Unit 1. The first laws: laws of Babylon

Chapter I: THE FIRST LAWS

LEAD- IN DISCUSSION

Make a speech on one of the following topics:

•Laws haven’t changed since primeval times.

•However hard people try, laws are always insufficient.

•Laws are not for ordinary people, they are for lawyers.

•All laws are situational. They suit only a particular place at a particular time.

•There is some eternal law. It is good for all times and places.

 

Just for Fun

When asked to explain the difference between an ordinary citizen and a lawyer, a well-known barrister explained, “If an ordinary citizen gave you an orange, he would say, “I give you this orange.” But if a lawyer gave you an orange, he would say, “I hereby give, grant and convey to you all my interest, right, title and claim of and in this orange, together with all its rind, skin, juice and pulp, and all right and advantage therein with full power to bite, cut, suck, or otherwise cat or consume the said orange, or give away or dispose of to any third party the said orange, with or without its rind, skin, juice and pulp, subject to any amendments subsequently introduced or drawn up to this agreement.”

UNIT 1. THE FIRST LAWS: LAWS OF BABYLON

The Birth of Law

Rules and laws — and the conventions or customs from which they are descended — have been a part of human life ever since our ancestors first began to live in large and settled groups. But our knowledge is vague of laws that were in effect before the invention of writing in about 3500 B.C. The earliest known legal text was written by Ur-Nammu, a king of the Mesopotamian city of Ur, in about 2100 B.C. It dealt largely with compensation for bodily injuries, and with the penalties for witchcraft and runaway slaves.

 

TASK I. Find in the text the words that mean the following:

•the use of magic power, especially with the aid of evil spirits

•a punishment imposed for a violation of law or rule

•an accepted social custom or practice

•payment for damage or loss, restitution

•one from whom a person is descended

•harm or damage done or suffered

 

TASK 2. Answer the following questions:

1.Why is it difficult to judge about the earliest laws?

2.Where and why did the first laws appear?

3.What issues did the early laws emphasise? Why?

 

TASK 3. The word LEGAL has the following meanings in Russian:

Юридический

legal person — юридическое лицо

Правовой

legal text — правовой текст

Судебный

legal action — судебный иск

Законный, дозволенный законом

legal owner — законный владелец

Легальный

legal activities — правомерная, законная деятельность

 

Match the following English expressions with their Russian equivalents:

1) legal activities 2) legal address 3) legal advice 4) legal age 5) legal costs 6) legal decision 7) legal document 8) legal entity 9) legal ethics 10) legal expert 11) legal history 12) legal language 13) legal owner 14) legal procedure 15) legal protection 16) legal rights 17) legal status 18) of legal force 19) to enjoy one’s legal rights 20)to enter the legal profession

а) законные права b) законный владелец с) имеющий законную силу d) использовать свое законное право е) история права f) консультация юриста g) правовая защита h) правовой документ i) правовой статус j) правомерная, законная деятельность к) профессиональная этика юриста 1) решение суда m) совершеннолетие n) стать юристом о) судебные издержки р) судопроизводство q) юридическая терминология r) юридический адрес s) юридическое лицо t) юрисконсульт; юридический советник

BRAINSTORM

Work in groups. What associations does the word 'Babylon ’ call to mind? Make a list of ideas and compare your notes.

 

TASK 4. Read the text and write down Russian equivalents for the words and expressions in bold type:

Laws of Babylon

One of the most detailed ancient legal codes was drawn up in about 1758 B.C. by Hammurabi, a king of Babylonia. The entire code, consisting of 282 paragraphs, was carved into a great stone pillar, which was set up in a temple to the Babylonian god Marduk so that it could be read by every citizen.

The pillar, lost for centuries after the fall of Babylon in the 16^th century B.C., was rediscovered by a French archaeologist in 1901 amid the ruins of the Persian city of Susa. Hammurabi’s words were still legible. The pillar is now in the Louvre museum in Paris.

The laws laid down by Hammurabi were more extensive than any that had gone before. They covered crime, divorce and marriage, the rights of slave owners and slaves, the settlement of debts, inheritance and property contract s; there were even regulations about taxes and the prices of goods.

