Unit 2 Sources of Law

The unique characteristic of American law is that а very substantial part of it is not to be found in statutes enacted by legislatures but rather in cases decided by the courts.

The concept of decided cases as а source of law comes to us from England. It is generally referred to as the common law. Common law system of heavy reliance on case precedent as а source of law must be contrasted with civil law systems, which developed in the countries on European continent. Those countries have codified their laws - reduced them to statutes - so that the main source of law in those countries is to be found in the statutes rather than in the cases.

Under the common law system there is а large number of statutes, but these are only а part of the law. The statutes must be in keeping with the constitutions - federal and state - and the courts can overrule а statute that is found to violate constitutional provisions.

Statutes and constitutions are classified as «written law». Also included under this heading are treaties that by the federal constitution also а part of the supreme law of the land. Case law, as opposed to written law, is not set forth formally but is derived from an analysis of each case that uncovers what legal propositions the case stands for. It is not proper to call this «unwritten» law because it is in fact in writing. However, it must be distinguished from statutory law in that it is not the product of the legislature but is rather the product of the courts. When а court decides а case, particularly upon an appeal from а lower-court decision, the court writes an opinion setting forth among other things the reasons for its decision. From these written opinions rules of law can be deduced and these make up the body of what is called case law or common law. The basic characteristic of the common law is that а case once decided establishes а precedent that will be followed by the courts when similar controversies are later presented.

А third, source of law is administrative law. Federal, state and local administrative agencies make law by promulgating rules and regulations as well as by making decisions concerning matters under their jurisdiction.

In summary, the law comes from written laws such as constitutions, statutes, ordinances and treaties; from case law, which is based on judicial decisions; and from the rules and decisions of administrative agencies.

Notes

1. statute - статут, закон, законодавчий акт

2. legislature - законодавчий орган, влада

3. common law - загальне право

4. to be contrasted with - протиставитися

5. to be in keeping with - бути вiдповiдним

6. to overrule а statute - скасовувати закон (статут)

7. case law - прецедентне право

8. statutory law - статутне право (яке відображено у законодавчих актах)

9. to write an opinion - писати висновок

10. lower-court decision - рішення нижчого суду

Exercises

1) Fill in the blanks from the text above:

1. А very substantial part of American law is not be found in statutes enacted by legislatures but rather...

2. Common law system must be contrasted with...

3. The statutes must be in keeping with...

4. As opposed to written law case law is...

5. А case once decided...

6. А third source of law is...

7. In summary, the law comes from...

2) Match the following noun phrases with their Ukrainian equivalents:

1. Case law 1. цивільне право

2. written law 2. загальне право

3. administrative law 3. джерело права

4. common law 4. прецедентне право

5. substantia1 part 5. повна довіра

6. а source of law 6. суттєва частина

7. Civil law 7. конституційні положення

8. statutory law 8. вищий закон держави

9. heavy reliance 9. подібні спори

10. constitutiona1 provisions 10. писане право

11. supreme law of the land 11. судові рішення

12. product of the legislature 12. статутне право

13. similar controversies 13. адмiнiстративнi органи

14. judicial decision 14. продукт законодавчої влади

15. administrative agencies 15. адміністративне право

3) Match the following verb phrases with their Ukrainian equivalents:

1. to enact а statute 1. вирішувати справу

2. to decide а case 2. написати висновок

3. to codify 'laws 3. установити прецедент

4. to be in keeping with smth 4. обнародувати норми

5. to overrule а statute 5. кодифікувати закони

6. to violate provisions 6. відхилити закон

7. to set forth 7. складати основу

8. to be derived from 8. представляти спори

9. to be distinguished from 9. приймати закон (статут)

10. to write an opinion 10. відрізнятися від

11. to make up the body 11. приймати рішення

12. to establish а precedent 12. бути відповідним до чого-небудь

13. to present controversies 13. порушувати положення

14. to promulgate rules 14. формулювати

15. to make decisions 15. походити від

4) Find answers of the following questions in the text above:

1. What is the unique characteristic of American law?

2. Where does the concept of decided cases as а source of 1aw come from?

3. What have the countries on European continent codified?

4. What must the statutes be in keeping with under the common law system?

5. What is the difference between case law and statutory law?

6. What is the basic characteristic of the common law?

7. What is the third source of law?

5) Translate the following words and word combinations:

substantial part; source of law; common law; written law; case law; unwritten law; statutory law; administrative law; legal provisions; constitutional provisions; statutes and constitutions; state constitution; federal constitution; court opinion; judicial decision; rules and regulations.

6) Give English equivalents for the following words and word combinations:

джерело права; загальне право; прецедентне право; статутне право; писане право; вирішувати справу; судове рішення; рішення нижчого суду; встановлювати прецедент; федеральні та місцеві органи; обнародувати норми та положення; статути, ордонанси та договори; писати висновок.

7) Ask questions to get the following answers:

1. Common law system as а source of law must be contrasted with civil law system.

2. The courts can overrule а statute that is found to violate constitutional provisions.

3. Statutes and constitutions are classified as written law.

4. Case law is derived from an analysis of each case that uncovers what legal provisions the case stands for.

5. When а court decides а case, it writes an opinion setting forth the reasons for its decision.

Unit 3