Module 2

Pre –Reading
1.Describe some of the distinctive features of your legal system and constitution, first as if to
a foreign lawyer, then as if to a foreign lay person.
2.What do you know about the legal system of the United Kingdom (UK)?
3.Do you know the basic difference between the Constitutions of the UK and RA?

Reading

The Legal System in the United Kingdom (UK)

The Study of law distinguishes between public law and private law, but in legal practice in the
UK the distinction between civil law and criminal is more important to practising lawyers. Public
law relates to the state. It is concerned with laws which govern processes in local and national
government and conflicts between the individual and the state in areas such as immigration
and social security. Private law is concerned with the relationships between legal persons, that
is, individuals and corporations, and includes family law, contract law and property law.
Criminal law deals with certain forms of conduct for which the state reserves punishment, for
example murder and theft. The state prosecutes the offender. Civil law concerns relationships
between private persons, their rights, and their duties. It is also concerned with conduct which
may give rise to a claim by a legal person for compensation or an injunction – an order made by
the court. However, each field of law tends to overlap with others. For example, a road accident
case may lead to a criminal prosecution as well as a civil action for compensation.
Substantive law creates, defines or regulates rights, liabilities, and duties in all areas of law
and is contrasted with procedural law, which defines the procedure by which a law is to be
enforced.
The head of state in th UK is the monarch, currently the Queen, but the government carries
the authority of the Crown (the monarch). The Westminster Parliament has two chambers: the
House of Lords and the House of Commons, which sit separately and are constituted on
different principles. The Commons is an elected body of members. Substantial reform is being
carried out in the upper house, the House of Lords, where it is proposed that the majority of
members be appointed, with a minority elected, replacing the hereditary peers. There is no
written constitution, but constitutional law consists of statute law, common law and
constitutional conventions.

There are four countries and three distinct jurisdictions in the United Kingdom: England and
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. All share a legislature in the Westminster Parliament for
the making of new laws and have a common law tradition, but each has its own hierarchy of
courts, legal rules and legal profession. Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own
Assembly and since 1999 Scottish Members of Parliament have sat in their own Parliament.
Under an Act of the Westminster Parliament, the Scottish Parliament has power to legislate on
any subject not specifically reserved to the Westminster Parliament such as defence or foreign
policy. The UK’s accession to the European Communities in 1973, authorised by the European
Communities Act 1972, has meant the addition of a further legislative authority in the legal
system. The UK is also a signatory of the European Convention of Human Rights and this has
benn incorporated into UK law.
Glossary

1.Public law ѳÝñ³ÛÇÝ ûñ»Ýù

2.Private law Ù³ëݳíáñ ûñ»Ýù
3.Reserve punishment å³ïÅÇ Çñ³íáõÝù í»ñ³å³Ñ»É
4.Prosecute the offender ¹³ï³Ï³Ý ϳñ·áí Ñ»ï³åݹ»É Ù»Õ³¹ñÛ³ÉÇÝ
5.Injuntion ¹³ï³Ï³Ý áñáßáõÙ
6.Procedural law ÁÝóó³Ï³ñ·³ÛÇÝ ûñ»Ýù
7.Substantive law ÑÇÙÝ³Ï³Ý ûñ»Ýù
8.Enforce law ÏÇñ³é»É ûñ»Ýù
9.Convention å³Ûٳݳ·Çñ, ѳٳӳÛݳ·Çñ
10.Assembly ûñ»Ýë¹Çñ ÅáÕáí
11.Signatory å³Ûٳݳ·Çñ ëïáñ³·ñáÕ ÏáÕÙ
12.Claim ѳÛó

Post – Reading

1.Complete the following definitions. Look at the text to help you.

1.................................................... is law relating to acts commited against the law which are
punished by the state.
2.................................................... is concerned with the constitution or government of the
state, or the relationship between state and citizens.
3.................................................... is rules which determine how a case is administered by the
courts.
4.................................................... is concerned with the rights and duties of individuals,
organisations and associations, as opposed to criminal law.
5.................................................... is common law and statute law used by the courts in making
decisions.

2.Complete the sentences with phrases from the text.

1.In many systems a president rather than a monarch is ......................... ..............................

................................. .
2.The UK system has a pariament with two ............................ .
3.As in other countries, the courts are organised in a .................................... of levels.
4.A number of international ............................... have been incorporated into national law.
5.The Scottish Parliament has the ............................... to legislate on subjects not reserved to
Westminster.

3.Read the text again. Are the following sentences :

True
False
Not Given

1.The European Convention is an important legislative authority in most European countries.

2.There is no written constitution, but constitutional law consists of several important laws.
3.The legislature is the body which has the function of making law; normally it is the Parliament.
4.There are three countries and three distinct jurisdictions in the United Kingdom.
5. Civil law concerns relationships between private persons, their rights and their duties.

4.Give the Armenian equivalents of the following word-combinations.

Legal system, conflicts between individuals, legal persons, compensation, rights and duties,
head of state, elected body, upper house, hierarchy of courts, Members of Parliament,
accession, legislative authority.

5.Complete the text with one of the given words.

(public, government, papers, Green, discussion, attracting, bodies)

The .............................. may proceed to initiate a consultative process by the publication of

a .......................... Paper in which its proposals are set out at an early stage with the intention of
.............................. public response and comment. The government's White ......................
contain their more definite proposals, although these are often published following
consultation or .............................. with pressure groups, professional ..............................., or
voluntary organisations. A Bill does not have to be proceded by a White or Green paper,
although it may have been presented for ..................................... scrutiny, that is, examination,
in draft form earlier.
6.In front of each word or phrase write the number of the appropriate definition

a.Hearing ..................
b.Amendment ..................
c.Acquit ..................
d.Bench ..................
e.Decree ..................

1.The act of freeing a person from the charge of an offense by means of a decision, verdict or
other legal process.
2.Change, the process of changing something.
3.The judge's seat or the judge, himself/herself.
4.A decision or order of the court.
5.A preliminary examination where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of
fact and reaching a decision on the basis of that evidence.

7.Arrange the words under the following groups.

System, procedural, structure, Bill, distinguish, law, legal, lawyer, processes, conflict, include,
property, conduct, reserve, prosecute, offender, injunction, tend, criminal, civil, compensation,
liability, monarch, elected, carry out, appoint, constitutional, jurisdiction, legislate, accession.

Noun Verb Adjective

8.Translate the text into Armenian.

Criminal Court Proceedings

The English system of justice is adversarial, which means that each side collects and presents
their own evidence and attacks their opponent's by cross-examination. In a criminal trial, the
burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is
guilty. A person accused or under arrest for an offence may be granted bail and temporarily
released. However, bail may be refused, for example if there are grounds for believing that the
accused would fail to appear for trial or commit an offence. In the Crown Court, there may be a
preparatory hearing for a complex case before the jury is sworn in.

Prior to the trial, there is a statutory requirement for disclosure by the prosecution and
defence of material relevant to the case, for example details of any alibis – people who can
provide proof of the accused 's whereabouts at the time of the crime – or witnesses – people
who may have seen something relevant to the crime. Once a trial has begun, the defendant
may be advised by counsel to change his or her plea to guilty, in expectation of a reduced
sentence. If, at the end of the trial, the court's verdict is not guilty, then the defendant is
acquitted.