Punishments under the code were often harsh. The cruel principle of revenge was observed: an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, which meant that criminals had to receive as punishment precisely those injuries and damages they had inflicted upon their victims. Not only murderers but also thieves and false accusers faced the death penalty. And a child who hit his father could expect to lose the hand that struck the blow. The code outlawed private blood feuds and banned the tradition by which a man could kidnap and keep the woman he wanted for his bride. In addition, the new laws took account of the circumstances of the offender as well as of the offence. So a lower-ranking citizen who lost a civil case would be fined less than an aristocrat in the same position — though he would also be awarded less if he won.

Nevertheless, Hammurabi’s laws represented an advance on earlier tribal customs, because the penalty could not be harder than the crime.

 

TASK 5. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following law-related words and expressions. What concepts bring these groups of words together?

вор клеветник правонарушитель правонарушение преступление кровная месть наносить ущерб наносить увечья похищать

смертная казнь наказание штрафовать получать компенсацию

брак развод налоги наследство долги цены на товары гражданское дело права рабов имущественные контракты

TASK 6. Answer the following questions:

1. Why do you think Hammurabi decided to have his laws carved into a pillar?

2. Why was the pillar set up in a temple?

3. What spheres of human life were covered by Hammurabi’s code? Explain the choice.

4. How do you understand the principle “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”?

5. In your opinion, were punishments always fair?

6. Why do you think people of different ranks were treated differently by Hammurabi’s code?

 

TASK 7. Translate the following passage into English paying special attention to the words and expressions in bold type:

Кодекс Хаммурапи

В 1901 году французские археологи обнаружили каменный столб среди руин персидского города Сузы. Текст, высеченный на столбе, был древнейшим сводом законов. Он был составлен Хаммурапи, царем Вавилона, в XVIII столетии до н. э.

Кодекс Хаммурапи состоит из 282 статей. Установленный в храме вавилонского бога Мардука, “столб законов” должен был служить правосудию и одновременно напоминать: законы должны знать все.

Кодекс охватывал все сферы жизни. Он ставил вне закона кровную месть, убийство, похищение невесты. Наказания за них были суровы.

В основе Кодекса лежит идея талиона: наказание должно быть “равным” преступлению — “око за око, зуб за зуб”. В соответствии с кодексом, если человек, обвинивший другого в краже, не мог привести свидетелей, подтверждающих его слова, ему грозила смерть как клеветнику.

Кодекс также охватывал вопросы имущества и наследства. Хаммурапи устанавливал денежный штраф, при назначении которого учитывалось как само правонарушение, так и социальное положение граждан.

 

Solon (b. 630 — d. 560 B.C.)

Solon, the Athenian statesman, is known as one of the Seven Wise Men of Greece. He ended exclusive aristocratic control of the government, substituted a system of control by the wealthy, and introduced a new and more humane law code. He was also a noted poet.

Unfortunately, it was not until the 5th century B.C. that accounts of his life and works began to be put together, mostly on the evidence of his poems and his law code. Although certain details have a legendary ring, the main features of his story seem to be reliable. Solon was of noble descent but moderate means. He first became prominent in about 600 B.C. The early 6th century was a troubled time for the Athenians.

Society was dominated by an aristocracy of birth, who owned the best land, monopolized the government, and were themselves split into rival factions. The social, economic, and political evils might well have culminated in a revolution and subsequent tyranny (dictatorship), as they had in other Greek states, had it not been for Solon, to whom Athenians of all classes turned in the hope of a generally satisfactory solution of their problems. Because he believed in moderation and in an ordered society in which each class had its proper place and function, his solution was not revolution but reform.

Solon’s great contribution to the future good of Athens was his new code of laws. The first written code at Athens, that of Draco, was still in force. Draco’s laws were shockingly severe(hence the term draconian) — so severe that they were said to have been written not in ink but in blood. On the civil side they permitted enslavement for debt, and death seems to have been the penalty for almost all criminal offenses. Solon revised every statute except that on homicide and made Athenian law altogether more humane.

 

TASK 6. Render the following text into English using the vocabulary and information from the texts above:

Драконт

Драконт— афинский законодатель, чьи крайне суровые законы предусматривали только одно наказание— смерть— как за незначительные нарушения, так и за тяжкие преступления, совершенные в Афинах. Его имя теперь связывают со всем жестоким и безжалостным — ‘драконовские меры’, ‘драконовы законы’, ‘драконовский кодекс’.

