What is the american lawyer ?

A lawyer (also called attorney, counsel, counselor, barrister or solicitor) is a professional who is licensed to advise and represent others in legal matters. When you picture a lawyer, you probably think of an elderly gentleman in a three-piece suit arguing his case before an attentive jury of twelve. That picture is no longer accurate. Today’s lawyer can be young or old, male or female. Nearly half of all lawyers are under 35; the number of women lawyers has increased more than four times in recent years.

In most cases, a lawyer spends more time in an office than in a courtroom. In reality, the “practice of law” most often involves researching legal developments, investigating facts, writing and preparing legal documents, giving advice and settling disputes. Because laws are constantly changing - and are constantly given new meanings in new cases - a lawyer must put much time into knowing how the laws and the changes will affect each situation.

A lawyer has two main duties: to uphold the law and to protect their clients’ rights. To carry out these duties, a lawyer must have both knowledge of the law and good communication skills.

WORD LIST

to advise – давати поради

to uphold - піддержувати

to affect - впливати

to research - досліджувати

to investigatе - розслідувати

to increase - збільшуватися

jury - присяжні

to represent - представляти

Comprehension Questions:

1. What is a lawyer?

2. How can you describe today’s American lawyer?

3. Which two main duties does an American lawyer have?

4. Read and translate text 4.

The Work of a Prosecutor

The main task of a prosecutor is to ensure the strict observance of the law by various organizations, officials and citizens. A prosecutor is to supervise the observance of legality by the organs conducting investigation, the legality of judicial judgements and the legality of keeping convicted persons in places of confinement.

Here are some of his rights and duties in preliminary investigation, in the examination of cases in court and in supervising over the observance of legality in places of confinement.

A prosecutor supervises the strict implementation of the law by investigators conducting inquires or preliminary investigations. He must see to it that no citizen is restricted of his lawful rights or subjected to unlawful and ungrounded criminal prosecution.

No person can be arrested without the sanction of the prosecutor or the court order. A search may be conducted only with the sanction of the prosecutor. After the investigation of a criminal case he approves the indictment and transfers it to the court.

A prosecutor discharges important functions in the trial. Like other participants in the trial (the defense council, the injured party) he may question witnesses, take part in the investigation of evidence in court, challenge the members of the court, submit fresh evidence, etc. When the court investigation is over, he pronounces an indictment. He may lodge his protest against the court’s judgement, decision in a higher court.

A prosecutor has broad power of supervision over the observance of legality in places of confinement: he verifies the legality of keeping persons in places of confinement, he checks up if convicted persons are released at the right time, he ensures that the statutory regime rules and the rules of labour for convicted persons are observed. To discharge these functions, a prosecutor has the right to inspect places of confinement at any time, to study documents, to question prisoners in prison and to demand personal explanations from the administration.

WORD LIST

a prosecutor - прокурор

to ensure - забезпечувати

to supervise – спостерігати

judgement – вирок, рішення суду

confinement – ув’язнення

preliminary - попередній

implementation - виконання

indictment – обвинувальний акт

verifу – перевіряти

Comprehension Questions.

1. What is the main task of a prosecutor?

2. What are the rights and duties of a prosecutor?

3. Which functions of a prosecutor in trial do you know?

4. Is the work of a prosecutor difficult? Why?

5.Read and translate text 5.

Judges in Great Britain

In Britain, the vast majority of judges (that is, the people who decide what should be done with people who commit crimes) are unpaid. They are called "Magistrates", or "Justices of the Peace" (JPs). They are ordinary citizens who are selected not because they have any legal training but because they have "sound common sense" and understand their fellow human beings. They give up time voluntarily.

A small proportion of judges are not Magistrates. They are called "High Court Judges" and they deal with the most serious crimes, such as those for which the criminal might be sent to prison for more than a year. High Court Judges, unlike Magistrates, are paid salaries by the State and have considerable legal training.

Magistrates are selected by special committees in every town and district. Nobody, not even the Magistrates themselves, knows who is on the special committee in their area. The committee tries to draw Magistrates from as wide a variety of professions and social classes as possible.

WORD LIST

3. Magistrates – мирові судді

4. "High Court Judges" – судді Високого Суду

5. to draw - залучати

6. unpaid – не отримувати зарплатню

7. proportion - частина

8. "sound common sense" – здоровий глузд

Comprehension Questions.

1. What kind of people are Magistrates?

2. Why are they selected?

3. Who would judge a person who had committed a crime like murder?

4. Who selects Magistrates and what is unusual about the system?

Зміст

Розділ 1.

1.Професія – юрист............................................................... стор. 4-7

2.Конституція України..........................................................стор.8-12

3.Конституція США............................................................. стор. 13-17

4.Судочинство в Україні...................................................... стор. 18-21

5.Судочинство в Великій Британії...................................... стор. 22-26

6.Судочинство в США......................................................... стор. 27-30

7.Права людини.....................................................................стор. 31-34

8.Правові системи.................................................................стор. 35-39

Розділ 2. Тексти для читання.

1. Текст 1. «Law».................................................................стор. 40-41

2. Текст 2. «The nature and categories of law»....................стор. 41-43

3. Текст 3. «What is the American lawyer?»........................стор. 44

4. Текст 4. „The work of a prosecutor»……………………стор. 45-46

5. Текст 5. „Judges in Great Britain»....................................стор. 47-48

Література:

1. Англо-русский полный юридический словарь. Состав. А.С.Мамулян. Первое издание. – М.: «Рэббит», 1993. – 400 с.

2. Гуманова Ю.Л., Королева В.А., Свешникова М.Л., Тихомирова Е.В. Just English. Английский для юристов. Учебное пособие под ред. Т.Н.Шишкиной. – М.: Гуманитарное знание, ТЕИС, 1996. – 198 с.

3. Зеликман А.Я. Английский для юристов. Учебное пособие. Ростов н/Д.: Изд. «ФЕНИКС», 1995.- 320 с.

4. Конституція України. Київ. Видавництво “Україна” 1996.

5. Международное право в документах: Учебное пособие/ Сост.: Н.Т. Блатова, Г.М. Мелков.- 2-е изд., перераб. и доп.- М.:ИНФРА-М,1997. – 696с.

6. Everyday Law. By Jack Last, LL. M. Made Simple Books, Inc. Greystone press. New York, 1956.

7. Repa Barbara Kate. The American Lawyer. When and how to use one. - American Bar Association, 1986.

8. The World Book Encyclopedia. - World Book, Inc., 1994(book 12).

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