Crown Courts

8 Crown Courts

Crown Courts have existed only since 1972.

When there is a jury, the judge's role is limited to deciding matters of law and summing-up to the jury. The jury decides whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty.

There are 94 Crown Court centres in England and Wales, many of them consisting of several courtrooms.

The most famous Crown Court in England, and perhaps, the most famous court in the world, is the Old Bailey. Officially the Central Criminal Court, it stands on the site of Newgate prison, and was completed in 1907.

The Crown Court acts also as the appeal court against both convictions and sentences by magistrates. When the appeal is against conviction, the Crown Court judge re-hears all the evidence that witnesses have already given in the lower court, but there is no jury. For all appeals the judge sits with two, three or four lay magistrates.

County Courts

Just as the Magistrates' Courts deal with the vast majority of criminal. cases, county courts take on most of the smaller civil cases. In general, they deal with breach of contract or tort cases involving up to 5,000 pounds. They also have jurisdiction over most matrimonial matters. They can grant divorces and make a range of orders relating to money, property and children. There are county courts all over England and Wales, around 270 altogether. The judges have the rank of circuit judge, the same level as those who sit in the Crown Court.

The High Court

The 81 High Court judges are distributed between the three divisions, which have their home in London's Royal Courts of Justice, an eccentric Victorian Gothic building on the Strand, with outposts in some 25 large provincial towns and cities.

The biggest of the divisions, with the widest jurisdiction, is the Queen's Bench (King's Bench). Its most important function is as the main civil court for disputes involving more than 5,000 pounds. Claims for money owing, and actions for damages arising from motor and work accidents are the High Court's main folder. It also deals with suits for libel. The division also includes a Commercial Court, which specialises in large commercial disputes, and an Admiralty Court for shipping cases.

The Family Division deals with divorce; disputes between warring spouses involving children, property or money; adoption, wardship, and other questions affecting children.

The Chancery Division deals with tax, interpretation of wills, companies, settlements, trusts, and various other issues affecting finance and property.

The Court Of Appeal

The Court of Appeal is the main repository of dissatisfaction with the decisions of lower courts. Above it is the House of Lords.

There are two divisions of the appeal court: the head of the Criminal Division is no less than the Lord Chief Justice, the country's top judge. The Civil Division is led by the Master of the Rolls. It is yet another oddity of the system that these, the two most senior judges, do not sit in the most senior court, the House of Lords.

The Civil Division hears appeals from the High Court as well as from county courts and a few more specialised courts.

The House Of Lords

The House of Lords is the final arbiter not only of all English law, but also of Scottish civil, though not criminal, law. The Law Lords do not deliver judgements like all other judges, they make speeches. They do not come to a decision, they take a vote on a motion that the appeal be dismissed or allowed.

Some Other Courts

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

Its jurisdiction is now confined to hearing appeals from the remaining colonies, and from those former British territories which have chosen to retain it as their final appeal court. The judges of the Privy Council are predominantly the same Law Lords that normally sit in the House of Lords, with the addition, every now and again, of eminent judges from Commonwealth countries,

The Employment Appeal Tribunal was set up following thegreat increase in recent years of disputes arising from employment, especially involving unfair dismissal or discrimination. The court hears appeals from industrial tribunals. Every case is heard by a High Court judge and two lay members chosen for their knowledge and experience of industrial relations: trade union officials, for instance, and representatives of employers' organizations.

The Restrictive Practices Court which is of the level of the High Court, has various powers to stop or control restrictive or monopolistic practices in the supply of goods and services - for example, agreements between ostensibly competitive companies to charge a minimum price for their products, against the interests of the consumer.

Coroners' Courts. Coroners, who must be qualified lawyers or doctors, have a duty to hold public inquests into any violent, unnatural or suspicious death, or in the case of a person dying suddenly without any obvious cause, or in prison or in police custody. Coroners' inquests are not trials, but witnesses are called, and there is often a jury who decide on the manner of death - suicide, unlawful killing, misadventure or accident - or (where they are not sure) return an open verdict.

