AN OUTLINE OF LAWMAKING PROCESS IN GREAT BRITAIN AND THE USA

New legislation in Britain usually starts in the House of Lords. In each house a bill is considered in three stages, called readings. The first reading is purely formal, to introduce the bill. The second reading is usually the occasion for debate. After the second reading the bill is examined in detail by a committee.

The bill is then returned to one of the houses for the report stage, when it can be amended. If passed after its third reading, it goes to the other house. Amendments made to a bill by the House of Lords must be considered by the Commons. If the House of Commons does not agree, the bill is altered and sent back to the Lords. In the event of persistent disagreement between the two houses, Commons prevails.

Finally, the bill goes to the reigning monarch for the royal assent. Nowadays the royal assent is merely a formality. In theory the queen could still refuse her consent, but the last monarch to use this power was Queen Anne, who vetoed the unpopular Scottish Militia Bill in 1707.

The US Congress, the lawmaking arm of the federal government, consists of two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Any congressman in either house, or the president, may initiate new legislation.

The proposed legislation, or bill, is first introduced in the House of Representatives, then referred to one of the standing committees, which organizes hearings on it and may approve, amend or shelve the draft. If the committee passes the bill, it is considered by the House of Representatives as a whole. If passed there, it goes to the Senate for a similar sequence of committee hearings and general debate.

In cases of disagreement, the House of Representatives and the Senate confer together. Once passed by the Senate as a whole, the bill has to be examined by two more standing committees - the Committee on House Administration and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration - and is then signed by the speaker of the House and by the president of the Senate.

Finally, it must be signed by the president, who has the right to veto it. If the president vetoes a bill, it can still become a law - but only if it is passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress.

2. Match the following statements with a particular (British or American) law system.

2)Everybody is shocked: the Senate hasn’t approved the President’s decision to appoint Mr. John Brian Star the fifteenth federal district’s attorney.

3. Work in groups. Find as many differences (similarities) in the lawmaking in Gr.Br. and the USA as possible.

The most common type of law court in England and Wales is the magistrates' court. There are 700 magistrates' courts and about 30,000 magistrates.

More serious criminal cases then go to the Crown Court, which has 90 branches in different towns and cities. Civil cases (for example, divorce or bankruptcy cases) are dealt with in County courts.

Appeals are heard by higher courts. For example, appeals from magistrates' courts are heard in the Crown Court, unless they are appeals on points of law. The highest court of appeal in England and Wales is the House of Lords. (Scotland has its own High Court in Edinburgh, which hears all appeals from Scottish courts.) Certain cases may be referred to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. In addition, individuals have made the British Government change its practices in a number of areas as a result of petitions to the European Court of Human Rights.

The legal system also includes juvenile courts (which deal with offenders under seventeen) and coroners' courts (which investigate violent, sudden or unnatural deaths). There are administrative tribunals which make quick, cheap and fair decisions with much less formality. Tribunals deal with professional standards, disputes between individuals, and disputes between individuals and government departments (for example, over taxation).

2. Every jurisdiction organizes the administration of justice in different ways. In England, the basic division between criminal and civil law is reflected in the court system. Look at the chart below and then complete the description that refers to each court.

1. Claims of lesser value will start in a County Court. There are 250 of these around the country. They can also deal with divorce and bankruptcy matters.

2. Matters of important legal dispute arising in the Crown Court may be appealed to the______________.

3. From the Court of Appeal, there can be an appeal to the______________on fact or law, but usually appeal is only allowed on matters of legal importance.

4. If the case involves a serious crime, it is heard in the______________(there is only one _______________but it has about 70 centres around the jurisdiction).

5. In less serious criminal cases (which comprise over 90% of criminal cases), the case is sent for trial in one of over 400________________.

6. More substantial civil claims (over around £25,000) are heard in the______________.

7. The______________ was set up under the Treaty of Rome of 1957, by which the European Community was established. The court can overrule all other courts on matters of Community law.

8. Under the system of appeals in civil cases, it is possible to appeal from a County Court or the High Court to the______________.

