Vocabulary:

Judiciary	суд
The Custom Court	Таможенный Суд
The Federal Court	Федеральный Суд
The Court of Appeals	Аппеляционный Суд
The Court of Claims	Претенциозный Суд
criminal; civil case	уголовное; гражданское дело

1. Give the English equivalents for the following words and word combinations:

- судебная система;

- высший судебный орган;

- судья;

- уходить в отставку;

- нарушение;

- внутренняя безопасность;

- судебное дело;

- спор;

- обвиняемый.

2. Match each word on the left with the definition on the right:

   1) court	a) an official request for money that you think you have a right to
   2) judge	b) a legal matter or question that must be decided in a court of law
   3) case	c) the people who make a legal judgement, for example, about whether someone is guilty of a crime, or the place where these judgements are made
   4) appeal	d) the official in control of a court who decides how criminals should be punished
   5) claim	e) making an urgent public request for money, help, information

3. Answer the following questions:

1. What kind of court system is there in the United States of America?

2. What is the federal judiciary made up?

3. What is the highest judicial branch in the U.S.A.?

4. Where does it meet?

5. What are the members of the Supreme Court?

6. Are they elected?

7. What is the main duty of the Supreme Court?

8. What are the functions of Federal courts?

4. Speak on:

1. The judicial system of your country.

Unit II

I. Us constitution I

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." — Preamble to the Constitution.

1. Read and translate the text:

The form of the US government is based on the Constitution of 1787 which was adopted after the War of Independence. A constitution is a set of customs, traditions, rules and laws that sets forth the basic way a government is organized and functions. According to this definition of the word, every nation has a constitution but in some countries constitutions are very easily violated because the basic rights of their citizens are violated.

It is very important to understand that having a constitution does not mean that a nation has a constitutional government. If a constitution makes it possible to concentrate power by one or few, it is not the basis of a constitutional government. If a constitution says that the government’s power should be limited but doesn’t mention the ways how to do it, it is not the basis for a constitutional government.

In a constitutional government the constitution is a form of higher law that must be obeyed by everyone including those in power.

The US Constitution consists of 7 articles and 26 amendments.

According to the Founders of the American state a constitution or higher law should have the following characteristics:

• It sets forth the basic rights of citizens to life, liberty and property

• It establishes the responsibility of the government to protect those rights

• It establishes limitations on how those in government may use their powers with regard to

- citizens’ rights and responsibilities

- the distribution of resources

- the control of conflict

- It establishes the principle of a private domain – which means that there are areas of citizens’ lives that are no business of the government and in which the government cannot interfere.

- It can be changed with the consent of the most citizens. This is how the Constitution differs from the ordinary law that the governments regularly create and enforce. The US Constitution has 26 amendments, the first 10 are called the Bill of Rights and it was adopted in 1791. The bill enumerated basic freedoms and guaranteed them and declared what the government was not allowed to do.

Notes to the text:

“We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”- Preamble to the Constitution – “Мы, народ Соединенных Штатов, в целях образования более совершенного Союза, утверждения правосудия, обеспечения внутреннего спокойствия, организации совместной обороны, содействия общему благосостоянию и обеспечения нам и нашему потомству благ свободы, учреждаем и принимаем эту Конституцию для Соединенных Штатов Америки.”- Преамбула к Конституции.