Кодекс Драконта, который принято датировать 621 г. до н.э., не был первым записанным сводом афинских законов, но он, возможно, был первым всеобъемлющим кодексом или переработкой предыдущих законов.

Позднее Солон отменил законы, созданные Драконтом, и издал новые, оставив лишь прежнее наказание за убийство.

 

CREATIVE WRITING

Since nо law is perfect, ancient laws left much to be desired. Consult the READER for the extracts from Hammurabi's code. Work in teams to ‘amend’ the ancient legal code. Use the active vocabulary from the Unit. Present your ideas to the rest of the class.

 

BRAINSTORM

Name legal documents of constitutional importance, which have affected modem legal systems.

 

TASK 1. Read the text and write down Russian equivalents for the words and expressions in bold type:

The Magna Carta

At the heart of the English system are two principles of government - limited government and representative government. The idea that government was not all-powerful first appeared in the Magna Carta*, or Great Charter, that King John** signed in 1215 under the threat of civil war.

Earlier kings of England had issued charters, making promises to their barons. But these were granted by, not exacted from the king and were very generally phrased. Later the tension between the Kings and the nobility increased. In 1199, 1201, and 1205 John's barons had to be promised their rights. It is, therefore, not surprising that Stephen Langton, archbishop of Canterbury, directed baronial unrest into a demand for a solemn grant of liberties by the king. The document known as the Articles of the Barons was at last agreed upon and became the text from which the final version of the charter was drafted and sealed by John on June 15, 1215.The Magna Carta established the principle of limited government, in which the power of the monarch, or government, was limited, not absolute. This document provided for protection against unjust punishment and the loss of life, liberty, and property except according to law. It stipulated that no citizen could be punished or kept in prison without a fair trial. Under the Magna Carta, the king agreed that certain taxes could not be levied without popular consent.

Although the Magna Carta was originally intended to protect aristocracy and not the ordinary citizens, it came in time to be regarded as a cornerstone of British liberties, and is one of the oldest written constitutional papers.

*Magna Carta - Великая Хартия Вольностей

**King John - Иоанн Безземельный, английский король (1199-1216)

 

TASK 2. The word GOVERNMENT has the following meanings in Russian:

Государственная власть

executive government — исполнительная власть

judicial government — судебная власть

legislative government — законодательная власть

Управление, руководство

the government of a state — управление государством

a system of government — система правления

3. форма правления, государственное устройство, политический строй
democratic /republican / federal / parliamentary government — демократическая /республиканская / федеральная / парламентская форма правления

constitutional government — конституционная форма правления

4. правительство, правительственный аппарат Liberal /Labour / Conservative Government — либеральное /лейбористское /консервативное/ правительство

to form the government — сформировать правительство

Match the following English expressions to their Russian equivalents:

arbitrary government authoritarian government colonial form of government government investigation government of the day government offices government official government party government(al) department government(al) regulation government's term of office Her Majesty's Government local government military government mixed government organs of government parliamentary government presidential government provisional government representative government to dissolve the government

действующее правительство местное самоуправление военная администрация смешанная форма правления парламентское правление правительство Её Величества правящая партия правительственные учреждения представительная форма правления временное правительство распустить /расформировать/ правительство органы государственного управления автократия президентская власть авторитарная форма правления правительственное ведомство правительственное расследование колониальная форма государственного устройства постановление правительства правительственный чиновник срок правомочий правительства

Use the expressions above to make sentences of your own.

 

TASK 4. Answer the questions:

1. What were the two basic principles of the English system of government at the beginning of the 13th century? How do you understand these principles?

2. What political situation necessitated the granting of the Magna Carta?

3. What provisions did the Magna Carta contain?

4. Who enjoyed the rights granted by the Magna Carta?

 

TASK 5. Render the following passage into English paying attention to the words and expressions in bold type:

Великая Хартия Вольностей

Великая Хартия Вольностей – это грамота, подписанная в 1215 английским королем Иоанном I. Она составлена на латинском языке и содержит 63 статьи. Этот документ был подписан в результате недовольства баронов усилением королевской власти, налоговым гнетом и неудачной внешней политикой короля. Большинство статей отражало и защищало интересы аристократии. Однако, другие сословия также получили значительные права.

