Text d laws in the usa

In our life, we will have to follow the laws of our local community, our state, and the nation. These laws have many sources and are enacted* for many purposes*. The sources of law in the USA include constitutions, statutes, court decisions, and administrative (government) regulations. Laws are made for the purposes of handling* disputes between individuals and dealing with criminal activities.

Constitutional Law. Constitutions are legal documents that explain the powers and limits of government and list the freedoms and rights of the people. The United States has a national constitution, and each state has a constitution that is modeled on the national one.

Statutory Law. A law that is enacted by a legislative (lawmaking) body is a statute. The US national lawmaking body is Congress. Laws passed by Congress apply to entire country. State legislatures enact state laws. Local legislative bodies, such as city councils, make local laws. Statutes can be changed if they are out of date or become unnecessary.

Court Decisions. Starting in the eleventh century in England, from the judges’ decisions, a series or rules based on general custom were developed. This body of law* based on judges’ decisions is called common law. Other judges then applied the rules to cases they were deciding, modifying the rules to reflect the changing values of people over time. To prevent too much uncertainty and unfairness, judgments made in earlier cases were written down. These cases established a precedent*.

Much law in the United States today is based on English common law. When there is no statute or when a law is not clear, the precedents established under common law are used by the courts to decide a case. In many cases, statutes are also based on common law.

Today the major role of judges is to interpret and apply existing statutes. Even though there are many laws at both the federal and state levels, sometimes it’s not clear which law is applied in a particular case. When courts decide such cases, they examine the facts of the case and review precedents. Precedents show how previous similar cases were handled. Most of these cases are collected and published so that lawyers and judges can refer to them.

Administrative Law. Administrative law is made and enforced by government agencies. These agencies are set up by legislatures to execute (carry out and enforce) laws that the legislatures have passed. Because of the work they do, the agencies are usually part of the executive branch of government. Once the agencies are set up, they issue rules and orders needed to carry out the statutes passed by lawmakers. These rules and regulations have the force of law.

to enact – приймати, вступати в силу

purpose – мета, задум, намір, призначення

to handle – регулювати, розглядати

body of law – кодекс законів

precedent – судовий прецедент

Exercise 10 Work with review questions. Answer them in writing.

1 What are the four main sources of law in the United States?

2 What purposes are laws made for?

3 What legal document is constitution?

4 What is a statute?

5 What is common law, and what are its origins?

6 When are the precedents used by the courts?

7 Why are government agencies set up by legislatures?

Speaking task B: use the questions from exercise 10 and discuss the US laws.

Exercise 11 Match the terms below with the definitions that follow. Learn them by heart.

amendment, judicial review, appellate jurisdiction, precedent, checks and balances, common law, constitution, statute

1 Court decisions that are referred to when courts are making decisions in future similar cases.

2 System set up in the U.S. Constitution that gives each branch of the federal government the power to influence what the other branches do.

3 Change or addition to the U.S. Constitution.

4 Body of law based on judges’ decisions.

5 Power of courts to rule whether a statute or act of government is unconstitutional.

6 Power of courts to review cases appealed from a lower court.

7 Law enacted by a legislative body.

8 Legal document that explains the powers and limits of governments and the rights of the people.

Exercise 12 Choose the best alternative to fill in the blank in each of the following sentences.

1 ... are not made by governments or written down.

A customs B laws C rules D constitutions

2 Tom is a person you can ... on .

A depend B put C go D rely

3 The city bank was ... by teenage computer hackers.

A stolen B gone C robbed D kidnapped

4 You’re so selfish and do everything for your personal ...

A pleasure B benefit C luck D body

5 The young teacher failed to ... order in the class.

A restore B maintain C organized D bring

6 He mustn’t be blamed: it was ...

A self-protection B self-control C self-respect D self-confidence

7 ... is a serious crime.

A murder B pickpocket C burglar D kidnapper

Exercise 13 Join two parts of conditional sentences and analyse their types. Translate them. For references see the grammar supplement.

1 If this person had not violated the law,	a) the investigator would question them
2 He would have prepared the report	b) if they collect enough evidence
3 If they were in custody,	c) he would not have been imprisoned
4 If the police had come in time,	d) if they came in time
5 The police may charge them with the crime,	e) if they didn’t listen to his testimony carefully
6 They would catch the suspect,	f) nothing wrong would have occurred
7 The jury would find him guilty,	g) if he had done the necessary investigation

Exercise 14 Read and translate the text which contrasts the criminal and civil law.