What is Law?
• Set of rules everyone must follow to
live peacefully in society
• Laws should:
– Be fair
– Apply to all people the same
Functions of Laws
• Keep the peace
• Prevent violence
Early Law – Hammurabi’s Code –
First known written law
Roman Law
• Jurisprudence –
the science of law
• Roman law was
harsh
– Example: If anyone sang a song that
was insulting or slanderous to
Justinian Code
• As the Roman Empire
expanded to other parts of Europe, Africa, and
Asia, and more laws were issued, Roman law became very confusing
• Emperor Justinian I
Roman Law Cont’d.
• Roman law recognized the supreme authority of the father within his family. A father could:
– Sell his son or daughter into slavery
– Have a rebellious son put to death (a.k.a. “sacrificed to the gods”)
– “Sell” his daughter in marriage to whomever he pleased
– Tell his son whom to marry and when to divorce
• Roman law also reflected a Roman harshness toward physical weakness: the dreadfully
Napoleonic Code
• Napoleon updated & combined Roman & French laws
• 1st successful codification of French laws
• Previous French law was
confusing – laws were based on local customs – not one set of codified laws for the
entire nation
English Law
• Common Law –
Body of law
made up of all
previous court
decisions
English Common Law, Cont’d.
• Most important source of American law
• Eng. judges blended Roman law and Catholic Church’s laws to come up with common law
– Judges nearly always follow court decisions made in similar,
previous cases
• Exception: If new case is
English Statutory Law
• As British Parliament
grew stronger than
the king, they wrote
statutes
• Written “acts” of
Eng. Parliament
From England to America
• English
settlers
brought ideas
of common law
& indiv. rights
to Amer.
Criminal Law, Cont’d.
Criminal Law, Cont’d.
• Plaintiff – The govt. (“prosecution”) in
criminal cases
– Prosecution brings charges against the alleged criminal
– Victims are never the plaintiff in criminal cases
– In criminal cases, it’s assumed that society (all of us) are the victim
Criminal Law, Cont’d.
Criminal Law, Cont’d.
• Misdemeanor – Minor
crimes that are punished with fines or less than one year of jail time
• Felony – More serious crimes such as murder,
rape, kidnapping, robbery,
etc. A courtroom sketch shows I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby pleading not guilty during his
Civil Law
• Cases involving disputes betw. people or groups of people
– Can be individuals, govts., organizations
• Lawsuit – Legal action where someone is sued to collect
damages for a harm that was done
The Superior Court jury awarded $8.5 million in compensatory
Civil Law, Cont’d.
Civil Law, Cont’d.
• Tort – Civil wrongs
• Suing to recover the cost of damages for harm someone else has caused
• A tort occurs when one person causes injury to another person or to another person’s property or reputation.
– Tort law provides the injured party with a remedy, which is usually in the form of money damages.
• 3 types of torts
– Tort liability exists for:
• Intentional torts
Begin notes Mon., Apr. 4
Family Law
Public Law
• Involves
constitutional,
administrative, & criminal law
• Highest laws in the land
• Includes all the rules that govt. agencies of
executive branch must issue to carry out their jobs
Statutory Law
• Laws written by a
legislative branch
of govt. meant to
regulate people’s
behavior
– Setting speed limits – Right to return
merchandise – Right to get a
International Law
• Involves treaties, customs and agreements among nations.
• International Court of Justice, or the World Court, hears alleged violations of international law
– Established after WWII to resolve disputes among nations, to prevent future wars
American Legal System
Stare Decisis
• Courts base their rulings on two
things:
– Written laws
– Courts base decisions on precedents of
earlier cases (let the decision