Великая Хартия Вольностей гарантировала соблюдение королем определенных обязательств по отношению к баронам, запрещала королю взимать налоги без согласия подданных. Хартия положила начало свободе личности. Ни один человек не мог быть арестован, заключен в тюрьму, лишен собственности или покровительства законов, изгнан или подвергнут иной каре иначе, как по суду равных ему и согласно законам страны.

Это был первый в истории Англии документ, ограничивающий власть короны и провозглашающий права и свободы подданных. Великая Хартия вольностей стала краеугольным камнем английских свобод. Ряд ее статей получили развитие в Акте Хабеас Корпус и Билле о правах.

Великая Хартия вольностей сыграла важнейшую роль в английской истории. Она и сейчас входит в число действующих актов конституции Великобритании.

 

Хабеас Корпус

Хабеас Корпус Акт - это закон, принятый в 1679 английским парламентом. Согласно этому закону, судьи были обязаны по жалобе лица, считающего свой арест или арест кого-либо другого незаконным, требовать срочного представления арестованного суду для проверки законности ареста или для судебного разбирательства. Заключение обвиняемого в тюрьму могло производиться только по предъявлении ордера с указанием причины ареста
Хабеас Корпус - это существовавшее издревле, по некоторым данным, еще до Великой Хартии вольностей, понятие английского права, которым гарантировалась личная свобода. Ни один свободный человек не мог быть посажен в тюрьму без предписания Хабеас Корпус, посредством которого судья повелевал доставить к нему обвиняемого (букв. тело, corpus).

ROLE-PLAY Let the Body Be Brought! Imagine the following situation: You have been arrested and imprisoned. No warrant has been produced. Your friend or lawyer comes to see you in prison. Tell him about your problem and ask him to take appropriate steps. Appoint another student as a judge who will do justice.

 

The Petition of Rights

royal requests	Stuart succession	more resistance	raising taxes
prevent	restricted	forced	financial control

Parliament began to show … … ' to the monarchy under the … … from 1603 by using its gradually acquired weapon of … ….. It was influenced by the gentry and began to refuse … … for money. It eventually … … Charles I to sign the Petition of Rights in 1628, which further … … the monarch’s powers and was intended to … … him from … … without Parliament's consent.

 

TASK 2. Translate the text below into English using the information and vocabulary from the text in Task 1:

Петиция о правах

Конституционное противостояние в XVIIвеке выразилось в появлении в 1628 году документа, известного как Петиция о правах. Нуждаясь в денежных средствах, король КарлIпо­пытался получить деньги от своих подданных, минуя парла­мент. В 1628 году парламент заставил короля принять Пети­цию о правах, которая разрешала взимать налоги только с согласия парламента. Этот документ гарантировал английским подданным и другие права.

 

TASK 3. Read the text and write down Russian equivalents for the words and expressions in bold type:

The Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights (1689) is one of the basic instruments of the British constitution, the result of the long 17th-century struggle between the Stuart kings and the English people and Parliament. The Bill of Rights provided the foundation on which the government rested after the Revolution of 1688. The Revolution settlement made monarchy clearly conditional on the will of Parliament and provided a freedom from arbitrary government of which most Englishmen were notably proud during the 18thcentury.

The main purpose of the act was unequivocally to declare illegal various practices of James II. Among such practices proscribed were the royal prerogative of dispensing with the law in certain cases, the complete suspension of laws without the consent of Parliament, and the levying of taxes and the maintenance of a standing army in peacetime without specific parliamentary authorization. A number of clauses sought to eliminate royal interference in parliamentary matters, stressing that elections must be free and that members of Parliament must have complete freedom of speech. Certain forms of interference in the course of justice were also proscribed. The act also dealt with the proximate succession to the throne, provided the heirs were Protestants. It is the constitutional paper of great importance, which prevented the sovereign from abusing his authority.

