Ch02

AN OVERVIEW OF THE U.S. LEGAL SYSTEM

Chapter 2

Theories

Throughout history, law has regulated human interactions for different reasons: Protect society’s interests Deter antisocial behavior Enforce moral beliefs Uphold individual rights Support those in power Punish lawbreakers Or seek retribution for wrongdoing

Two Prominent Theories

Consensus Theory Holds that individuals in a society agree on basic

values, on what is inherently right and wrong, and the laws that express these values

Social contract exists where individuals agree to give up a portion of their individual freedom to benefit the security of the group

Conflict Theory Holds that laws are established to keep the

dominant class in power Explains how laws protect the interests and values

of the dominant groups in society

Current Legal System Goals

Scales of Justice

Ensure fairness in balancing individual and society rights and needs, while preventing excessive government power

Scales of justice represent keeping individual and societal needs in balance

Law Defined

In the US, laws are created by legislative bodies empowered by the people to pass laws.

These laws are made through a legal process called: Promulgate

American law must be enforced through legal means, in accordance with the tenets of the Constitution

Development of the Law

Laws evolves through four phases:1. People come together seeking collective

security, to collectively gather food and to satisfy other mutual needs

2. They discover that they need rules to maintain order and their sense of security

3. Inevitably some individuals break the rules

4. Consequences are established for breaking the rules

Development of the Law

Roman law had great influence on the American legal system Rules were based on tradition and a quest for

fairness Justinian Code

Distinguished public and private laws and influenced legal thought

England common law Royal judges traveled through territories to

apply a broader or national norm as cases were decided. Law became more common throughout the country

Development of the Law

Common law- early English judge-made law, based on custom and tradition that was followed throughout the country. It is synonymous in American law with case law- based on previous cases Parliament took over the role of promulgating

law Offenses once considered personal wrongs (murder,

rape) were redefined by English judges as crimes against the state because they disrupted the security of the entire community, not just the individual

This made offenders subject to state control and punishment

Development of the Law

Common law depends heavily on through precedent and the concept of stare decisis

Stare decisis- to stand by decided matters/ let the decision stand Means that previous rules set forth in other

cases shall be used to decide future cases

Continuing Need for Law

People need laws to know what behavior is acceptable and to deal with those who do not follow the law

Laws should be obeyed for the good of all but, obedience to the law is voluntary

You should obey the law because as a member of a larger group, everyone benefits if laws are obeyed

Laws set parameters for social behavior, including the consequences for actions outside these parameters

American Law Lives

Human nature dictates that different needs are perceived at different times Effective law should be flexible enough to

respond to these changes American law is referred to as a living

law, because it is not stagnant It can change, expand or rescinded (repeal)

to serve the overall system

American Law Lives

Constitutional Amendments show how law can advance and retreat as needs and expectations change Constitutional Amendments are not easily or

frequently added or removed 2/3 of each house of Congress, or conventions called

by 2/3 of the state legislatures to propose constitutional amendments

To be ratified, ¾ of the state legislatures must agree Out of 7,000 proposals, only 33 have been passed

and submitted to the states 17 in total have been successfully ratified

American Law Lives

Most influential amendments came after the civil war: 13th Amend.-abolished slavery 14th Amend.- prevented the states from

denying former slaves equal protection and due process

15th Amend.- right to vote regardless of race

19th Amend.- right to vote for women 21st Amend.- repealed prohibition

Categorizing Law

Who?

What?

How?

Who? (Jurisdiction)

Who makes the law? Who does the law affect? The group that has jurisdiction or authority

to promulgate that law. Legislative body, city counsel, or state or federal legislatures

Jurisdiction- authority to establish a law, authority of a court to hear certain cases or the authority the law has over a specific group of people

Who?

