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Assignment No. 2 – Legal systems and sources of law

A. LEGAL SYSTEMS

1. Major legal systems in the world. What are other names for the civil law and
common law systems?

civil law: continental law, roman law, romanic law.

common law: anglo american law, judge-made law

2. Based on the key features of the common law system, provide the relevant
features of the civil law system:

Common Law Civil Law

Judge-made law: there are legal acts but Legislatively enacted law (it comes from
as they are not embodied in a single statutes) or statutory law or Codified law.
code, the legal precepts come from the
judge's decision. From the specific case to
the general principle through decisions. U.S. Code: compilation of federal laws
(compendio de leyes NO es un código
como en Argentina)

Reliance on precedent Reliance on codes (comprehensive

collection of legal rules phrased in a
- Inductive legal reasoning approach
general manner. It provides answers)

- Deductive approach (general

principle and then apply it to a
specific case)

Uncodified rules and regulations Codified rules and regulations.

Common law starts from the specific case Judges and lawyers start from the law
maker’s intent.

Adversary system of justice Inquisitorial system

- Party prosecution (it is for the party Judges dominate the courtroom because
to prosecute/move forward their they examine witnesses. Lawyers have a
cases) more passive role.
- The judge serves as a neutral and
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passive decision maker

Each party presents its case, the judge is a
neutral arbitrator
American lawyers mistrust judges, they
think they may be biased.

3. Write four or five paragraphs explaining other major differences between civil law
and common law. Use appropriate connectors.

contrarily, by contrast, in contrast

B. SOURCES OF LAW IN THE ANGLO-AMERICAN SYSTEM

1. Read the different meanings of the phrase “common law” in Huxley-Binns

(supplementary material) and determine which of those meanings equate “common
law” to a source of law.

Source of law: instances from where the rules derive. The origin of law.

The meanings that equate “common law” to a source of law are common law as a
system of law that is common to the whole country, 2 the meaning that
distinguishes it from “equity”, 3, 4 whatever is not parliamentary law, 5 equates it to
a legal system distinguishing it from civil law.

2. Write a paragraph contrasting primary and secondary sources of law.

Primary sources of law: actual laws themselves such as statutory law, case law,
constitution. They are binding sources. In hierarchy: Constitutional law, statutory
law, administrative agencies (eg. IRS, SEC, FDA), which are bodies created to
perform specific functions, case law (limited to all the areas not governed by written
law).

Secondary sources of law: are meant to clarify or summary primary

sources.articles, encyclopedias, compilation of case law. (doctrina). Interpretation,
the effect of a judges’ decision.

3. Language focus.
Based on your reading material, supply the missing verbs in the following
sentences.
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a) A law in violation of the Constitution, if challenged, will be declared

unconstitutional and will not be enforced, no matter what its source.
b) Ordinances are statutes enacted by municipal or county governing units to
regulate matters not covered by federal or state law.
c) A federal statute applies to all states.
d) All fifty states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands have adopted the
Uniform Commercial Code.
e) Rules and regulations passed/created/enacted/issued by administrative
agencies affect almost every aspect of a business’s operations.
f) Today’s courts, like the early English courts, will not grant equitable remedies
unless the remedy at law is inadequate.
g) Sometimes the person wronged was not seeking merely economic
compensation.
h) Once a court sets forth/establishes a principle of law as being applicable in a
certain set of facts, that court and courts of lower rank (within that jurisdiction)
must abide/adhere to that principle in future cases involving similar facts.
i) A court is normally bound/compelled by courts that are higher or equal to
them.