Our Laws
Chapter 1
Why are there so many rules?
or ….“Pick on Carl Day”
Lesson 1-1
Our Laws & Legal System
Laws & Code – reflect culture that creates them
The need for laws has always existed; just
particular laws have changed.
 Laws—enforceable
rules of conduct
 Code—Laws
grouped into an
organized form. A penal code is a portion of a state's laws
defining crimes and specifying the punishment. Other codes-- traffic code ,
building safety code, or laws addressing environmental resources by
regulating hunting, fishing, or forestry.
Teens & Consequences
4 Stages in the Growth of Law
1.
Individuals take revenge for wrongs done
to them.
Example—gang related shooting/revenge…
this disrupts normal routine of people and harms innocent
bystanders. Leads to one individual (sovereign) seizing pwer
to bring peace to society.
Another example—Lord of the Flies
2.
Awards of money or goods are substituted
for revenge.
Sovereign brings about this second stage of law by
awarding $ or goods. (fines, court awards, etc)
4 Stages in the Growth of Law
3. Court systems are formed.
Sovereign forms court, where people can go to be heard
when severely injured by another.
4. A central authority figure (sovereign)
intervenes to prevent and punish wrongs.
Sovereign uses the courts to prevent problems from arising
and can issue laws to punish behavior that injure others.
Why Laws Exist
Common Law v. Positive Law


Common Law—Law based on the current
standards or customs of the people.
Positive Law—Law dictated or set down by a
sovereign or other central authority to prevent
wrongs from occurring.
The best system of laws gradually evolves towards a form
that is most appropriate to the current standards of the
people. Laws should be predicable…if not, chaos,
unrest and replacement of system
Example—Taliban overthrown in Aghanistan
How Laws Change
Who Enforces Laws?
The World’s Two Systems of Law

English Common Law pg 6
-49 states in USA use this system.
-English colonists transported this system here.
-Local custom-based, evolved from king’s court to juries.
-Follows precedent.

Roman Civil Law
Written, well-organized, comprehensive
sets of statutes in code form. One state in
USA, Louisiana, uses law based on Napoleonic Code.
TERMS

Precedent – courts use prior cases as a
guide for deciding similar new cases.

Jurisdiction – the power to decide a case.

Equity – basic fairness.
Development of English


Common Law
Prior to English Common Law, feudal barons in
England acted as judges within their territories;
laws differed from region to region
Around 1150, King Henry II appointed judges
who would “ride circuit into countryside holding
court in villages. King’s Court based in London
was created to hear cases that may have been
decided unwisely. The King’s Court took
jurisdiction (power to decide case) over the most
important cases.
Development of English


Common Law
Juries developed to decide cases in
harmony with the customs of the people. The
jury is an institution unique to the English
common law system.
English common law system has been a
model for legal systems worldwide because
of its uniformity (precedent-based). Yet it has
and ability to adapt to changes in society.
Equity Courts— An Alternative to Common Law


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Equity courts were developed in England (first
used by the King) & were an alternative to
common law. No juries.
Equity courts were given the power to issue
injunctions or to compel specific actions before
damage is done, whereas common law courts
had to wait until the harm actually occurred to
take action.
In the U.S. today, law courts & equity courts
generally are merged.
What’s Your Verdict? (page 6)




Should the courts intervene in the strike?
Who should be punished, the strikers or the
workers, or both?
What is a fair punishment?
Would an injunction limiting the number of
picketers be useful?
Lesson 1-2
Types of Laws
Laws at federal, state, & local levels consist of:
 Constitutions
 Statutes
 Administrative
 Case
Law
Regulations
Laws at federal, state, & local levels
consist of:
Constitutions—a document that sets forth
the framework of a government and its
relationship to the people it governs.
Supreme Courts are final authorities on the
meaning of constitutions.

Our Constitution: We the People
Constitutions define and allocate
certain powers in our society
1. Between people and government
At the federal level, the Bill of Rights protects people
from actions of their governments.
2. Between state and federal government
3. Among branches of government
Checks & balances for executive, legislative & judicial
See page 9
The Bill of Rights
Protecting Civil Liberties
Laws at federal, state, & local levels
consist of:

Statutes
Laws enacted by legislatures, which are
composed of elected representatives of the
people.
What’s Your Verdict? (page 9)
Ordinance—legislation at the local level
Laws at federal, state, & local levels
consist of:

Administrative Regulations
Governmental bodies formed to carry out
particular laws. Controlled by the executive
branch of government (President, Governor,
Mayor). Often called rules & regulations.
Examples:
Federal Social Security Administration
Iowa Division of Motor Vehicles
Lyon County Zoning Commission
Laws at federal, state, & local levels
consist of:

Case Law
Law created by legal rulings in cases. Created by
the judicial branch of government.
Stare decisis—Latin for “to adhere to decided cases.”
Requires that lower courts must follow established
case law in similar cases.
Precedence
What happens when laws conflict?

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Legal rules for supremacy establish which law
is valid and should therefore be enforced.
Constitutions are highest source of law.
“the supreme law of the land”
When a law is invalid because it conflicts with
a constitution, it is said to be unconstitutional.
QUESTION – If a state constitution & the U.S.
constitution conflict, which prevails?
Criminal v. Civil Law

Criminal Law—Offense against society.
Used when a citizen’s right to live in peace is
violated. Acting in the name of ALL people, the
government investigates an alleged wrongdoing.

Civil Law—Group of laws that redress wrongs
against individual persons.
Used when the private legal rights of an individual
are violated.
Note: Both criminal & civil can apply, such as in OJ
Simpson case.
Civil vs Criminal Law
Procedural v. Substantive Laws
Procedural Laws—deal with methods of
enforcing legal rights and duties.
Examples:

Laws on how & why police can make arrests.
Rules for determining the supremacy of conflicting
laws.

Substantive Laws—defines rights and duties.
(Rights & duties defined on page 40)
Defines offenses, such as murder, theft, vehicular
homicide, breach of contract, negligence.
Juvenile Rights
Business Law

Covers rules that apply to business situations
and transactions. Most business transactions
involve a merchant and a consumer.

Civil Law (contracts)
Torts—private wrongdoings (civil offenses)
UCC—Uniform Commercial Code


Widely adopted uniform business law written by
committees of legal experts.
Evaluating the Law and Being
Active in Our Democracy
Assignment
Page 13
 Think about legal concepts 1-9
 Think critically about evidence 12, 14
Page 14
 Your Legal Vocabulary 1-14
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Crossword (lesson 1-1)