Statutory law- laws set by legislatures or governing bodies having jurisdiction to make such law Statutory law can be referred as codified law Codified law- law specifically set forth in

organizes, structured codes such as the US criminal code, state statutes or local ordinances

Ordinances- laws or codes established at the local level, that is, the municipal or county level

No statutory law can violate the Constitution

How? (Procedural)

Substantive law- establishes rules and regulations traffic law Criminal law

Procedural law- how the law is to be enforced-how and when police can stop people How and when police can stop people Violations of procedural law can have

consequences for the government

What? (criminal or civil)

Who is the victim? Is it a public wrong (criminal) or a private wrong (civil)?

The victim in criminal law is the community, because it disrupts the community. Society’s welfare has also been violated This is why the governments name,

representing the people, versus the defendant appears on court docket US v. Smith, State of Florida v. Smith

What? (criminal or civil)

Crimes- Acts defined by federal or state statute or local ordinance that are punishable; wrongs against the government and the people it serves.

Ex.- murder, rape, robbery, etc. Also called “penal codes” – criminal codes or laws

Tort- civil wrong by one individual against another

Ex.- child support, eviction, divorce Plaintiff v. Defendant (Smith v. Jones)

What? (criminal or civil) Sometimes there is overlap of criminal and civil law

A drunk driver causes a crash and hurts an individual. Is this Criminal or Civil?

It can be both. Can be guilty of DUI (crime) and be held civilly liable for the injuries caused to others by the tort committed. The government would pursue criminal charges The victim would file a lawsuit in pursuit of damages i.e. –

The victim’s families were awarded

Current Events

Criminal Case - California v. Simpson

Civil Case - Relatives of Victims v. Simpson

OJ Simpson was acquitted in a criminal court for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend

Found liable in civil court for wrongful death Families were awarded $33.5

million

Burden of Proof

Criminal- the government must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt (99%)

Civil- plaintiff must prove their case by a preponderance of the evidence (means-more likely than not) 51% Goal of civil actions is to right the wrong

The Court System

The court has two main functions: Settle controversies between parties To decide the rules of law that apply in the specific

case Article III of the US Constitution established the

federal judicial system The types of cases a court can hear depend upon its

jurisdiction... The authority of a legislative body to establish a

law or a court to hear case The authority a law has over a specific group of

people

Jurisdiction

Three levels of jurisdiction Federal, state, and local

There are 6 types of jurisdiction: Original Appellate General Limited Exclusive Concurrent

Jurisdiction

Original- Courts authorized to hear cases first, try them and render decisions Trial courts

Appellate- describes a court authorized to review cases and to either affirm or reverse the actions of the lower court

General- courts having the ability to hear a wide range of cases

Jurisdiction

Limited- restricted of the types of cases a particular court might hear

Exclusive- courts only hear specific cases

Concurrent- two or more courts authorized to hear a specific type of case

Venue- geographic area in which a specific case may come to trial, and the area from which the jury is selected

The Court System

The US judicial system is two-tiered, consisting of state and federal court systems

At either tier, there are three levels:1. Lower court (trial court)2. Appellate court3. Court of last resort (Supreme court)

These levels exist to assure that if either side thinks procedural rules were violated, they can appeal the case to a higher court

State Court SystemLower Courts Include municipal, inferior and limited

jurisdiction and county courts Municipal courts hear ordinance

violations, minor criminal cases, traffic cases and sometimes more major cases

Limited to the city or county in which the court is located

State Court SystemLower Courts Inferior include probate, family, police

traffic and justice of the peace courts States have established these courts to

eliminate the expense and inconvenience of traveling to a county or district court

State Court SystemLower Courts County often have exclusive jurisdiction

over misdemeanor cases and civil cases involving a limited amount of money

Superior courts are the highest of trial courts with general jurisdiction This is where most felony cases enter the

system Also called district court, circuit court or courts

of common plea

State Court SystemIntermediate Appellate Courts

Created to reduce the caseloads of the state supreme courts

Appeal cases generally go to this court first

State Court SystemState Supreme Courts

Highest courts in the state and generally called supreme courts

Power is given to them by the state constitution

Oversee the intermediate appellate courts and have few areas of original jurisdiction.

