INTRODUCTION TO LAW

What is Law?

What is Law?

Rules and regluations made and enforced by the government that regulate the conduct of people within society.

Promote society’s values

Relate the definitions to the previous activity

No Laws?

No Laws?

• No ability to regulate people’s conduct• Confusion • Disorder

• Relate to previous activity

• Discuss with your peers if anybody is “above the law”

7 Goals of Legal System

• Protect basic rights• Promoting fairness• Helping resolve conflicts• Promoting order and stability• Promoting desirable social and economic

behaviors• Representing the will of the majority and• Protecting the rights of minorities

Laws

Based on Moral, economic, political and social values As values change so do laws

***women in military, killing, laws that give tax breaks to home owners, voting laws, free public education

Can laws solve all social problems?

Human rights

Rights people have because they are human

Universal Declaration of Human Rights Statement of basic human rights and

standards for government that has been agreed to by almost every country in the world Liberty, education, political and religious

freedoms, bans torture

Cultural vs. universally accepted human rights How do we decide?

With every right comes a responsibility

With every right comes a responsibility

To many rights, neglecting responsibility? If want a jury of peers must be willing to

serve Want to be governed by elected officials

must vote

Kinds of Laws

• Criminal – Regulate public conduct and set out duties

owed to society– Only brought by government

• Felony-more than one year in prison• Misdemeanor-one year or less

• Civil– Regulate relations between individuals or

groups of individuals• Civil Action-lawsuit Brought by person who feels

wronged or injured by another• ***can violate both

Criminal vs. Civil Law

• Defendant-person accused of committing crime in a criminal case

• Plantiff-person or company harmed• Prosecutor-• Beyond a resonable doubt-has any

reasonable doubt must not convict• Preponderance of the evidence-plantiff

wins by proving evidence to jury to decide if more likely than not the plaintiffs complaint is true-lower requirement

Constitution

Lawmaking Limited government-

States continue to hold power to make laws Executive-

enforces laws Legislative-

Congress passes statutes

Judicial- Courts

clarifies and interprets laws, statutues

Constitution Cont.

Judicial Review-enables courts to declare unenforceable any law passed by Congress that conflicts with the constitution The government has passed a law that

violates someone's rights The government passed a law that the

constitution does not give it the power to pass Checks and Balances

3 branches are independent but has power to restrain other branches

Lawmaking

State and federal government Legislatures-primary laws making body

Congress-power to pass laws that are binding in all states

Senate and house of representatives State-only apply in state boundaries ***Supremacy clause

Becoming a law

Bills-introduced legislation If passed by legislature and not vetoed by

executive branch becomes a law

Legislative intent A judge who interprets what the legistlature

means determines

Laws

Laws are made by Leglistatures Agencies courts

Courts and laws

Appeal or appellate courts Change the results of the trail

Will write a precedent for future trials