- •Introduction to law General Vocabulary and Expressions
- •Social morality, rules and law
- •What is law?
- •Vocabulary Exercises
- •Communicative Activities
- •1928, The Representation of the People Act
- •1949, The Parliament Act
- •1969, The Representation of the People Act
- •Constitution of the Russian Federation
- •The Constitution of the United States of America
- •Amendment VI
- •Land Law
- •Texts for Reading and Rendering
- •Constitutional law. Separation of powers
- •Internalization of law. Growth of international law
- •The form of british constitution
- •English law
- •The rules of precedent
- •Us government
- •Checks and Balances
- •The state system of russia
- •The federal assembly and the government
- •Listening Comprehension Task 1. Sovereignty and the rule of law. Read a short paragraph about British Constitution and mind the information about its principle characteristics.
- •Task 3. What governs Europe?
Vocabulary Exercises
Ex. 1. Fill in either a verb or a noun in the table making an ample use of derivatives.
verb |
noun |
to adopt |
adoption |
……… |
elections |
to vote |
………. |
to propose |
……….. |
……….. |
appeal |
……….. |
amendment |
to codify |
…………. |
………… |
government |
………… |
authority |
to observe |
………… |
to punish |
………… |
Ex. 2. Find in the box
a) 8 pairs of synonyms:
b) 2 pairs of antonyms:
c) all the names of law branches mentioned
behavior civil law domestic law penalty a criminal to adopt a law lawmaker tradition to follow civil law to observe wrongdoer legislator to pass a law custom criminal law private law international law punishment conduct
Ex. 3. Find pairs of words from these two lists:
a) to carry out |
1) law/decision |
b) to appoint |
2) new elections |
c) to execute |
3) the Prime Minister |
d) to pass |
4) the state budget |
e) to consider |
5) law, document |
f) to approve |
6) questions, issues |
g) to announce |
7) policy |
h) to form |
8) rights, freedoms, legality |
i) to present |
9) the Parliament |
j) to ensure |
10) government |
k) to dissolve |
11) deputy Chairman |
Ex. 4. Cross-one-out.
1. behavior, conduct, manners, amendment
2. monarchy, authority, republic, dictatorship
3. executive, civil, criminal, international
4. criminal, wrongdoer, mischief-maker, politician
5. to adopt, to pass, to vote for, to elect
6. prescriptive, judicial, executive, legislative
7. civil law, Case Law, administrative law, labor law
8. customs, traditions, rules, laws
9. criminal, case, court, parliament
10. to elect, to vote, to support, to adopt
Ex. 5. Fill in the gaps in the sentences with prepositions from this list:
on, out, outside, of, against, with, without, within
a) Parliament consists ... two chambers.
b) Each chamber forms committees and commissions to carry . . . appropriate hearings.
c) The Accounts Chamber monitors implementation... the federal budget.
d) The Federation Council approves decisions ... changes of borders.
e) ... the Federation Council approval military forces cannot be used ... the country.
f) The State Duma has the right to bring charges ... the President.
Communicative Activities
Task 1.
a) Give your own definition of “law”.
b) In groups of three or four compare and contrast your notes. Discuss and report bask to the class the different points of view.
c) Study the dictionary definitions of "law":
“Rule made by authority for the proper regulation of a community or society or for correct conduct in life; the whole body of laws considered collectively”
Oxford Student's Dictionary of Current English
“A rule that is supported by the power of government and that controls the behaviour of members of a society; the whole set of such rules”
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
“Rule of conduct or action, recognized by custom or decreed by formal enactment, considered binding on the members of a nation, community, or group; a system or body of such rules”
Webster's Dictionary
d) Underline the similarities and circle the differences.
e) Compare your own definition with the dictionary ones.
f) Write your fine-tuned definition. Interview the students of the other group on what their idea of law is. Report back to the class on your findings.
Task 2. Answer the following questions:
a) Why do we study law?
b) Do people always observe law?
c) What can we call people who break law?
d) What law violations do you know?
e) What categories of law are known to you?
Task 3. Sources of British Constitution.
A. The first major source for the law of the constitution comes in the form of legislation or statutes. Each statute deals only with a very limited area of concern. The following is a list of statutes which are of greatest constitutional significance, with brief summary of their contents. Read the text and be ready to discuss the main issues of it.
1297, Re-issue of the Magna Carta (1215)
This is a declaration of certain fundamental principles: no one should lose his life or liberty «except by the lawful judgment of his equals and by the law of the land»; the king should not sell, deny or delay justice; punishment should be in relation to the seriousness of the crime, etc.
1679, The Habeas Corpus Amendment Act
This contains provisions ensuring that persons imprisoned without legal cause, whether by the Crown or by private individuals, should, on obtaining a writ of Habeas Corpus, have the detention examined by a judge within a set period of time.
1689, The Bill of Rights
It declares that the monarch's “pretended” power of suspending or dispensing with laws without the consent of Parliament is illegal, that elections and debate in Parliament should be free, and that Parliament should be summoned frequently, etc. (See the following section in this chapter.)
1701, The Act of Settlement
This deals with the question of succession to the throne (through a specified Protestant line) and with the conditions of tenure, payment and dismissal of judges.
1872, The Ballot Act
This was a vital piece of legislation, setting up the secret ballot at parliamentary elections and thereby doing away with the old system of voting in public that made voters so vulnerable to 'pressure' from over-enthusiastic candidates.
1911, The Parliament Act
This laid down the reduced powers of the House of Lords with regard to Money Bills in particular - the maximum the House could delay such a bill was limited to 1 month - and Public Bills in general (maximum delay: 2 years). It also shortened the life of a Parliament from 7 to 5 years. (See the section on the Parliament Act later in this chapter.)