Petition for certiorari- to review the decision of an appeals court Lower court must abide by the decision of

the higher court

Federal Court System

Specialized courts District courts with general jurisdiction 12 Circuit courts of Appeal U.S. Supreme Court (must capitalize)

Special US Courts

These courts you may never have any dealings with: Court of Military Appeals Court of Claims Court of Customs and Patent Appeals Customs Court and Tax Court

US District Court

Are trial courts with general and original federal jurisdiction

Try both criminal and civil cases Civil-plaintiff and defendant must be from

different states and the suit must be more than $10,000

Criminal- tries a very limited number of cases Each state has at least 1 District Court,

and larger states have as many as 4 There are 94 district courts

US Court of Appeals

Like the Intermediate appellate courts in the state court system

Ease caseload of the Supreme Court Assigned to one of the eleven circuits

Also a DC circuit and a Federal Circuit Court Have jurisdiction over final decisions of

federal district courts They are courts of last resort in most

federal cases

U.S. Supreme Court

Ultimate court of appeal Chief function is as an appellate court Restricted by act of Congress to hear

only certain types of appeals from federal appeals courts and state supreme courts

The case must involve a state or federal statute alleged to be unconstitutional

U.S. Supreme Court

There is no right to have a case heard by the Supreme Court

Only hears cases of extreme national importance to set important policy: Abortion Busing School prayer

Only court empowered to handle lawsuits between states

Officers of the Court

Judges Lawyers Clerks of the court Sheriffs Marshals Bailiffs

Judges

Sometimes called justices or magistrates Elected in some states and appointed in

others Federal judges are nominated and

appointed Preside over trials and hearings Render decisions Oversee the selection of juries and

instruct them during jury cases

Lawyers

Criminal cases - Prosecutor or Defense attorney Prosecutor represents the government Defense attorney represents the accused

Civil cases- Plaintiff’s lawyer represents the party bringing the suit

Clerks

Schedule cases Officially record all business conducted

by the court Receive and file all official documents

related to a case Summons and complaints (examples)

Sheriffs and Marshals

Serve summons and other court documents

Enforce court order Sheriffs function at the state level Marshals function at the federal level

Bailiffs

Responsible for keeping the courtroom proceedings orderly and dignified

Protect everyone in the court room

An Adversarial Judicial System A legal system which places one party

against another to resolve a legal issue Only in actual conflicts will a judicial

body hear the case Will not entertain “what it” situations

Doctrines that Govern What Cases Will be Heard

Standing Having an actual interest in the matter of

dispute Mootness

Exists when the issues that gave rise to a case have either been resolved or have disappeared

Ripeness When a case comes to court too soon Courts cannot get prematurely involved in a

case that can be resolved through other means

The Big Picture: Components of the US Legal System

The courts are only one component of the American system of justice

There are also law enforcement and the correctional systems

Law enforcement officers are known as the “gatekeepers” of the criminal justice system

Correctional officials handle the offenders after a court renders that they are guilty of a crime

Juvenile vs. Adult Systems – Different (same) terminology

Taken into custody Accused of delinquent acts Petition Juveniles are detained No right to bail Private court proceedings No right to jury trial Proof beyond a reasonable doubt Right to an attorney Appeals to higher court Guilty = delinquent

Arrested Accused of crimes Information or indictment Adults are jailed Right to bail More formal, public Right to jury trial Proof beyond a reasonable doubt Right to an attorney Appeals to higher court Guilty = criminal

Juvenile Adult

The Changing Face of American Criminal Justice and Constitutional Law The Constitution is important at every

juncture within the criminal and juvenile justice systems

Constitution limits the role of government agents

Constitution sets guidelines to maintain the intentions of the framers

All involved in the administration of justice should understand constitutional rights

American Criminal Justice Beyond Our Borders

With technology the world is becoming closer

There is interest in laws of other countries

Comparative law Comparing and contrasting laws to expand

understanding of law and legal theory How do our laws impact the laws of other

nations??