading, Committee Stage, Report Stage, Third Reading, House of Lords and Royal Assent.

First Reading is a formal procedure in which the name of the Bill and its main aims are read out and there is usually no discussion or debate on the Bill.

Second Reading is the main debate on the whole Bill. It is a debate on the main principles rather than the details. The MPs who wish to speak in the debate will try to catch the Speaker's eye, since the Speaker controls all debates in the House. At the end of the debate there will be a vote. The House votes to decide whether the Bill should continue its passage through Parliament. If at any stage there is a majority vote against the Bill, then it does not go any further.

After its second reading the Bill continues to its Committee Stage where either eighteen Members from both Government and Opposition or the House itself as a committee discuss it in detail, considering many possible changes, if necessary. For money Bills the whole House sits as a committee instead of a select committee. This is followed by Report Stage when the committee reports back to the rest of the House with its suggested amendments.

At the Third Reading stage there is a final vote on the Bill as a whole. There will be a further debate on the general principles of the Bill only if at least six MPs request it. The Bill cannot be changed at this stage, it is either accepted or rejected. Once a Bill has passed its Third Reading in the Commons it then passes to the House of Lords where it will have to go through the same stages.

The House of Lords has the job of reviewing Bills received from the Commons. A different group of people can often see something in a completely different way. The House of Lords often makes changes to Commons Bills. The power of the Lords to reject a Bill has been severely curtailed. A money Bill must be passed by the Lords without amendment within a month of being presented in the House. When the House of Lords makes amendments to the Bill those amendments will be considered by the House of Commons before the Bill goes through to its final stage. The Act of 1949 provides that any Public Bill passed by the Commons in two successive parliamentary sessions and rejected both times by the Lords, may be presented for the Royal Assent, even though it has not been passed by the Lords. The Lords, therefore, can only delay the passage of a Public Bill, they cannot reject it.

Once both Houses of Parliament have passed a Bill, the bill goes to the reigning monarch. The Queen also has to sign a Bill to show that it has been given the Royal Assent. Only after the Royal Assent it becomes a new law or Act of Parliament. Before this it is called a Bill. Nowadays the royal assent is merely a formality. In theory the queen could still refuse her consent. Even after an Act has received the Royal Assent, it may not come into force straight away. In order to be enforced, it must be published in Statute form, becoming a part of Statute Law.

In the USA the US Congress, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate, is the lawmaking arm of the federal government. Any Congressman in either house, or the president, may initiate new legislation. The proposed legislation, or bill, is first introduced in the House of Representatives, then referred to one of the standing committees, which organizes hearings on it and may approve, amend or shelve the draft. If the committee passes the bill, it is considered by the House of Representatives as a whole. If passed there, it goes to the Senate for a similar sequence of committee hearings and general debate.

In cases of disagreement, the House of Representatives and the Senate confer together. Once passed by the Senate as a whole, the bill has to be examined by two more standing committees, the Committee on House Administration and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and is then signed by the speaker of the House and by the president of the Senate.

Finally it must be signed by the president, who has the right to veto it. If the president vetoes a bill, it can still become a law, but only if it is passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress.