In all legal systems there are institutions for creating, modifying,

abolishing and applying the law. Usually these take the form of

413

а hierarchy of courts. The role of each court and its capacity to

make decisions is strictly defined in relation to the courts. There

are two main reasons for having a variety of courts. One is that a

particular court can specialize in a particular kind of legal action.

The other is so that a person who feels his case was not fairly

treated in a lower court can appeal to a higher court for reassessment.

The decisions of a higher court are binding upon lower

courts. At the top of the hierarchy is a supreme law-making body.

The court in which a case is first heard is called the court of

first instance. Appellate courts (or Appeal Courts) are civil or crime

courts to which a person may go for a reconsideration of the decision

of the original court.

The formal courts are not the only means of solving disputes;

adjudication increasingly takes place outside the court system. The

two main forms of extra-court adjudication are tribunals and arbitration.

Tribunals were established to adjudicate on disputes arising

out of social legislation which regulates such areas as employment,

housing and social security benefits.

The disputes in these areas might be settled by ordinary courts

but the ordinary courts lack the necessary expertise or are too formal,

slow and costly. Hence, the legislation has established a tribunal

to do the job. There are numerous types of tribunals, each with

Its own limited jurisdiction over a particular type of claim. Many

tribunals have expert assessors^ sitting along a legally experienced

chairman to make up the judging paneP. From the point of view of

the ordinary citizens they are the most important courts in the

country but from the point of view of lawyers they are perhaps the

least important element in the court system of England.

In contrast, arbitration is a private means of adjudication, arranged

and agreed between parties involved. Here the parties agree

to place their dispute in the hands of an independent third party

and invest the arbitrator with the power to decide the issue. The arbitrator

Is likely to be someone with expertise in the area. The purpose

of arbitration is to enable people to have small disputes

resolved in an informal atmosphere, avoiding as far as possible the

strict rules of procedure usually associated with court proceedings.

This does not mean that rules are not observed because the object

of all court procedures is to protect the interests of each party to the

action and to ensure that the case is tried fairly. Nevertheless, the

formalities are kept to the minimum.

414

The advantages of arbitration are similar to those of tribunals:

speed, lower costs, flexibility, informality and adjudication by an

expert. These advantages must, of course, be balanced against disadvantages.

There is the argument that cheaper, quicker and less

formal hearings result in a poor quality service. Nevertheless, the

increasing use of tribunals and arbitration seems to indicate that

they are a popular way of resolving disputes. On a wider point, they

also increase access to justice for the ordinary people who make up

38 per cent of the plaintiffs.

Notes to the Text

1. expert assessor — эксперт-консультант

2. judging panel — состав, список судей

Упражнение 1. Дайте русские эквиваленты выделенным словам и словосочетаниям,

переведите предложения.

1. А hierarchy of courts is an organization with levels of authority

from the highest to the lowest courts. 2. To appeal means to take

a case to a higher court in the hope of a new decision. 3. A request

to a higher court to reexamine and change the judgment of a previous

court hearing is called an appeal. 4. An appellant is the person

or the party that requests an appeal. 5. Adjudicatioii is an act of giving

a judgment or of deciding a legal problem. 6. The courts called

tribunals are specialist courts outside the judicial system which examine

special problems and make judgments. 7. To arbitrate is to

settle a dispute between parties by referring it to an arbitrator instead

of going to court. 8. The word «legislation» means making

laws or the laws made. 9. Jurisdiction is administration of justice or

the extent of legal authority. 10. An assessor expert helps and advises

a judge on technical matters in a particularly difficult case.

11. Disputes are disagreements or arguments. To be in dispute

means to be in opposition to each other. 12. The agreement is binding

on all parties, that is, all parties signing it must do what is

agreed. 13. To bind is to place a court under legal obligation to act

in accordance with a previous judicial decision.

Упражнение 2. Заполните пропуски.

1. We have no authority to deal with this matter: it does not

come within our ... 2.The person who goes to a higher court to ask

415

it to change a decision or a sentence of a lower court is known to be

called an ... 3. To ... means to take a question to a higher court for

rehearing and a new decision. 4. An ... is a person giving a decision

on a legal problem in an industrial dispute. 5. The judicial ... implies

that judges in the higher courts have more authority than

those in the lower courts. 6. Labour ... is laws concerning the employment

of workers. 7. ... is the settlement of a dispute between

parties by an outside person, chosen by both parties. 8. He lost his

... for damages against the company. 9. Industrial ... are courts

which can decide in disputes between employers and employees.

10. Industrial or labour ... are arguments between management and

workers. 11. ... precedent is a decision of a higher court which has

to be followed by a judge in a lower court.

Упражненве 3. Составьте словосочетания глаголов из колонки А и существительных

из колонки В.

1. hear/ treat

2. play

3. regulate

4. resolve / settle

5. make

6. observe

7. protect

8. keep

9. invest

10. assess

11. appeal

В

a. interests

b. a rule

с a case

d. facts

e. relations

f. with power

g. a part / role

h. a dispute / argument

i. to a higher court

j. smth. to the minimum

k. a decision

Упражненве 4. Подберите к глаголам из колонки А близкие по значению

слова и словосочетания из колонки В.

А

1. abolish

2. agree

3. argue

4. avoid

5. bind

6. establish

7. settle / resolve

8. treat

В

a. express disagreement

b. consider, deal with

с legally force to do smth.

d. put an end to

e. say «yes», be of the same opinion

f. keep away from, escape

g. set up

h. decide, determine

416

Упражнение 5. Подберите к словам из колонки А синонимы или близкие

по значению словосочетания из колонки В.

1. issue

2. capacity

3. benefit

4. hearing

5. extra

6. strict

7. ordinary

8. expertise

9. supreme

10. flexible

В

trial

subject of a dispute; question for discussion

ability

advantage; help

e. adaptable

f. highest

g. outside

h. precisely limited; exactly defined

i. normal, usual

j . expert knowledge

Упражнение 6. Заполните пропуски антонимами,

inside ... formal .

agreement

the latter

fairiy

old

informality

dissimilarity

щие:

Упражнение 7. Назовите прилагательные с суффиксом -able, означаю-

1. that can be argued

2. that can be enforced

3. that can be avoided

4. that can be agreed

Упражнение 8. Заполните таблицу на словообразование.

Verb

impart

Noun

avoidance

enforcement

Adjective

legislative

arguable

agreeable

417

Упражнение 9. А. Назовите 20—25 ключевых слов и словосочетаний на

тему «Judicial institutions and courts».

В. Speak about:

1. The difference between courts of first instance and appellate

courts.

2. The риф08е of tribunals and arbitration.

3. The advantages of arbitration.

Texts

Какие требования предъявляют к квалификации юриста в современном

обществе? Прочитайте и переведите текст.

The Profession of Lawyers

The word «lawyer» describes a person who practices law, who

has become officially qualified to act in certain legal matters because

of examinations he has taken and professional experience he has

gained. Most countries have different groups of lawyers who each

take a particular kind of examination in order to qualify to do particular

jobs. In Japan, a lawyer must decide whether he wants to take

examination to become an attorney, a public prosecutor or a judge.

A distinctive feature of the legal profession in England is that it