 

TASK 4. The word AUTHORITY has the following meanings in Russian:

1) власть

Supreme authority— верховная власть

2) полномочие, право, права, компетенция

To act on smb.'s authority— действовать на основании по­лученных полномочий

3) pl. власти, начальство, администрация

Local authorities— местные власти; органы местного само­управления

4) авторитет, вес, влияние

To have authority with smb. — пользоваться авторитетом у кого-либо

5) авторитет, крупный специалист

He is an authority on law— он является авторитетом в области права

6) авторитетный источник

To quote one's authorities— ссылаться на авторитетные ис­точники

Match the following English expressions with their Russian equivalents:

 

1) competent authority 2) law-enforcement authorities / agencies 3) lawful authority 4) on good authority 5) the authority of Parliament 6) to abuse one's authority 7) to gain in authority 8) to hand over one's authority to smb. 9) to have /to exercise authority 10) to undermine smb.'s authority 11) to vest smb. with authority 12) unrestricted authority

а) превышать свои полномочия b) власть /полномочия парламента с) законная власть d) из надёжного источника е) иметь /осуществлять власть f) неограниченные полномочия g) облекать властью, наделять полномочиями кого-л. h) передавать свои полномочия кому-л. і) подрывать чей-л. авторитет к) правоохранительные органы 1) авторитетный специалист m) приобретать всё большую власть

 

TASK 5.Render the following text into English paying special attention to the words and expressions in bold type:

Билль о правах 1689 года

Борьба монарха и парламента привела к революции, из­вестной под названием Славная революция 1688 года. Король ЯковIIбыл свергнут и вынужден покинуть страну. Его подо­зревали в желании сделать католическую религию официаль­ной религией в Англии. В соответствии с Актом о престоло­наследии (Act of Settlement), опубликованным после Славной революции, принц Вильгельм Оранский и его супруга Мария взошли на трон. Условием их коронации было принятие ими английского Билля о правах.

Английский Билль о правах ограничивал власть монарха, наделив парламент решающей властью, и обеспечивал защи­ту англиканской церкви от любых попыток религиозной контр­реформы ЯковаII или его преемников. Английский Билль о правах заключал в себе много идей, касающихся права и госу­дарства, которые позднее нашли свое отражение в американ­ской Декларации независимости, конституции и Билле о пра­вах. Помимо ограничения власти монарха, документ декларировал такие традиционные права англичан, как право на суд присяжных, запрещение жестоких наказаний, право обраще­ния с петициями к властям и право ношения оружия, которое, впрочем, предоставлялось лишь протестантам.

 

TASK 6. Answer the following questions using the information from the texts above:

1. What events preceded the Bill of Rights?

2. Why did King James have to leave the country?

3. What document regulates succession since 1688?

4. How were the rights of the monarch limited by the Bill of Rights?

5. What civil rights were protected by this document?

6. What was the influence of the Bill of Rights on political thinking in America?

 

TASK 7. Tell about the Bill of Rights using the information given in Tasks 3, 4. Consult the Internet for the extracts from the original text.

 

UNIT 6. THE EUROPEAN LAW IN THE 19™ CENTURY: NAPOLEON'S CODE

Napoleon's Law

The laws of much of continental Europe (particularly France), of Quebec in Canada, and of much of Latin America — along with the civil laws of Louisiana — owe their modern form largely to the work of a man who never even studied law. Napoleon Bonaparte, the Corsican soldier who became emperor of France after the French Revolution, established in 1800 five commissions to refine and organize the diverse legal systems of France. The result, enacted in 1804,was the Napoleon's Code.

Some of its original 2,281 articles were drafted by Napoleon himself, and all were affected by his thinking, even though he was completely self-taught in legal matters. The code was a triumphant attempt to create a legal system that treated all citizens as equals without regard to their rank or previous privileges. It was also so clearly written that it could be read and understood by ordinary people at a time when only Latin scholars could make sense of the earlier laws handed down since Roman times. The code was adopted intact in most of the areas of Europe that Napoleon dominated and spread from there across the Atlantic, taking root particularly in French-speaking American communities. Many of its principles are still in force today.

 

TASK 1. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following words and expressions. Retell the text using the active vocabulary.