2. In the United Kingdom, what is the difference between criminal and civil law?

5. A criminal is someone who commits a crime. Below are 12 phrases using the word criminal. Link each phrase to its definition. The first is done for you.

d) rules governing the investigation of crimes; the arrest, charging, and trial of accused criminals; and the sentencing of those convicted (found guilty of a crime)

f) disorderly behaviour, disrespect, or disobedience of a judge's orders, particularly during a trial

h) where an individual fails to exercise a duty of care and the resulting action leads to the commission of a crime

l) responsibility for committing a crime (excluded persons include minors and the insane)

6. Criminal procedure. Below are the stages of the criminal procedure. Match each step to its correct definition.

a) _______________: the police free the person alleged to have committed the crime on condition that the accused appears at court at a future date

b) _______________: the jury panel make a decision whether they believe (beyond reasonable doubt) that the accused committed the crime of which he/she is accused

d) _______________: the police carry out a systematic examination of the person who may have committed a crime

e) ________________: the police receive information that a crime may have been committed

f) ________________: the police make a claim of wrongdoing against the person alleged to have committed the crime

g) ________________: the police carry out further questioning of the person alleged to have committed the crime

j) ________________: the police carry out a detailed enquiry into the alleged crime

к) ________________: after being found guilty, the accused brings an action to clear his/her name or to reduce the sentence

l) ________________: the police arrest the person who is alleged to have committed the crime

m) ________________: the police detain the person alleged to have committed the crime

о) ________________: the police collect evidence against the accused from those who can give evidence

7. Match the sentences on the left with the most suitable response on the right. Use the words and expressions in bold to help you. There is an example at the beginning (1-a).

8. Complete the sentences using words from the box. The first is done for you.

4. The prosecution says that my client stole millions of pounds via the internet. But where is the____________?

6. Everyone knew the woman was 100% guilty, but they just couldn't ____________ it.

7. I now call my next ____________, Mrs. McPherson, the defendant's mother-in-law.

8. You are a rich man, and just paying a ____________will not punish you enough. I am going to send you to prison. Let this be a lesson to you.

9. Officer, you have arrested my client. Now you must either ____________her or let her go.

11. The Appeal Court might reduce your ___________years to, say, three. But they can also increase it.

12. You can deposit £50,000 with the court, and be released on ____________. But if you disappear, you will lose the money. Do you understand that?

13. If your defence lawyer is better than the ____________ lawyer, you may get off.

14. This wicked man has ____________the most appalling crimes, and all decent people will agree that he should receive a very long prison sentence indeed.

15. Be in ____________at 9.30. The hearing begins at 10 o'clock, and the magistrates don't like to be kept waiting.

The legal system in Britain seems very old-fashioned. The judges and lawyers still wear black gowns and white wigs. Lawyers have to address the judge as M'lud (= My Lord). So you will not be surprised that the language of the law is also rather antique, with very long sentences and bits of French and Latin thrown in.

9. Sentencing. Below is a range of sentences that may be imposed. Match each sentence to its definition. The first is done for you.

c) A place of confinement for time periods longer than those usual for a police station lock-up and shorter than those usual for a prison.

d) Unpaid work undertaken pursuant to a court order upon conviction for an offence in lieu of a sentence of imprisonment.

e)A release from prison, before a sentence is finished, that depends on the person 'keeping clean' and doing what he or she is supposed to do while out. If the person fails to meet the conditions, the rest of the sentence must be served.

f) Conduct required for criminals to get out of jail early or other privileges while in prison.

g) A sentence (usually 'jail time') that the judge allows the convicted person to avoid serving (e.g. if the person continues on good behaviour, completes community service, etc.).

h) A document that promises to pay money if a particular future event happens, or a sum of money that is put up and will be lost if that event happens.

j) The sentencing of a criminal to a period of time during which they will be deprived of their freedom.

k) A bond, required by a judge of a person likely to 'breach the peace', to guarantee the person's good behaviour for a period of time.

l) An exact prison term that is set by law, rather than one that may be shortened for good behaviour.

m) A kind of punishment given out as part of a sentence, which means that instead of jailing a person convicted of a crime, a judge will order that the person reports to an officer regularly and according to a set schedule.

n) The most severe of all sentences: that of death, also known as the death penalty.

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