FOUNDATION LAW2013/14

Lecture 1

Foundation LawO Natasha Sharma (Law Lecturer)

natasha.sharma@uea.ac.uk

O 1st Floor Staffroom

O Timetable:O One 2 hours lecture every week (Wednesdays 3.30pm-

5.30pm-4th Floor Lecture Theatre)O One 2 hours seminar each week (see individual

timetables)

O Moodle Foundation Law page

Foundation LawO Weekly Lectures

O Reading List (from set texts, list of cases, journal articles, further reading)

O Self Study Questions/Consolidation Exercises

O Seminars (consolidation exercises/ discussions/ group work/ presentations.)

O Quizzes

O Formative Assignments

O Week 7-Formative Tests (all subjects)

Course Outline:Term 1:O Introduction to the English Legal System:

Common Law System-sources of English law Doctrine of Judicial PrecedentParliament and the Legislative processParliamentary SupremacyThe court hierarchy-criminal & civil

courts/personnel and Tribunals (Court visits!)

Small ClaimsAlternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)Trial by juryRestorative v Retributive justice

O The legal profession

O Legal Research

Definitions/abbreviations and citationsUsing legal databases to retrieve

material for legal researchReading articles/journals and casesReferencing academic legal workPlagiarism /Collusion and how to avoid

it!Submitting work through TurnitIn

O Criminal Law: Elements of crime-actus reus & mens rea

Burden and standard of proof

Offences against the person (1)- fatal offences: murder and manslaughter

Offences against the person (2)- non fatal offences: common assault, battery, assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH) & grievous bodily harm (GBH)

Offences against property- Theft (burglary/robbery), trespass and criminal damage

Term 2:O Law of Torts:

Tort of Negligence and the 4 key elements (duty of care, breach, causation and damages)

Burden and standard of proofMitigation and contributory negligenceTort law-branch of the common law, therefore,

a lot of case law analysis! (e.g. Donoghue v Stevenson (1932)- “neighbourhood principle”- a case which students will NEVER forget!!!!)

Types of damagesDefamationTrespass/ torts against the person and the

overlap with the criminal law

O Contract Law:Definition of a contractThe 7 key elements of a contract (Offer,

Acceptance and Consideration)Formation of a contractContractual terms- implied termsSale of Goods Act (1979)Breach and remediesMisrepresentationsNegligent Misrepresentation and

MisstatementsThe innocent 3rd party and the bona fide

purchaserPromissory Estoppel-High Trees Case

O Introduction to Equity

O Equitable and Common Law Remedies

O Land Law

O Ownership of property-Freehold, Leasehold and Commonhold tenures

O Joint ownership- Tenancy in Common and Joint Tenancy

Assessments:O 50% Final End of Year Exam

O 25% Written Summative Assignment

O 25% Oral Assessment

O End of Term Exam * (Week 12-9th December 2013)

O Pass mark 40%

2013-2014 Student Academic Calendar (Foundation Business &

Humanities)O Student Handbook

O Assessment Deadlines

O Planning and managing workload

O Late submission penalties-always be sure of the date and time by which work is to be submitted and the mode of submission. Subject teachers will provide you with specific instructions for each assignment

O Written Summative Assignments- usually due by 3pm on Thursday

Learning Materials & Resources:

O Book Pack: Jacqueline Martin, “GCSE Law”, Glanville Williams-Learning the Law & a copy of the Oxford Law Dictionary

O LRC Resources (textbooks and journals)

O Foundation Law Moodle page (course materials, Quizzes, announcements, links to electronic resources etc.)

O City University Library

O Glossary of legal terms/cases

Some Basic Rules:O Switch off mobile phones

O Punctuality & attendance (“The 10 Minutes Rule”)

O No food or drink (except water) is permitted

O Inappropriate behaviour will not be tolerated (both towards the teacher and fellow students!)

Lecture 1

Introduction to Law

Learning Outcomes:O Understand the different classifications of law;

O Show awareness of why the law is needed in society;

O Explain the difference between a law and a rule, and what makes a law enforceable;

O To be able to explain the difference between the public law and private (civil) law;

O Outline the differences between the criminal public law and private (civil) law and particularly the different levels or “standard of proof”; and

O Understand what is meant by double liability.

Reading List:O Jacqueline Martin, “GCSE Law”, 5th edition,

chapter 1- “Introducing Law”, pages 1-8

O Glanville Williams: Learning the Law, pages 2-3 (“Crimes and civil wrongs”), pages 16-18 (“Elementary legal terminology”) and page 20 (“Public and Private Law”)

What is law?

What is law?O No agreed definition of “law”

O Sir John Salmond defines law as “ the body of principles recognised and applied by the state in the administration of justice”

O Generally refers to a set of rules which governs society

O What are rules? Can you think of a rule which you are bound by , yet it cannot be defined as being a “law”?

O Rules set out what you can or cannot do, a violation of which usually results in a penalty (or punishment) being applied

O Rules therefore, maybe of a contractual or mutual nature, or maybe prescribed by law

O The rules governing society only become law when they are created or recognised by the Government (in the UK through the passing of an Act of Parliament/ statute- we will be looking at the law making process in week 3) and only then can they be enforced in the courts

Why do we need law in society?

