LAW ICOURSE 31242024 1

Assignment No. 1 – Introduction to the Legal System: meanings of law, legal system
& jurisprudence

LAW

a) Read the following excerpts from Garner’s “A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage” in
connection with the definition of the term “law.”

Law, n.

“Roscoe Pound catalogued four meanings for the word law. They are:
1. the legal order, that is, the regime that orders human activities and relations
through systematic application of the force of politically organized society,
or through social pressure, backed by force, in such a society <respect for
law>;
2. the aggregate of legislation and accepted legal precepts; the body of
authoritative action established in an organized society <justice according
to law> <systems of law>; the legal system
3. the judicial and administrative process, i.e., the process of determining
controversies, whether as it actually takes place, or as the public, the jurists,
and the practitioners in the courts hold it ought to take place <law is
whatever is officially done>;
4. some combination of the previous three definitions <law and morals>.
The word has at least three more senses for lawyers, though:
5. a statute <There should be a law!>;
6. the common law <law but not equity>;
7. the legal profession <one may live greatly in the law as elsewhere>.
[…] Lawyers distinguish between a law (sense 5) and the law (sense 4). The
former refers to a particular and concrete instance of a legal precept. Thus,
statutes such as the Sherman Antitrust Act (U.S.) and the Theft Act (Eng.) can
each be called a law.
The law, by contrast, is used for something much broader and more general,
sometimes together with words describing a recognized branch of legal
science, e.g., the law of torts, or with words descriptive of a particular system of
law, e.g., the law of the United States.”
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b) Complete the sentences using “law,” “a law,” “the law,” “laws” to fit the context. In
each case, identify the meaning of the term “law” by choosing from the meanings
listed in a).

1. The efficacy of any legal system depends in a large part on the willingness of
citizens to obey the law. 1) 4)

2. Democrats were overwhelmingly in favor of stricter gun laws, while Republicans

were most likely to say they should be left as is. 5)

3. A federal judge in New Jersey threw out a law to legalize sports gambling in the
state, siding with groups including the National Collegiate Athletic Association and
the National Football League that sued to block the legislation from taking effect. 5)

4. Critics argue that the law was rushed through the Legislature on Jan. 15 by using
the governor’s special message of necessity without the normal three-day review,
public input and debate. 5)

5. Judges are constantly called upon to develop laws the law. 6)

6. Law is, after all, a human creation. 1)

c) Read the definition of “law” provided by Neubauer in Chapter 2 of Judicial Process.

Do you agree with all the features incorporated by the author into the definition?
Should any other elements be included?

Law is a body of rules enacted by public officials in a legitimate manner and

backed by the force of the state. Explain positivist vs naturalists.

LEGAL SYSTEM

d) What is a legal system? Decide which of the following sentences best defines what
a legal system is. Account for your answer.

1. The set of laws of a particular country and the way that they are used.
(restrictive meaning)
2. A legal system comprises the law produced by law-making bodies and the
institutions, processes and personnel that contribute to the operation and
enforcement of those laws.
not only the law itself but also the institutions involved.
3. A term that describes the courts and other bureaucracies that handle legal
matters/cases, including offices of various state and federal prosecutors,
public defenders, and probation offices. (refers to the court system)
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JURISPRUDENCE

e) Define the term “jurisprudence.”

In common law jurisdiction means "filosofía del derecho."

Jurisprudencia: case law, judge-made law, precedent.

f) In groups, choose and discuss one of the propositions below. Be ready to argue for
or against it.

- If a particular nation’s law is unjust, then it is not a true law and need not be
obeyed.
- A law that cannot be enforced is in effect no law at all.
- Law derives its legitimacy from adhering to legal precepts that have shown to be
effective in time.
- Law is a living creature that should be interpreted according to the current social
and economic realities of a given situation.
g) Read each proposition and decide which school of jurisprudential thought is
addressed in each case. Then briefly define the main schools of jurisprudential
thought (Clarkson’s Chapter 1).

LANGUAGE FOCUS
h) Article usage.
i. Read Neubauer’s Chapter 2 and find examples of the following:

1. No article when countable plural nouns are used to convey generic meaning,
e.g.: “Americans equate legal systems with lawyers questioning witnesses, judges
ruling on the basis of precedent…”

2. No article when uncountable nouns are used to convey generic meaning, e.g.:
“Inquisition refers to a judicial examination…”

3. Definite article when countable singular nouns are used to convey generic
meaning, e.g.: “The judge is responsible for calling witnesses…”

4. Definite article when the referent is obvious or clear, e.g.: “The opposing
parties are responsible for calling witnesses…”

ii. Account for the use of the indefinite article in the first sentence and the use of no
article in the second sentence.
a. “Edward Levi, then a law professor and later U.S. attorney general…”
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b. “In the words of law professor Lawrence Friedman…”