English для юристов. Гончар

Part ІI. BASIC COURSE

7. Guess the exact words Judge Pickles said to Fletcher:

He asked him why he did it. Then he told him he was definitely guilty. He told him to look at him when he was speaking to him. He asked him if he was sorry for what he had done. He told him that the police officer was still in hospital. He said he would go to prison for a long time for that crime. He asked him if he had anything to say in his defence. Then he told the policeman to take him away.

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Module 4 Unit 2

Text: The USA

Vocabulary in use

Language focus:

Used to (would) Participle I

Adjectives and Adverbs in 5ed and 5ing

Pre reading tasks

1. Discuss the following questions:

1.Who was the first President of the USA?

2.How many political parties has the USA?

3.Name the two political parties in the U.S. and say which animals symbolize each party?

4.What is Washington D.C.?

5.Why is the national flag of the USA called «stars and stripes»? Explain the symbolism of the stripes and the stars on the U.S. flag.

6.Who is the President of the USA now?

2.Match the following English words and expressions with their Ukrainian equivalents:

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Reading tasks

1.Read the text about the USA to understand what information is of primary importance or new for you.

Notes on the text:

D.C. (District Columbia) — Округ Колумбія Electoral College — (амер.) колегія виборщиків (на президентських виборах)

The USA

The United States of America, popularly referred to as the United States or as America is a federal republic on the continent of North America, consisting of 50 states. New York City is the largest city in the United States. Washington, D.C., is the capital.

The supreme law of the land is the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution was drafted in 1787, was ratified by the requir5 ed two5thirds of the states by June 1788, and was put into effect in 1789. The first ten amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were adopted in 1791. They provide for freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, the right to assemble, the right to petition the government, and various due process and criminal procedure rights for individuals. Seventeen additional amendments were adopted between 1795 and 1992, abolishing slavery, providing for an income tax, and providing for universal suffrage for all people 18 or older, among other purposes.

The Constitution provides for a union of states, each with its own constitution, republican form of government, and reserved powers, within a federal system. The national government is responsible for external affairs and has concurrent powers with states, common5 wealths, and self5governing territories over domestic matters. The head of state is the President of the United States; and the seat of government is the District of Columbia, which has limited home rule and no voting representation in the national legislature.

The Constitution establishes three separate branches of govern5 ment: the legislative, executive, and judicial.

Article II of the Constitution states that a president and vice president are chosen by a majority of voters in the Electoral College, for a fixed term of four years. The 22nd Amendment (1951) limits presidents to two terms

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in office. By state law, electors are chosen by a plurality of the popular vote in each state and in the District of Columbia. In almost all cases the winner of the popular vote is elected president.

The American President typically has a greater range of functions than prime ministers in parliamentary governments because the President serves as ceremonial chief of state as well as head of gove5 rnment. Unlike most presidents in other nations, the American Pres5 ident is also the head of his or her party, an important legislative leader, and the chief executive. The Constitution makes the President Com5 mander5in5Chief of the U.S. armed forces.

The president’s diplomatic powers include negotiation and rati5 fication of treaties, with the consent of two5thirds of the Senate; the appointment of ambassadors to foreign nations, also with the consent of the Senate; and the reception of foreign ambassadors. The president negotiates, on his or her own authority, executive agreements with leaders of other nations.

An extensive advisory system serves the president. The President’s cabinet also serves as a source of information and advice. It consists of the heads of the governmental departments and a few other officials, such as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations (UN). The cabinet has no power of its own.

All legislative powers granted by the Constitution in Article I are exercised by the Congress of the United States. Congress consists of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Senate contains 100 senators, two representing each state — a provision of the Constitution not subject to amendment. The 435 members of the Hou5 se are elected by the different states on the basis of their population at the most recent U.S. census. Every two years all 435 members of the House are elected, and one5third of the senators.

Congress has extensive powers in domestic affairs, including the power to tax, borrow money and pay debts, coin money and regulate its value, and regulate commerce among the states. Congress helps to establish and oversees the departments and agencies of the executive branch; it also esta5 blishes the lower federal courts and determines their jurisdiction. Congress has the power to declare war, raise and maintain the armed forces, establish tariffs, and regulate commerce with foreign nations.

