Court system of the Russian Federation

Ex. 22 Say if the following statements are true or false.

1. Civil law concerns disputes among citizens within and beyond a country.
2. Public law concerns disputes between citizens  and the state.
3. Both Russian Federation and United Kingdom have continental system of law.
4. Most countries have a formal written Constitution.
5. Procedural law establishes the rules for enforcing or administrating law.
6. The distinction  between substantive and procedural law is much more important for individuals than for lawyers.
7. Substantive law concerns the law dealing with the facts of the case itself, such as law of torts, corporations and contracts.
8. Some distinction between procedural law and substantive law is familiar to all legal systems.
9. Law is not the most basic social institution.

 

Ex.23 Complete the sentences according to the text “Classification of law”.

1. One important distinction made in all countries is between ….

1. civil law and criminal law

2. private  law and public law
3. constitutional law and administrative law
4. private law and constitutional law

2. Employment law  regulates the………

1. employment relations 
2. office relations
3. industrial matters
4. relations between industrial and  office workers

3. Criminal law  has the form of ……

1. a civil code
2. a penal code
3. a judicial code
4. public code

4. The budget, taxation, state credit and other spheres of financial activity are considered by ….

1. administrative law
2. financial law
3. private law
4. social law

 

Ex.24 Read the text (Ex.19) in detail and answer the following questions.

1. What is law?
2. What is the main aim of law?
3. What categories of law does the system of law in Russia consist of?
4. What is the principle source of constitutional law?
5. What category of law is closely connected with constitutional law?
6. What is the central institution of civil law?
7. What does criminal law define?

 

 

 

Ex.25 Write down and translate the derivatives from the following verbs: to be, to say, to govern, to concern, to intrude, to grow, to involve, to belong.

 

Speaking tasks.

 

Ex. 26 Make a short presentation (use sample of presentation in Unit 1).

1. Public law and its categories.
2. Private law and its categories.

 

Ex.27. GRAMMAR FOCUS.   Reported speech.

1. Translate the interview between attorney and prospective juror.

 

Pr. jr. – My name is Edward Bright (answered) At – Кто Вы по специальности (wanted to know) Pr. jr. – I’m retired officer and now my occupation is management. I am a manager of a small firm producing fishing equipment (explained). At – Где находится Ваша фирма? (asked) Pr. jr  -The firm is located in the southern part of our town (claimed) At – Где Вы живете? (wanted to know) Pr. jr – Knight st. 11 (announced) At – Вам приходилось участвовать в судебных заседаниях в качестве присяжного? (wondered) Pr. jr. – Never, I suppose it will be the first case in my life. (said to) At – Что Вы знаете об ограблении музея и о тех, кто сделал это? (asked) Pr. jr. – Some days ago I read an article in our local newspaper about the burglary, but I have no idea who did it. (claimed)

 

2. Put the questions which the interviewer asked a prospective juror into reported speech. Use the reporting forms in brackets as in the example.

Model: At. – Как Вас зовут? (ask) The attorney asked a prospective juror what his name was.

 

3. Change the sentences from reported to direct speech.

Example: Jill said it was the first time she had visited a court trial (reported speech). “It is the first time I have visited a court trial,” said Jill. (direct speech)

 

1. The reporter asked the convict what crime he had committed.
2. Sarah claimed that she had seen a burglary in her neighborhood.
3. Angelina said that she would not make a statement  to the police.
4. The convict said  that he  was going to go straight.
5. Oliver asked Paul why he hadn’t taken part  in the anti – criminal demonstration the previous day.
6. He said that he could not remember what the shoplifter wore.
7. He told us that the court trial would be very complicated.

 

 

Section 3  The Russian Court System

Pre-reading tasks

EX. 28 Answer the questions. Get into groups of 3 or 4 and find out the following:

Are there criminal and civil courts in our country?

Are there specialized courts? What cases do they consider?

EX.29 Read the names of the courts in our country:

Courts of General Jurisdiction; Arbitrazh (or Commercial) Courts; the Russian Federation Constitutional Court, Justices of peace; district courts; regional courts; the Supreme Court; the highest judicial body;   trial courts; appellate courts; military courts; the Military Chamber of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation

Ex. 30 What do these courts deal with? These words will help you. Read and translate them. Make sentences to answer the question.

binding decisions; newly discovered circumstances; by way of supervision; to  review judgments; to adjudicate disputes (matters); to adopt constitutions; to hear cases; to issue explanations; to resolve small claims;  to try cases

Ex.31  Match the pairs of words and translate them.

to adopt	cases
to review	a constitution
to adjudicate	disputes
to issue	judgments
to hear	explanations

 

EX.32 a) Match  English word combinations  with  their Russian equivalents.

trial courts	решение (суда)
district court	организация
business entity	общая юрисдикция
general jurisdiction	арбитражный суд
rulings of the court	мировой судья
commercial court (RF)	в порядке надзора
small claims	районный суд
Justice of the peace	суд первой инстанции
by way of supervision	вновь открывшиеся обстоятельства (дел)
newly discovered circumstances	исковое требование на небольшую сумму

 

b) Use some of the word combinations from the box and make 5 sentences to describe the Russian court system and its work.