Tribunals. Outside the normal hierarchy of the courts, flourishes a parallel structure of administrative and judicial bodies lumped together under the genera! description of tribunals. Some of them have been in existence for a century or more, but they have proliferated especially in the last thirty years, since the creation of the welfare state. The sixty or so tribunals cover a wide range of subjects, from tax to mental health, from forestry to patents. Some of the most important and widely used are the industrial tribunals, where workers can claim compensation for unfair dismissal; the supplementary benefit appeals tribunal; rent tribunal; and the immigration appeals tribunal.

The tribunals differ in their membership and rules of procedure, but they all conduct themselves according to the principles of justice used by the courts.

Two Foreign Courts

Two courts outside Britain's boundaries have recently come to play a big part in her affairs. The two deal with completely different issues, and belong to different regional institutions,

The European Court (more properly, the Court of Justice of the European Community, called the European Union - EU - since 1993) sits in Luxembourg. It is the court of the EU, and therefore Britain, as its member, is under its jurisdiction on matters affecting the EU.

The European Court of Human Rights sits in Strasbourg (France) and operates under the umbrella of the Council of Europe.

Тема 9.

Criminal courts.

Magistrates' Courts. Every person charged, with an offence is summoned to appear before a local Magistrates' Court, which may impose a fine up to a general limit of 2,000 pounds or six months' imprisonment.

With 98 per cent of cases the magistrates on the bench decide on guilty or innocence, and if necessary, what penalty to impose.

With more serious cases the magistrates can decide only to send them for trial in a Crown Court, where the decision on guilt or innocence will be made by a jury of twelve citizens chosen by chance, and if necessary, the penalty will be decided by the presiding judge, helped by two Justices of the Peace (JPs).

A person accused before a Magistrates' Court may demand to be sent for trial before a Crown Court, even if the case is not serious.

A Magistrates' Court normally consists of three JPs.

The JPs are ordinary but worthy citizens have been appointed to their positions by the Lord Chancellor on the advice of local appointing committees.

JPs receive no payment for their work.

In the courts the JPs are advised on points of law by their clerks, who are professional lawyers; otherwise they decide each case according to their sense what is fair and reasonable.

Crown Courts. When a criminal case is not dealt with finally in a Magistrates' Court, it goes for trial in a Crown Court.

The court is presided over by a judge, but the decision on guilt or innocence is made by a jury of twelve citizens.

The judge's functions are, first, to see that the trial is properly conducted; second, to give guidance to the jury before asking it for its verdict and finally, if the jury finds the accused guilty, to decide upon the penalty and pronounce a sentence.

For this last decision the judge is helped by two JPs who have been sitting beside him throughout the proceedings.

Judges are either practicing or former barristers who all are qualified, professional and experienced lawyers and are paid for their work.

Twelve local citizens serve as members of the jury.

A person accused cannot be found to be guilty except by the verdict of at least ten of the twelve members of the jury.

Normally the jury do agree, though sometimes only after some hours of discussion.

If the jury finds the accused guilty, then it is for the judge to pronounce a sentence.

The accused may appeal to the Court of Appeal against conviction or sentence.

The Court of Appeal does not hear witnesses other than in exceptional circumstances.

The Crown Courts act also as the appeal courts against both conviction and sentences by magistrates.

When the appeal is against conviction, a judge re-hears all the evidence that witnesses have already given in the lower court, but there is no jury.

Тема 4.

GB – geography.

Great Britain is situated on the British Isles.

They lie to the west of the continent of Europe.

The larger of the two big islands is known as Great Britain.

The smaller island is Ireland, with Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

The island of Great Britain together with the neighboring minor islands and the northeastern part of Ireland constitute the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The country is usually called Great Britain (or England).

The total area of Great Britain is 244,000 square kilometres.

The west coast of the country is washed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea, the east coast is washed by the North Sea.