1. вопросы права

2. изучать право

3. различные, несхожие правовые системы

4. создать правовую систему

5. император

6. гражданское право

7. первоначальный вариант статей

8. подвергаться влиянию чьих-либо идей

9. передавать (из поколения в поколение)

10. господствовать, властвовать

11. обращаться как с равными

12. разобраться в чем-то

13. приживаться, укореняться

14. быть в силе

15. без учета привилегий

TASK 2. Consult the previous texts and your legal dictionary to translate the following words and expressions into English. Make up sentences of your own, using the expressions below:

составлять проект закона

создавать, творить законы

вносить поправки в законы

принимать закон

вводить закон в действие

обеспечивать соблюдение законов

приводить законы в исполнение

отменять законы

нарушать законы

TASK 3. Answer the following questions:

What efforts did Napoleon make to reorganize the diverse legal systems of France?

Did Napoleon draw up the whole code himself?

What was so remarkable about Napoleon's new code?

What were the benefits of Napoleon's code for the ordinary people?

Which countries throughout the world still use the elements of Napoleon's code?

 

TASK 4. Render the following text into English paying special attention to the words and expressions in bold type:

Одним из важнейших событий в истории мирового права стало принятие кодекса Наполеона. Специальная комиссия из четырех крупнейших юристов под руководством Наполеона в течение короткого времени усовершенствовала и привела в соответствие все действующие законы, постановления и местные обычаи Франции. В 1804 г. этот грандиозный свод законов, состоящий из 2281 статьи, был утвержден под названием Гражданского кодекса. Главное в этом кодексе то, что он утверждал равенство всех перед законом, свободу совести, не­прикосновенность личности и собственности.

Сам Наполеон хорошо понимал историческое значение своей законотворческой деятельности. "Моя истинная слава, — говорил он, — не в том, что я выиграл сорок сражений. Но то, что не может быть забыто, то, что будет жить вечно — это мой Гражданский кодекс".

Кодекс Наполеона пережил своего создателя. Империя распалась, но Франция, а вслед за ней многие другие государ­ства Европы и Америки продолжают руководствоваться правовыми принципами, изложенными в кодексе Наполеона.

 

REVIEW

What legal codes have you studied in your classes of law? Make a report on a subject of your choice and present it in class. Use the patterns and vocabulary from the Chapter.

http://www.studfiles.ru/preview/4326756/page:2/

С h a p t e r II CRIME AND PUNISHME

http://www.just-english.ru/lawsampl.htm

 

Chapter I: THE FIRST LAWS

LEAD- IN DISCUSSION

Make a speech on one of the following topics:

•Laws haven’t changed since primeval times.

•However hard people try, laws are always insufficient.

•Laws are not for ordinary people, they are for lawyers.

•All laws are situational. They suit only a particular place at a particular time.

•There is some eternal law. It is good for all times and places.

 

Just for Fun

When asked to explain the difference between an ordinary citizen and a lawyer, a well-known barrister explained, “If an ordinary citizen gave you an orange, he would say, “I give you this orange.” But if a lawyer gave you an orange, he would say, “I hereby give, grant and convey to you all my interest, right, title and claim of and in this orange, together with all its rind, skin, juice and pulp, and all right and advantage therein with full power to bite, cut, suck, or otherwise cat or consume the said orange, or give away or dispose of to any third party the said orange, with or without its rind, skin, juice and pulp, subject to any amendments subsequently introduced or drawn up to this agreement.”

UNIT 1. THE FIRST LAWS: LAWS OF BABYLON

The Birth of Law

Rules and laws — and the conventions or customs from which they are descended — have been a part of human life ever since our ancestors first began to live in large and settled groups. But our knowledge is vague of laws that were in effect before the invention of writing in about 3500 B.C. The earliest known legal text was written by Ur-Nammu, a king of the Mesopotamian city of Ur, in about 2100 B.C. It dealt largely with compensation for bodily injuries, and with the penalties for witchcraft and runaway slaves.

 

TASK I. Find in the text the words that mean the following:

•the use of magic power, especially with the aid of evil spirits

•a punishment imposed for a violation of law or rule

•an accepted social custom or practice

•payment for damage or loss, restitution

•one from whom a person is descended

•harm or damage done or suffered

 

TASK 2. Answer the following questions:

1.Why is it difficult to judge about the earliest laws?

2.Where and why did the first laws appear?

3.What issues did the early laws emphasise? Why?

 

TASK 3. The word LEGAL has the following meanings in Russian:

Юридический

legal person — юридическое лицо

Правовой

legal text — правовой текст

Судебный

legal action — судебный иск