Unit 1. WHAT IS LAW?
I think the first duty of society is justice.
Alexander Hamilton
Start-up
Discuss the following questions:
1.What is law?
2.Why do people need laws?
3.Why do people obey laws?
4.Should people obey the law if they feel that it is not fair?
5.What is justice?
Vocabulary
EXERCISE 1. Fill in the table according to the given example. Not all forms will be used for each word. Use dictionary, if necessary. Translate the words into Russian.
Verb |
Noun |
Noun |
Adjective |
|
глагол |
(thing or concept) |
(person) |
прилагательное |
|
|
существительное (понятие) |
существительное (деятель) |
|
|
settle урегулировать, |
settlement |
settler тот, кто |
settling- |
|
разрешить (спор, конфликт) |
урегулирование; |
решает, |
регулирующий |
|
|
соглашение. |
устанавливает, |
settled – |
|
|
fair / reasonable |
определяет (что-л.) |
урегулированный, |
|
|
settlement |
|
решенный |
|
|
|
|
|
|
behave |
|
|
|
|
enforce |
enforcement |
concern
implicate
limit |
limitation |
limited |
implement
administer |
administrator |
involve
dispute |
dispute |
disputant |
disputatious |
litigate |
litigation |
litigant |
litigious |
- |
justice |
justiciary- судейский |
just – |
|
|
чиновник |
беспристрастный, |
имеющий основания
EXERCISE 2. Choose the correct word from the list to complete each sentence. Translate the sentences into Russian.
disputes |
settlement |
implicated |
settled |
concerns |
enforcement |
enforced |
implication |
implemented |
behavior |
limit |
just |
administer |
involved |
litigation |
1.The two companies ________ their dispute out of court.
2.________ between Russian organizations and foreign firms are often settled by Arbitration Commission.
3.Certain kinds of disputes should be referred for ________ to arbitration.
4.Society has a right to protection from illegal ________.
5.The courts ________ justice by hearing cases.
6.Civil law ________ disputes among citizens within a country.
7.He smiled, but the ________ was that he didn’t believe me.
8.The police found the letter which ________ him in the robbery.
9.He refused to be ________.
10.We must ________ ourselves to an hour.
11.The committee’s ideas will be ________ immediately.
12.________ is legal contest.
13.A new training for law ________ officers was organized.
14.Laws made by governments are ________ against all citizens.
15.____ is a synonym of “fair”.
EXERCISE 3. Write a singular/plural form to these nouns.
Singular |
Plural |
Singular |
Plural |
Singular |
Plural |
agreement |
|
dispute |
|
property |
|
citizen |
|
life |
rules |
community |
societies |
law |
|
|
|
||
|
ways |
time |
|
person |
|
EXERCISE 4. Fill in the table according to the given example.
Plural form of a noun |
Present Simple - 3rd person singular |
disputes break down |
“law” refers |
EXERCISE 5. Make these words negative by adding the appropriate prefix: in, un, im, il, dis.
__legal |
__lawful |
__formal |
__fair |
__limited |
__just |
__moral |
__ability |
__necessary |
__reasonable |
Reading and language study
What is Law?
(I) In the opinion of many people, the law is a necessary evil that should be used only when everyday, informal ways of settling disputes break down. If our neighbor plays loud music late at night, we probably try to discuss the matter with him rather than consulting the police, lawyers or the courts. Only when a neighbor refuses to behave reasonably we start thinking about legal implications of everyday activities.
(II) The English word “law” refers to limits upon various forms of behavior. So, a law is a statement or rule that tells us what we may or may not do. In all societies, relations between people are regulated by laws. Some of them are customs, that is, informal rules of social and moral behavior. Some are rules we accept if we belong to particular social institutions, such as, religious, educational and cultural groups. And some are precise laws made by governments and enforced against all citizens within their power.
(III) What motives do governments have in making and enforcing laws? Social control is one purpose. Public law concerns disputes between citizens and the state or between one state and another. Civil law concerns disputes among citizens within a country. Another purpose is the implementation of justice. Justice is a concept that most people feel is very important but few are able to define. Sometimes a just decision is simply a decision that most people feel is fair. It is often said that justice is blind. It means that the law is not concerned with personalities or whether litigants are powerful or weak, good or bad or black or white. Bejamin Disraeli (1804-1881) said: “Justice is truth in action”. Justice is certainly not deaf and will listen to any reasonable claim. The courts administer justice by hearing cases. Law is also used as a mechanism for social change. For instance, at various times laws have been passed to inhibit social discrimination and improve the quality of individual life in matters of health, education, and welfare.
(IV) It seems that people all over the world are becoming more accustomed to using legal means to regulate their relations with each other. Companies employ experts to ensure that their contracts are lawful whenever they do business. Non-industrialized tribes in South Africa use lawyers to stop governments from destroying the rainforests where they live. Ordinary citizens can nowadays challenge the decisions of their governments in courts of law. When it helps people to reach just agreements across social, economic and even international barriers, law seems a good thing. However, when it involves time and money and highlights people’s inability to cooperate informally, law seems to be an evil but a necessary one that everyone should have a basic knowledge of.
(Adapted from Law Today by Richard Powell)
EXERCISE 6. Scan the text and fill in the table with verbs, nouns, adjectives and adverbs.
Verb |
Noun |
Adjective |
Adverb |
EXERCISE 7. Scan the text and find definitions to these legal terms:
−law
−public law
−civil law
EXERCISE 8. Read the text and answer the following questions:
1.What is law?
2.What functions does law perform?
3.What disputes does public law concern?
4.What disputes does civil law concern?
5.What means should people use to regulate relations with each other?
EXERCISE 9. Read the text carefully and complete the sentences given below.
1.The law should be used only when informal ways of ________ _______ break down.
2.When someone refuses to behave reasonably we can________ the police or lawyers.
3.The English word ‘law’ refers to ________ upon various forms of behavior.
4.Relations between people are _________ by laws.
5.Laws made by governments are ________ against all citizens within their power.
6.Civil law concerns ________ among citizens within a country.
7.The courts administer ________ by hearing cases.
8.People use ________ ________ to regulate their relations with each other.
EXERCISE 10. Put the words into the right order (subject-verb-object) to make up sentences.
1. civil law, citizens, with, concerned, disputes, within, is, a country, among.
____________________________________________________________________
2.customs, social and moral, are, of, informal rules, behavior.
____________________________________________________________________
3.one, in , the divorce, disputed, of, court, the parties.
____________________________________________________________________
4.the decisions, the government, can, challenged, by, citizens, be, of, ordinary.
____________________________________________________________________
5.there, that, are, making, and, some, enforcing, laws, have, in, motives, governments.
____________________________________________________________________
EXERCISE 11. Make up sentences using the following words and word combinations:
settle disputes, law, justice, consult a lawyer, behave reasonably, relations between people, legal means, regulate, enforce, implement justice, administer justice, just agreement, court of law.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
EXERCISE 12. Using the paragraph reference given in brackets, find in the text the English equivalents for these Russian legal terms and expressions.
−право, закон (I)
−разрешать спор, конфликт (I)
−юрист, адвокат, юрисконсульт (I)
−вести себя разумно (I)
−юридическое значение (I)
−регулироваться законами (II)
−применять законы ко всем гражданам (II)
−осуществление правосудия (III)
−отправлять правосудие (III)
−сдерживать социальную дискриминацию (III)
−благосостояние, социальное обеспечение (III)
−законные средства (IV)
−оспаривать решение (IV)
−справедливое, обоснованное соглашение (IV)