Unit VII

Pre-reading task

Discuss the following questions:

1. What branches of civil law do you know?

2. What relationships does civil law regulate?

Look at the list of offences given below and decide which are regulated by (a) criminal law; (b) civil law.

Murder, libel, theft, assault, fraud, slander, arson, bribery, negligence, robbery, rape, breach of contract, hooliganism, vagrancy, tax evasion.

Task 1. Read the text to understand what information is of primary importance or new for you.

Civil law

Civil law, as opposed to criminal law, is the branch of law dealing with disputes between individuals and/or organizations, in which compensation may be awarded to the victim. For instance, if a car crashes a victim claims damages against the driver for loss or injury sustained in an accident, this will be a civil law case.

Civil law is the area of laws and justice that affects the legal status of individuals. Civil law, in this sense, is usually referred to in comparison to criminal law (the body of law involving the state against individuals where the state relies on the power given by statutory law). Civil law courts provide a forum for deciding disputes involving torts (such as accidents, negligence, defamation (slander and libel), contract disputes, the probate of wills, trusts, property disputes, commercial law, and any other private matters that involve private parties and organizations including government departments. An action by an individual against the attorney general is a civil matter, but when the state, being represented by the prosecutor for the attorney general, or some other agent for the state, takes action against an individual, this is public law, not civil law.

The objectives of civil law are different from other types of law. In civil law there is the attempt to settle a dispute. If there is a victim, he gets compensation, and the person who is the cause of the wrong pays, this being a civilized form (legal alternative) of revenge.

A lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have received damages from a defendant's actions, seeks legal remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint. If the plaintiff is successful judgment will be given in the plaintiff's favor, and a range of court orders may be issued to enforce right, award damages, or impose an injunction to prevent an act or compel an act. A declaratory judgment may be issued to prevent future legal disputes. A lawsuit may involve dispute resolution of private law issues between individuals, business entities or non-profit organizations. The conduct of a lawsuit is called litigation.

Task 2. Find in the text above the English equivalents for the following words and expressions. Memorize them. Use them in the context of your own.

делікт, недбалість, наклеп, затвердження заповіту, судова заборона, подати позов до суду, примусити до виконання дії, примусово здійснити право, засіб судового захисту, присудити компенсацію, генеральний прокурор, вирішувати спори, проведення судового засідання, виносити рішення на користь позивача, суб’єкт господарскої діяльності.

Task 3. Give the Ukrainian equivalents for:

to be awarded, to claim damages, to take action against, to seek legal remedy, in the plaintiff's favor, to enforce right, to impose an injunction, declaratory judgment, business entities, conduct of a lawsuit, statutory law, slander and libel, the probate of wills, commercial law, to settle a dispute, defendant's actions, to prevent future legal disputes, litigation.

Task 4. Match the following legal terms with their definitions:

1) defamation	(a) the publication of defamatory matter in permanent form by a written or printed statement, picture, etc.
2) libel	(b) any false or defamatory words spoken about a person
3) tort	(c) a civil wrong whereby a person or party is in breach of a legal duty of care to another which results in loss or injury to the claimant
4) negligence	(d) the injuring of a person's good name or reputation
5) plaintiff	(e) a civil violation
6) slander	(f) a person against whom an action or claim is brought in a court of law
7) defendant	(g) the declaration of a person's wishes regarding the disposal of his or her property after death
8) will	(h) a person who brings an action in a court of law
9) compel	(i) the act or process of bringing a legal action in court
10) litigation	(j) to cause (someone) by force (to be or do something)

Task 5. Answer the following questions:

1) What is civil law?

2) What cases does civil law cover?

3) What do torts include?

4) What are the objectives of civil law?

5) What is a lawsuit?

Task 6. Role play.

Read the story and decide what Matt and Luther did wrong.

What laws are involved in the story?

Which of these are criminal laws? Which are civil laws?

Matt and Luther decide to skip school. They take Luther’s brother’s car without telling him and drive to a local shopping centre. At the TV shop they buy a portable radio. When Matt and Luther get back to the parking they notice a large dent in one side of their car. The dent appears to be the result of a driver’s carelessly backing out of the next space. They also notice that the car has been broken into and that the tape deck has been removed.

They call the police to report the accident and theft. When the police arrive they seize a small bag containing illegal drugs from behind the car’s back seat. Matt and Luther are arrested.

Dramatize the story. Act for Matt, Luther, the policeman.

Task 7. Translate the following words and phrases. Use them to translate the text:

tort law, limitation of individual rights, traffic accidents, libel, slander, moral standard, business methods, malicious gossip, initiation of proceeding, legal liability.

Деліктне право є одним з основних розділів права. На відміну від злочину, делікт – це цивільне правопорушення. Злочин – це правопорушення проти суспільства.

Що таке делікт? Делікт – це порушення закону, наслідком якого є тілесне ушкодження, майнова шкода або обмеження прав особи. Характерною ознакою делікту є принципова можливість його компенсації.

Недбалість. Більшість судових справ, що відносяться до деліктного права, ґрунтуються на недбалості, а найбільша кількість випадків недбалості трапляється під час дорожньо-транспортних пригод.

Наклеп. Наклеп – це неправдива заява щодо іншої особи. Це може бути пасквіль (у письмовій формі) або обмова – це шкода репутації особи, на яку зводять наклеп стосовно її моральних устоїв, здібностей, методів ведення підприємницької діяльності або фінансового стану. У типових випадках зловмисні плітки можуть бути достатньою підставою для порушення клопотання про юридичну відповідальність за письмовий або усний наклеп.