The legislative branch also includes agencies such as the Con5 gressional Budget Office, the General Accounting Office, the Library of Congress, and the Government Printing Office.

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Part ІI. BASIC COURSE

The federal court system derives its powers from Article III of the Constitution. The system includes the Supreme Court of the United States, established by the Constitution; and 12 courts of appeal (sometimes called circuit courts), 91 district courts, and special courts, all established by Congress.

The federal courts perform two constitutional functions. First, they interpret the meaning of laws and administrative regulations. Second, the courts determine whether any law passed by Congress or state legislatures, or any administrative action taken by the national or state executive branches, violates the U.S. Constitution. Federal courts can declare null and void laws or actions, at the national and state levels, that violate the Constitution.

The nine justices of the Supreme Court and the other federal judges are nominated by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. The president, in making district court nominations, usually follows the recommendations of senators from the president’s party. All federal judges and justices of the Supreme Court serve on good be5 haviour for life. They may be removed from office only through the process of impeachment, which has been used fewer than 20 times, and never successfully against a Supreme Court justice.

2.Mark these statements T (true) or F (false) according to the text. Find the part of the text that gives the correct information:

1.The law5making body of the USA government is called the Con5 gress.

2.The Congress consists of two chambers.

3.The US President is the head of its military forces.

4.There is an equal number of Senators representing each state in The USA.

5.Presidential elections in the USA are held every five years.

6.The elected President can’t serve as long as he wins elections.

7.Besides others the executive branch includes the Library of Con5 gress.

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8.The President of the USA nominates nine justices of the Supreme Court.

9.The president’s Cabinet has no power of its own.

10.The President is the chief executive of the USA.

3.Find in the text and decide from the context what the word could mean, then choose the appropriate definition:

1)office

a)room used as a place for business;

b)buildings of a government department;

c)public position of authority

2)task

a)use or practice of powers, duties or rights;

b)activity for physical, mental or spiritual training

3)seat

a)something for sitting on

b)a place where something is located or based;

c)a parliamentary constituency;

d)membership on a legislative authority

4)state

a)the condition of a person or thong with respect to circumstances;

b)a nation or a government, a country;

c)a part of the USA

5)justice

a)a judge of the Supreme Court;

b)the administration of what is just according to law;

c)rightfulness or lawfulness

6)term

a)the time or period, usually fixed;

b)a word defining something in a particular field;

c)pl. conditions and stipulations;

d)pl. words expressed in a specified way

7)house

a)a building in which people live;

b)a legislative or deliberative body;

c)a building for any purpose

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Part ІI. BASIC COURSE

8)rule

a)a principle or regulation governing conduct, procedure;

b)control or government;

c)the customary or normal condition, practice

4.PREPOSITIONS. Choose the right preposition in brackets according to the contents of the sentences (by, from, in, on, with, to, for, of, through).

1.The two houses of Congress are responsible … enacting the nation’s laws.

2.Why is the state flag of the USA referred … as «stars and stripes»?

3.How many justices does the Supreme Court consist …?

4.The State of Louisiana has a Roman civil form of law which derives from its days … a French colony?

5.What process can the President be removed … the office …?

6.The chairman of the House of Representatives, the Speaker is elected … the House.

7.All the High Court judges are nominated … life … the President.

8.What freedoms were provided … by the Bill of Rights?

9.The American President serves … ceremonial chief of the state.

10.What office can a person be appointed only … the consent of the Senate?

BUILD UP YOUR VOCABULARY

5. Substitute the active vocabulary of the lesson for the italicized parts.

1.The preliminary version of the constitution was composed in 1787.

2.This law was implemented in 2001.

3.The American people were proud of the decision to put an end to slavery in their country.

4.No country has a right to interfere into the internal affairs of the other states.

5.The interpretation of the law meaning is performed by the Supreme Court of the USA.

6.Federal courts may declare laws violating the Constitution invalid.

7.The ambassador of the country has no absolute right for the rati5 fication of any formal agreement reached by negotiations between two or more countries without consent of the President.

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8.The US President is the head of the state and Commander5in5chief of the armed forces.

6.The verbs below can all be used to form nouns. Find in the text the nouns which have related meanings and make up your own sentences with them: Example: To lead — a leader (n.) e.g. Who is the leader of the political party?

