Task I. Give your opinion on the purpose of punishment.

Which of them would you agree to?

1. The main aim of punishment is to deter.

2. The main aim of punishment is to take revenge.

3. The main aim of punishment is to keep criminals out of society.

4. The main aim of punishment is to reform and rehabilitate criminals.

 

Task II. What do you think about capital punishment?

 

WE WRITE

Task I. Write about punishment. Follow the plan.

1. The purpose of punishment.

2. The types of punishment.

3. The problem of capital punishment.

 

 

 


TYPES OF LEGAL PROFESSIONS

 

 

WE LEARN

 

Task I. Study the Language reference.

 

a lawyer [΄lͻijә] – юрист

a solicitor [sә΄lisәtә]– солиситор

a barrister [΄bæristә] – барристер

a judge[ʤʌʤ] – судья; судить, рассматривать дело

jury[΄ʤuәri] -коллегия присяжных (суд присяжных, присяжные)

a magistrate [΄mæʤistreit]- магистрат (судья первой инстанции)

a coroner[΄kͻrәnә]- коронер (должностное лицо округа, в чьи обязанности входит изучение обстоятельств смерти человека

a clerk of the court– судебный секретарь

a legal adviser –юрисконсульт; советник по правовым вопросам

advocate [΄ædvәkeit]– адвокат, защищать (в суде)

public procurator[΄prͻkju͵reitә] – (общественный ) обвинитель, прокурор

notary[΄nͻtәri] - нотариус

 

Task II

Read and translate the text.

 

1 will – завещание

2 defend [di΄fend] - защищать на суде, выступать защитником

3 prosecute[΄prͻsikju:t] - вести судебное дело; преследовать в судебном порядке

4 wigs and gowns – парики и мантии

5 Queen's Counsel - королевский адвокат (по назначению правительства)

6 preside[pri΄zaid] - председательствовать, руководить заседанием

7 common sense - здравый смысл

8 juror [΄ʤuәrә] - присяжный заседатель, член состава присяжных

9 decide - выносить решение

10 guilty [΄gilti] - виновен

11 innocent [΄inәsәnt] - невиновный

12 inquire into - исследовать; выяснять

 

Types of Legal Professions

 

SOLICITORS

Solicitors deal with all the day-today work of preparing legal documents for buying and selling houses, making wills, etc. They also work on court cases for their clients, prepare cases for barristers to present in the higher courts, and may represent their client in a Magistrates' court.

BARRISTERS

Barristers defend or prosecute in the higher courts. Although solicitors and barristers work together on cases, barristers specialize in representing clients in court and the training and career structures for the two types of lawyer are quite separate. In court, barristers wear wigs and gowns in keeping with the extreme formality of the proceedings. The highest level of barristers has the title QC (Queen's Counsel).

 

JUDGES

There are a few hundred judges, trained as barristers, who preside in more serious cases. There is no separate training for judges.

 

Judges in Great Britain

In Britain, the vast majority of judges are unpaid. They are called "Magistrates", or "Justices of the Peace" (JPs). They are ordinary citizens who are selected not because they have any legal training but because they have "sound common sense" and understand their fellow human beings. They give up time voluntarily.

A small proportion of judges are not Magistrates. They are called "High Court Judges" and they deal with the most serious crimes, such as those for which the criminal might be sent to prison for more than a year. High Court Judges, unlike Magistrates, are paid salaries by the State and have considerable legal training. Magistrates are selected by special committees in every town and district. Nobody, not even the Magistrates themselves, knows who is on the special committee in their area. The committee tries to draw Magistrates from as wide a variety of professions and social classes as possible.

 

JURY

A jury consists of twelve people ("jurors"), who are ordinary people chosen at random from the Electoral Register (the list of people who can vote in elections). The jury listens to the evidence given in court in certain criminal cases and decides whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. If the person is found guilty, the punishment is passed by the presiding judge. Juries are rarely used in civil cases.

 

MAGISTRATES

Magistrates (Justices of the Peace or JPs) judge cases in the lower courts. They are usually unpaid and have no formal legal qualifications, but they are respectable people who are given some training.

 

CORONERS

Coroners have medical or legal training (or both), and inquire into violent or unnatural deaths.

 

CLERKS OF THE COURT

Clerks look after administrative and legal matters in the courtroom.