Great Britain is separated from France by the English Channel which is 32 km. wide in its narrowest part, and 180 km.

In its widest part.

The seas surrounding Great Britain are not very deep.

The surface of England and Ireland is flat, but the surface of Scotland and Wales is mountainous.

In Wales, there are the Cambrian Mountains, the highest peak of which is Snowdon.

It is 3,560 feet high (nearly 1,000 metres).

In Scotland, the main chain of mountains is called the Grampians, its highest peak is Ben Nevis (4,400 feet high).

The mountainous northern part of Scotland is called the Highlands.

The rivers of Great Britain are short.

The Thames, the Severn and the Clyde are the most important.

The Thames on which London, the capital of Great Britain is situated, flows into the North Sea and is very deep.

There are many beautiful lakes in Great Britain, the largest part of them is in the Lake District in northwestern England.

My Family

Family is the most precious thing for me, because this is where I find love & understanding, & support.

Our family is quite large by modern standards.

It consists of four people - my parents, my younger sister & me.

My parents are quite young, about 35, & my sister is four years younger then me.

My father is a civil navigator.

He spends most of his time at work, so the time when he is home in the evening is something special for my sister & me.

My mother is a teacher, & she has more time to spare than my father.

We share our problems & secrets with them, & they often give very good advice.

There’ s often a lot to do about the house, but we are always willing to help with the chores, & everything is done quickly & efficiently.

Most of all I like our late dinners or early suppers, when we all gather round the table, & the light of the kitchen lamp creates a relaxed & cosy atmosphere.

We talk, & joke, & have fun, because we are all friends.

Sundays are also very nice.

If the weather is fine, we go skiing in the forest in winter, or to our ‘dacha’ in summer.

In fact, it’s just a small cottage on a small plot of land, but we like it a lot, & like to work in the garden, planting, digging, gathering strawberries & tomatoes.

But, if I were asked about our family hobby, I would name reading.

Reading is a perfect combination of business & pleasure, of intellectual work & entertainment.

That’s about all. I’m lucky to have such a loving & friendly family, & when I have a family of my own, I will try to make it work on the same lines.

Me & My plans for the future.

Finishing school is the beginning of the independent life for millions of schools leavers.

Many roads are opened before us: vocational & technical school, institutes & universities.

But, it’s not an easy thing to choose a profession out of more than 2,000 existing in the world.

Some pupils follow the advice of their parents or friends, others can’t decide even after leaving the school.

As for me I made my choice long ago.

I specialize in the humanities.

Social Sciences & English have always been my favorites, but my chief interest is law.

My dream has always been to become a lawyer.

My choice of this occupation didn’t come as a sudden flash.

As a child, I listened to my aunt & uncle discussing professional matters.

Little by little, I got interested in the subject & began thinking of law as my prospective occupation.

For me, choosing a career is not only a matter of future prestige & wealth.

In my opinion, a job should be interesting & socially important.

That is the reason why I have chosen the profession of a lawyer, which gives plenty of opportunities to help people in trouble.

In addition I should say, whatever profession I choose to follow, the greatest pleasure will surely come from feeling that I am useful to my country.

My Working Day.

A person’s schedule depends on his or her type of activity, & is organised accordingly.

It is rather flexible, & can be change any time, if necessary.

I will try to give you a snapshot of a typical day in my life as a school student.

The shrill ringing of an alarm-clock wakes me up at half past six.

I do not jump out of bed, but daydream for about 5 minutes more.

Then I do jump out, & keep jumping, pushing up, sitting up, & generally warming up for about 20 minutes.

Then a quick shower, & a very light breakfast - I just can’t make myself eat much in the morning.

So, it’s a soft-boiled egg, a toast, & a cup of tea or coffee.

Then off to school.

It’s the usual routine of classes & breaks, a longer break at 11 a. m. for lunch, & school is over at 1 or 2 p. m., depending on the number of classes.

Sometimes I stay at school till 3 p. m. for some optional class or something extra-curriculum.