To lead, to amend, to negotiate, to vote, to ratify, to regulate, to vote, to ratify, to advise, to agree, to treat, to advise, to appoint, to legislate

Post reading tasks

1.From the text select the information which was new for you or shocked you.

2.List some similarities and differences between the US system of government and that of your own country.

3.Summarize everything you have learnt about the system of the US government (do it in written form).

4.Who’s the Chief? Match a line A with a line B.

e)Ukraine

f)The British Commonwealth of Nations

g)The UK government

LANGUAGE FOCUS

Participle I

1.Rewrite the following sentences as in the example:

A.Example:The men who work in the Procurator’s Office are my col* leagues. – The men working in the Procurator’s Office are my colleagues.

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Part ІI. BASIC COURSE

1. The United States of America is a federal republic that consists of 50 states. 2. The head of state is the monarch who reigns. 3. Several amendments to the Bill of Rights were adopted that abolished slavery and provided for an income tax. 4. Congress has powers in domestic affairs which include the power to regulate commerce among states. 5. The federal court system in the USA which includes the Supreme Court, courts of appeal, district courts and special courts, is rather different from any other court system we have already studied. 6. The lawyer who is announcing the sentence is a judge. 7. The unknown man who is following us looks like a criminal.

B. Example: When she heard the strange noise, she turned around.

— Hearing the strange noise she turned around.

1. When I looked through the report on the presidential budget I realized everything. 2. When the President said about the victims he thought about his own family. 3. When they recognized his voice on the cassette, they became suspicious. 4. When the stranger saw the congressman, he demanded to stop. 5. When I went out of the court, I remembered I was going to visit the Library of Congress. 6. When they pass a law they always think if it violates the US Constitution. 7. When I realized what had happened, I called the police.

C. Example: I read the article and made notes. — I read the article making notes.

1.The senator looked at me and smiled. 2. At the time of negotiati5 ons I spoke and trembled. 3. The judge told about his youth and showed old pictures with blood on them. 4. He turned over the pages of voting forms and counted the number of votes for his elector. 5. The President was making his speech and looked at the audience. 6. They looked through the presidential budget requests and made notes.

2.Translate the following sentences into Ukrainian. Point out Participles:

1.People appeased the gods in ritualistic ceremonies ending in sacrifice or expulsion of the wrongdoer. 2. Numerous administrative agencies now make rules that deal with all kinds of activity, including li5 censing and protection of health. 3. Recently there have been continuous

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debates regarding the legitimacy of government intervention in matt5 ers of birth control. 4. In the 6th century a commission consolidated all sources of law including the opinions of great legal scholars. 5. All criminal trials in Britain are held before a judge and a jury consisting of 12 ordinary people. 6. Looking back over English legal history it is plain to see that the old local customs at and around the time of the Norman Conquest are the historical source of the common law. 7. When emerging from the Lords the Bill may be amended. 8. Being the most serious o5 ffences, these cases are always tried by federal court judges.

3. Translate the following word combinations into English:

Сенат, що складається з сенаторів штатів; люди, що голо5 сують на виборах; партія, що керує країною; закон, що захищає права громадян; законотворчий орган; партія, що перемагає на виборах; кабінет, що складається з міністрів.

4.Translate the following sentences into English:

1.Конгрес має великі повноваження, включаючи владу стягу5 вати податки, позичати гроші, платити борги та регулювати комерційні справи між штатами. 2. Судді, які обіймають посаду все життя, можуть бути звільнені тільки після процесу імпіч5 мента. 3. Конгрес, який складається з двох палат, має владні повноваження щодо вирішення внутрішніх справ. 4. У Королев5 ському суді Об’єднаного Королівства працюють три види суддів, залежно від серйозності справи. 5. Дії або закони, що порушують Конституцію, можуть бути визнані недійсними. 6. Після від5 правлення вбивці до тюрми суддя зітхнув з полегшенням. 7. Кон5 гресс займається справами відносин з іншими країнами, регу5 люючи комерцію з іноземними державами.

Used to (would)

Complete these sentences with used to + Infinitive of a suitable verb:

1. He…a lot because his job was connected with commerce among the states. 2. They…the members of the House of Representatives presenting California and Vermont. 3. She…work much as she was an advisor at the Central Intelligence Agency; now she is retired and has a plenty of time. 4. They…an income tax but now the presidential

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