Comprehension Questions

1. How do the legal systems vary?

2. How are the most systems classified?

3. What countries have the common - law system?

4. Why did the English call their system the common - law?

5. What is the reason for expanding and overruling any precedents?

6. Why did some common - law principles prove too precious to change?

7.Has the lawmaking role of legislatures increased during 1900`s ? Give your examples.

Vocabulary Practice

1.Choose the necessary word and put it in the sentence.

1) The systems vary according to each country’s social … and form of … . 2) … system began in England many hundreds of years ago. 3) Judges could expand precedents to make them ... particular cases. 4) Case law is still … in common-law countries.

5) Common - law countries have kept… of the English legal system.

6) Constitutional law continues the common - law tradition of … the people’s rights

and liberties.

( a) the common-law; b) important; c) government; d) defending; e) traditions; f) suit; g) the basic feature).

2.Translate into English

1. Кожна незалежна держава має свою власну правову систему.

2. Системи можуть відрізнятися згідно соціальних традицій держави та форми правління.

3. Більшість систем поділяються на систему загального та цівільного права.

4. США, Канада, Великобританія та інші англо - мовні країни мають систему загального права.

5. Прецедентне право є важливим в країнах з системою загального права.

6. Конституційне право продовжуе традицію системи загального права по захисту прав та свобод громадян.

UNIT II. TEXTS FOR READING

1. Read and translate text 1.

LAW

One of the earliest systems of law of which we have knowledge is the collection of laws, known as the Code of Hammurabi, the Babylonian king, which was carved in stone about 1900 B.C., and which can be seen in the British Museum in London. Another early code is the code of Hebrew law, contained in the book of Exodus in the Bible.

In Greece each city state had its own law. Some Laws were common to many states, such as the laws relating to family life. In the seventh century B.C. Solon, the famous Athenian law-giver, provided a new law code. The Athenians did not consider it necessary to have legal experts for non-criminal cases. In a civil case the verdict was given by a jury, which might number any­thing from 201 to 2.500. The numbers of the jury listened to speeches made by the persons who had brought the case before them, and by their friends. Barristers were not allowed, but speeches were sometimes prepared by professional speech - writers.

Roman law is one of the greatest systems that has ever existed. It was based upon custom, and by A. D. 528 the quantity of Roman Law had become so immense that the Emperor Justinian in Constantinople ordered a clear, systematic code of all the laws to be made.

Roman law has had a deep influence upon the law of the world. The law of most European countries is based upon it, and it has had some influence on Anglo-Saxon law, which is the other great law system of the world. For many years Roman law seemed to be lost or forgotten, but it reappeared in the eleventh century, when there was a great revival of learning. Many European countries began to use Roman law in their courts. In France, however, until Napoleon codified the law in 1804, each province had its own laws. The Napoleon Code was a splendid achievement, and has been copied in many countries in Europe and South America.

WORD LIST

1. to be carved in stone – бути викарбуваним на камінні

2. to put laws into writing – записувати закони

3. to have a deep influence upon – мати глибокий вплив на

4. system of law – правова система

5. city-state – місто-держава

6. law-giver - законодавець

7. to provide a new law-code – створити новий кодекс законів

8. legal expert – юрист-фахівець

9. Нebrew – іудейський

10. verdict - вирок

11. jury- присяжні

12. barrister - адвокат

13. to reappear – з’явитися знову

14. revival- пожвавлення

15. to be based upon custom – бути заснованим за традицією

16. to become so immense – ставати таким численним, що...

Comprehension Questions:

1. What systems of law are the earliest?

2. What laws were common for many states in Greece?

3. Who was the famous Athenian law-giver?

4. What do you know about Roman law?

5. When did Napoleon codify the law?

2. Read and translate text 2

THE NATURE AND CATEGORIES OF LAW

I. One of the most obvious and most central characteristics of all societies is that they must possess some degree of order to permit the members to interact over a sustained period of time. Different societies, however, have different forms of order. Some societies are highly regimented with strictly enforced social rules whereas others continue to function with few strict rules being enforced. Order is therefore necessary, but the form through which order is maintained is certainly not universal.

In civilized societies law plays an important role in the creation and maintenance of social legal order by dealing with disorder and various conflicts through different civil and criminal institutions and procedures. Almost every aspect of life in the modern state is regulated or affected in some way by law. There are laws, which provide for the remedying of defined grievances (e.g. by the payment of damages in respect of accidentally inflicted injuries), laws which prohibit anti-social activities and provide for the imposition of penal sanctions for breach (criminal law of murder or theft), laws which regulate potentially harmful activities by, for example, systems of licensing, registration or inspection, usually in conjunction with the prescription of standards (liquor licensing, the protection of health and safety at work), laws which facilitate private arrangements (marriages, contracts, wills) and others. Thus law is a formal mechanism of social control.

Black's Law Dictionary defines law as: "A body of rules of action or conduct prescribed by controlling authority and having binding legal force. Law is that which must be obeyed and followed by citizens and subjects to sanctions or legal consequences". This body of rules is formulated through mechanisms represented by the branches of government. The process of balancing the competing claims among various parties remains the single most necessary aspect of problem resolution through law.

What are the primary functions of law? Keeping the peace, shaping moral standards, and promoting social justice while maximizing individual freedom are certainly among the primary functions. Law also facilitates orderly change by passing statutes only after considerable study and debate.

II. There are various ways of categorizing law. Laws are traditionally divided into two main categories according to the solemnity of the form in which they are made. They may either be written or unwritten. These traditional terms are misleading, because the expression 'written' law signifies any law that is formally enacted, whether reduced to writing or not, and the expression 'unwritten' law signifies all unenacted laws. For example, judicial decisions are often reduced to writing in the form of law reports, but because they are not formal enactments they are 'unwritten' law.

Considered from the aspect of the sources, English law can also be divided into Statute Law, Common Law and Case Law. Statute Law consists of all laws passed by the Parliament and confirmed by the Sovereign. They are called Acts of Parliament or statutes. Common Law consists of the principles and rules, of conduct based on the ancient customs of the country and recognized by the courts as laws. Common Law is unwritten because these rules were not enacted by the Parliament. The 'common law' was the term that came to be used for the laws and customs applied by the royal courts which emerged after the Norman Conquest. The Common Law progressively replaced local laws and customs applied in local courts and became common throughout the country. Just as many ancient customs make up the Common Law, the collected decisions of the courts form English Case Law, which is also often referred to as 'common law'. The term 'common law' is used here to denote rules derived from binding decisions of the superior courts in contrast to those derived from statutes.

Law also can be divided into private law, which involves relationships between individual citizens, and public law concerning the relationships of the individual and the state and involves matters of state power. Civil law and criminal law are the forms of private law and public law respectively.

WORD LIST

1. order - порядок

2. society - суспільство

3. regimented - організований

4. solemnity - важливість

5. binding – обов’язковий

6. social - суспільний

7. sources – джерела

8. Common Law – загальне право

9. Case Law – прецедентне право

10. private law – приватне право

11. public law – публічне право

12. сivil law – громадянське право

13. criminal law – кримінальне право

Comprehensive Questions:

1. What is the role of law in civilized societies?

2. Why is it necessary for all societies to have some form of social order?

3. What is law?

4. What are the main functions of law?

5. What are the main ways of classifying law?

6. What are the main sources of English law?

7. Which law regulates relationships between individual citizens?

8. What kind of legal relations does public law regulate?

3. Read and translate text 3.