My family

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Let me introduce myself. My name is Alexander, Alec for short. My full name is Alexander Sergeyevich Orlov. Orlov is my surname, Alexander is my first name and Sergeyevich is my patronymic. I am nearly nineteen – next Thursday is my birthday.

Now I am a first-year student of a law department of South Ural State University. I have been waiting for this moment since I was a little boy. I am so happy! I passed my exams! My results were at the 3rd place in the whole list of applicants! I am a student now! I will gain the new special knowledge I need to be a human rights protector. My studying at one of the best Universities in Russia will give me an opportunity to continue my science work on the problem of human rights, which I have started at school. I will reach the new level of research.

My life is so busy again! I have a lot of classes at my faculty, and then I go to the different departments to attend my course of English. I am going to get a diploma of translator. My knowledge of foreign languages will help me in my job, because I will cooperate with colleagues from different countries. In spite of my busy study at the university I have time for my science and social work. I participate in every student conference; my reports take prize-winning places. Now I work at the law consultation as an assistant of barrister and give free consultations to people.

My parents have two more children besides me. Thus I have got an elder brother and a younger sister. My sister Helen is just out of school. She is seventeen. She is very fond of music and her dream is to become a pianist.

My brother, whose name is Michael, is eight years my senior. He is twenty-seven already. He is a builder. He is married and has a family of his own. They are four in the family. He has a wife and two children – a son and a daughter. They are twins. His wife`s name is Nina. She is a surgeon by profession. They are not in Chelyabinsk. They are in the Far East.

My parents are not old at all. Father is fifty, and Mother is three years his junior. My grandfather is not a pensioner, though he is over seventy. He is still full of life and energy. Our grandparents are fond of us.

Daily routine

Those people, who want to have an interesting life, must do a lot of things every day. They must have time for work, play and fun. So children and grown-ups must plan their life. A good plan will help us to do everything we want. As for me I usually plan my week-days.

As a rule I get up at seven o`clock. The alarm-clock wakes me up and my working day begins. If it is spring or summer I go to the window and open it wide to let the fresh morning air in. The bright sun and the singing of birds set me into a cheerful working mood. In winter I am not so quick to leave my bed. But all the same it is time to get up and I start getting ready for my work. I do my bed and go to the bathroom, where I wash my hands and face, clean my teeth. Breakfast, as doctors say, must be the most substantial meal of the day. While I`m having breakfast, I switch on the radio and listen to the news. As I live near my University, I leave my house at a quarter to eight. The fresh air is very helpful to me: I come to my University in high spirits. Usually I have got four lectures. I return home at three o`clock in the afternoon. I don`t like to do my homework just after University because I am really tired. So I have a rest and then I do my homework. Usually it takes me two hours to get ready for my lectures. In the evening I watch TV, read books or spend time with my friends. I always go to bed at eleven o`clock as they say: “Early to bed and early to rize makes a man healthy, wealthy and wize.

WHAT IS LAW???

The question “What is law?”has troubled people for many years. An entire field of study known as Jurisprudence is devoted to answering this question. Many definitions of law exist, but for our purposes, law can be defined as that set of rules or regulations by which a government regulates the conduct of people within a society. Even with this explanation, many other questions arise. Where do laws come from? Do we need laws? Are all laws written? Can laws change? If so, how? Are all laws fair? What is the difference between laws and morals?

To understand the law, we must consider the relationship of law to morals. Our legal system is influenced by traditional ideas of right and wrong. Thus, most people would condemn murder, regardless of what the law said. However, everything that is considered immoral is not necessarily illegal. For example, lying to a friend may be immoral but is rarely illegal.

One thing is certain: every society that has ever existed has recognized the need for law. These laws may have been unwritten, but; even primitive people had rules to regulate the conduct of the group. Without laws, there would be confusion, fear, and disorder. This does not mean that all laws are fair or even good, but imagine how people might take advantage of one another without some set of rules.

Law is the whole set of rules that are supported by the power of government and that control the behaviour of members of a society. The law itself provides the basic structure within which commerce and industry operate. It safeguards the rights of individuals, regulates their dealings with others and enforces the duties of government.

There are two main kinds of the law – public and private (civil). Private law concerns disputes among citizens within a country, and public law concerns disputes between citizens and the state, or between one state and another.

The system of law consists of different categories of law.

There are laws which enable citizens to take legal action against the state. These actions are part of constitutional law. A constitution is the political and ideological structure within which a system of laws operates. Most countries have a formal written Constitution describing how laws are to be made and enforced.

Many countries face similar social, economic and political problems. Nations have always made political and economic treaties with each other. International law is created to regulate relations between governments and also between private citizens of one country and those of another.

Criminal law deals with wrongful acts harmful to the community and punishable by the state.

Civil law deals with individual rights, duties and obligations towards one another.

As well as defining the powers of government, most constitutions describe the fundamental rights of citizens. These usually include general declarations about freedom and equality, but, also some specific provisions. The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) was first adopted in 1950 and has now been signed by every country of Western Europe. Individual citizens of these countries have the right to bring a complaint before the European Commission if they think their government has broken the Convention. But despite the development of legally binding national and international conventions, millions of people in the world still do not enjoy human rights.