EX.33 Grammar focus.  Participles. Revision.

The rule is :

 

Participle II  = a regular verb + ed  OR II form of an irregular verb Participle I = Verb + ing

 

1. Make participles:

Verb	Participle I	Participle II
Compose
Include
deal
resolve
review
concern
make
organize
govern
bind

 

b)  Use the appropriate form of the verbs (Infinitive, Participle I, Participle II) in the sentences. Translate the sentences:

1. District courts … …….. in the system  of courts of general jurisdiction.  (to include)

2.  One of the functions of regional courts  is ……… the judgments of district courts. (to review)

3. The Supreme Court explains questions ……. to judicial practice. (to pertain)

Reading tasks

EX. 33 Skim the text and divide it into the logical parts. Entitle them:

The Russian Court System

The Russian court system is composed of three independent parts. They are

(1)  the Courts of General Jurisdiction;

(2) the  Arbitrazh (or Commercial) Courts;

(3) the Russian Federation Constitutional Courts.

The Courts of General Jurisdiction include Justices of peace, District courts, Regional courts and the Supreme Court as the highest judicial body within the courts of general jurisdiction.

Justices of peace resolve small claims at the local level.

District (rayon) courts function as courts of first instance and courts of appeals for decisions of justices of peace.  These courts make initial decisions in the majority of criminal and civil cases.

Regional (oblast) courts serve as trial courts in more serious crimes and civil matters, and as appellate courts reviewing district court’s judgments. 

The Supreme Court hears civil, administrative, criminal, and other cases by way of supervision and for newly discovered circumstances.  The Supreme Court may issue explanations on questions concerning to judicial practice.

The military courts are included into the system of courts of general jurisdiction. They form a three tier system organized under the territorial principle and include garrison, district (navy) courts and the Military Chamber of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

The Commercial Courts adjudicate commercial and economic disputes between business entities. These courts are organized at the level of constituent components of the Russian Federation.

The Russian Federation Constitutional Court adjudicates matters governed by the Russian Federation Constitution. Rulings of the Constitutional Court are binding and final. Some subjects of the Russian Federation may adopt their own "subject" constitutions, and that’s why, they have their own "subject" constitutional courts. 

Ex. 34 What part of speech are the underlined words? Translate these words and sentences that contain them.

Ex.35  Find  in the text all the derivatives from the words “ to supervise ”, “ to explain”, “to decide” ,  “ to organize”, “to operate” , “to open”,  “to comply”, “valid”  and translate  them into Russian.

Ex. 36. Find a word or a phrase in the text which is similar in the meaning to the following: subjects, judicial body, court decision, level, court of 1^st instance, obligatory, civil cases

Ex.37.Say if these statements are true or false.

1. There are two main groups of courts in the Russian court system.
2. Justices of the peace form an integral part of the system of the Commercial Courts.
3. The Supreme Court of the RF issues explanations on questions of court practice.
4. The Commercial Courts are formed at the level of subjects of the Russian Federation.
5. The decisions of the RF Constitutional Court are binding to all the courts of the Russian Federation.

Ex. 38. Match the courts of general jurisdiction and the cases they can try. Describe the functions of these courts.

name of the court	cases
court of justices of the peace	the majority of criminal and civil cases
district court	civil, administrative, criminal, and other cases by way of supervision and for newly discovered circumstances
regional court	military cases
Supreme court	more serious crimes and civil matters + review of the lower court’s judgments
military courts	small claims at the local level

 

EX. 39. Fill in the box with the appropriate information from the text “The Russian Court System”

COURT SYSTEM OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Part of the court system	Competence of the court
courts of the general jurisdiction
Commercial Courts
the Russian Federation Constitutional Courts

 

EX.40. Choose the suitable word and translate the sentences into Russian:

1. The Russian judicial system (consists, includes) of the Constitutional Court, the courts of the general jurisdiction, and the State commercial courts.
2. The Constitutional Court (interprets, adopts) the constitution and (resolves, solves)  issues related to the compliance of laws and regulations within the constitution.
3. The courts of general jurisdiction (hear, listen) criminal cases and (resolve, review)  civil and administrative disputes.
4. Disputes regarding business activity are (heard, governed) before the State Commercial courts.