History of law

Law develops as society evolves. Historically, the simplest societies were tribal. The members of the tribe were bonded together initially by kinship and worship of the same gods. Even in the absence of courts and legislature there was law - a blend of custom, morality, religion, and magic. The visible authority was the ruler, or chief; the ultimate authorities were believed to be the gods whose will was revealed in the forces of nature and in the revelations of the tribal head or the priests. Wrongs against the tribe, such as sacrilege or breach of tribal custom, were met with group sanctions including ridicule and hostility.

Wrongs against individuals, such as murder, theft, adultery, or failure to repay a debt, were avenged by the family of the victim, often in actions against the family of the wrongdoer. Revenge of this kind was based on tribal custom, a major component of early law.

Tribal society gradually evolved into territorial confederations. Governmental structures emerged, and modern law began to take shape. The most significant historical example is Roman law, which influenced most of the legal systems of the world. In the 8th century bc the law of Rome was still largely a blend of custom and interpretation by magistrates of the will of the gods. The magistrates later lost their legitimacy because of gross discrimination against the lower (plebeian) class. The threat of revolution led to one of the most significant developments in the history of law: the Twelve Tables of Rome, which were engraved on bronze tablets in the 5th century bc. They were largely a declaration of existing custom concerning such matters as property, payment of debts, and appropriate compensation or other remedies for damage to persons. The Twelve Tables serve as a historical basis for the widespread modern belief that fairness in law demands that it be in written form. These tables and their Roman successors, including the Justinian Code, led to civil-law codes that provide the main source of law in much of modern Europe, South America, and elsewhere.

The common-law systems of England, and later of the U.S., developed in a different manner. Before the Norman Conquest (1066), England was a loose confederation of societies, the laws of which were largely tribal and local. The Anglo-Norman rulers created a system of centralized courts that operated under a single set of laws that superseded the rules laid down by earlier societies. This legal system, known as the common law of England, began with common customs, but over time it involved the courts in lawmaking that was responsive to changes in society.

Answer the following questions:

1. What kind of law was used in tribal societies?

2. What kind of authorities were in primitive societies?

3. How the wrongs against the tribe and individuals were punished?

4. What do you know about Roman law of 8^th -5^th centuries BC?

5. What do you know about historical bases of civil-law system and common law system?

TASK 6. Use the verbs related to legal matters given in the box to complete the sentences:

(a)

to consider, to commit x 2, to prove, to sentence, to sue, to bribe, to find

1) In many legal systems it is an important principle that a person cannot be _________ guilty of a crime until the state proves he ________ it. 2) The suspect doesn’t need ________ anything, but he can show evidence of his innocence. 3) Malice aforethought refers to the mens rea of the crime and is a way of saying that the murderer intended to _________ a crime. 4) Different societies continually review their ideas of what should and shouldn’t be _________ a crime. 5) The judge _________ him to ten years of imprisonment. 6) The company fired him after the accident, but his advocate helped him to _______ the company for $20,000. 7) He tried to _________ the judge to get the charges dropped.

(b)

to charge, to pick, to convict, to confess, to accuse, to send, to award, to compensate, to cause, to acquit, to cross-examine, to find

1) When she was ________ he contradicted his earlier testimony. 2). Most solicitors don’t _________ for the first consultation. 3) The thief __________ his pocket on the street without his noticing. 4) He will obviously be ________ guilty, it is a flagrant case of corruption. 5) There was insufficient evidence for the court to ________ her. 6) The police were ________ of using torture to make suspects _________. 7) He was ________ to prison for two years but with his lawyer’s help he was _________ after the second consideration of his case. 8) He was _________ $10 000 to _________ the damages _________ by the manufacturer.

Quotations for common discussion