Lets consider the following scenarios and think about the reasons why such rules are imposed…………..O A restriction on the loudness at which music can be

played

O Throwing rubbish in public places is not permitted

O It’s a criminal offence for a parent to slap their child, even if it’s a form of discipline

O An employer cannot pay an employee a wage which is less than the amount prescribed by law

O The purposes that imprisonment serves

The law serves the following aims……..

O Protects society (both individuals and their property)

O Maintains public order

O Punishment acts as a deterrence

O Protects the rights and freedoms of individuals

O Promotes justice, fairness and equality

O Avoids people from being exploited

Classification of the law

O The laws in the UK can be categorised as either a branch of the public or private (civil) law

Public LawO Public law involves the state or the

government

O This can be an action brought by the state against an individual (or vice versa), an action brought by a state against another state (for example, an action brought by one EU member state against another) or an action against a public body ( for example, an action against a local authority.)

The Criminal LawO The criminal law is a prime example of the

public law

O Why do you think it is the responsibility of the state to prosecute the defendant in criminal cases, even though the crime

is often committed against another individual (known as the “victim”) or

their property?

O Aim of the criminal law is to maintain law and order, and for the protection of society.

TerminologyO Defendant: the person against whom the action is

brought/ the party who is defending the action brought against him/her

O Victim: the person who has suffered from the crime

O Prosecution: the party (in criminal law) bringing the action against the defendant

O Charges: the criminal offences which are brought against the defendant

The Crown Prosecution Service (The CPS)

O The CPS is the government body which will in a majority of criminal cases, be responsible for bringing the action against the defendant

O The role of the CPS is to investigate the charges being brought against the defendant, gather the evidence and manage the conduct of the case at a hearing in the criminal court

O The CPS acts as a representative of the state in criminal proceedings

O More information about the CPS can be found on its website: www.cps.gov.uk

Citation of Criminal CasesO Most criminal cases are cited as follows:

R v Alhuwalia (1992)

O The “R” stands for Rex (King) or Regina (Queen)-this depends on who is at the throne

O The defendant/s is identified by their surname (in the above example, the defendant is “Alhuwalia”)

O The year in brackets (“1992”) is the year in which the case was brought before the court

O Some times cases will also refer to the DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions)-head of the CPS- e.g., R (on the application of Pretty) v DPP (2002)

Other branches of public law

O Constitutional law: deals with the workings of the central government and the laws set down by it

O Administrative law: governs how the local government and public bodies operate

Private LawO Concerned with disputes between individuals

(including companies and organisations)

O Does not involve an action involving the state

O Also referred to as the “civil law”

Private (Civil) LawO Examples of private (civil) law cases:

Law of Torts Contract Law Family Law Employment Law Company Law

O The private (civil) law upholds the rights and freedoms of individuals

Citation of Private (Civil)Law cases

O Most private (civil) cases are cited as follows:

Donoghue v Stevenson (1932)

O The parties are identified by their surnames

O The party bringing the action is referred to as “the claimant” (formerly “the plaintiff”)

O The party defending the claim is referred to as “the defendant”

The Standard of ProofO This refers to the level or degree (“standard”) of

proof that is required to prove any factual issue

O The standard of proof is the test that needs to be satisfied to find the defendant guilty of the offence/s for which s/he stands charged

O The “burden of proof” relates to the party who is responsible for proving that the defendant is guilty

O Both the standard of proof and the burden of proof is different in the criminal law and the private (civil) law

Criminal LawO Burden of proof………rests on the prosecution

O Standard of proof……. “beyond reasonable doubt”

O Basically means that in reaching its verdict, the judge/jury should not have any reasonable doubts as to whether the defendant is guilty of the offence for which s/he stands charged

O Case study: Amanda Knox

Private (Civil) LawO Burden of proof…….rests on the claimant

O Standard of proof…. “on the balance of probabilities”

O This basically means that the judge has to be satisfied that the defendant is most probably (likely in light of the evidence) responsible for his actions

In which branch of law is the standard of proof much higher and why?

Other differences between the Criminal Public Law and

Private (Civil) LawO The following table sets out the other

differences between the two branches of law

O This table has been taken from “GCSE Law”, J.Martin, 5th Edition, Page 5.

Criminal Public Law Civil Private law

Purpose of the law To maintain law and orderTo protect societyTo punish offenders

To uphold individual’s rightsTo compensate the individual

Purpose of the trial To decide if the defendant if guilty

To decide if there is a breach of rights

Legal name for person starting case

Prosecutor Claimant

Courts used to hear cases

Magistrates’ Court OR Crown Court

County Court OR High Court

Person/persons making the decision

Magistrates OR Jury JudgeVery rarely a jury

Standard of proof Beyond reasonable doubt

On the balance of probabilities

Decision The defendant is found guilty or not guilty

The claimant wins or loses casesThe defendant may be liable to pay compensation

Powers of the court Prison, fine, discharge, community order

Award of damages (money), injunction

Name of the case R v SmithDPP V Smith

Jones v SmithXYZ Company Ltd v Smith

Double Liability

O It is possible for a defendant to have committed both a criminal offence and a civil offence

O This is known as double liability and the defendant can be prosecuted in the criminal courts and also be sued in the civil courts

Seminar Prep.O See Hand-out:O Jacqueline Martin, “GCSE Law”, 5th edition,

chapter 1- “Introducing Law”, pages 1-8

O Glanville Williams: Learning the Law, pages 2-3 (“Crimes and civil wrongs”), pages 16-18 (“Elementary legal terminology”) and page 20 (“Public and Private Law”)

O Preparatory Questions