Then I’m home, & it’s dinner, if I may call it so.

My folks are both at work, so left to my own devices I have what I manage to find in the fridge.

Then I fool around for an hour or so browsing in some magazine or a book, or listening to some quiet music.

After that I’m ready for the most important part of my day, my work actually.

I study, I dig up information, I solve tasks, find answers to question - do my homework.

By 8 p. m. I feel tired.

Fortunately, by that time folks have arrived, & we eat.

That is the only proper meal of the day for me, & the only time to talk with my parents.

Then an hour or more of study, some TV, & by 12 p. m. I’m in bed.

Sometimes I have to stay up late, if I have some difficult task to solve.

So this is it, in a nutshell.

Not very eventful, but it’s a working day, isn’t it?

Тема 15.

THE WORK OF THE COURT

In the district courts cases are heard by the judge alone or by the collegial.

The judge alone has the right to hear and decide the majority of civil cases and only such criminal cases punishment for which doesn't exceed 2 years of imprisonment and if the defendant does not object to such a trial.

The collegial consists of one judge and two people's assessors.

They have equal rights in deciding a case.

Decisions are taken by a ma­jority vote.

People's assessors are elected at the meetings of working people at the places of their work or residence by show of hands for a term of 5 years.

The President of the Russian Federation appoints all judges.

They are appointed for life, but if a judge misuses his authority and does not perform his duties properly, or if his conduct is unworthy of a judge, he may be discharged.

Any citizen of Russia who has reached the age of 25, graduated from a law higher school, whose length of legal service is not less than 5 years and who has passed the qualification exam may be appointed judge of a district court.

According to the Constitution judges are independent and subject only to the law.

They must be neutral and impartial.

All judges enjoy the principle of inviolability.

People's assessors are citizens of different professions.

In deciding cases they are guided by their sense of justice and life experience.

Their work as people's assessors is not paid.

They are reserved the right to keeping the permanent place of work and getting their wages there.

In deciding a case judges in the courts of the first instance must examine all the case evidence, interrogate the defendants, victims and witnesses, hear the experts' findings, examine all physical evidence and make pub­lic all records and other papers.

The sentence of the judge must be lawful, grounded and just.

Тема 7.

Judicial system.

The structure of the court system in Britain is many-layered and almost incomprehensible.

There is no comprehensive law regulating the organization and competence of the courts.

The court system in Scotland and also in Northern Ireland differs some what from that of England and Wales.

There is no written constitution, hence no constitutional court in Great Britain.

Parliament is sovereign.

So, the courts cannot question the authority of the constitutional validity of the statutes; they can only interpret them.

The courts in Great Britain are divided into two large groups: criminal courts and civil courts.

Besides, there are many special tribunals, for example, industrial tribunals dealing with labor disputes and industrial injury compensation.

Criminal courts are Magistrates' Courts and Crown Courts.

Magistrates' Courts are the courts of first instance.

Cases involving minor offences begin and end there.

Cases involving more serious offences normally start in Magistrates' Courts before being referred to higher courts - Crown Courts - for trial.

Crown Courts have existed only since 1972.

They try serious cases such as murder, rape, arson, armed robbery, fraud, and so on.

Civil courts include county courts as the courts of first instance, and the High Court as a higher court.

The High Court of Justice consists of three separate subdivisions: the Queen's Bench Division, the Chancery Division and the Family Division.

Appeals against decisions of the High Court and the Crown Court may be taken to the Court of Appeal with its Criminal and Civil divisions.

The Crown Court, the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal form the Supreme Court of Judicature.

The highest court in the country is the House of Lords.

It is the biggest court of appeal in civil matters for the whole of the United Kingdom and the final court of appeal in criminal cases.

The President of the house of Lords as a court is the Lord Chancellor.

Тема 5.

London

London is situated upon both banks of the River Thames.

It is the chief port of the country and the most important commercial, manufacturing and cultural center.

There is little heavy industry in London, but there is a wide range of light industry in Greater London.

The most characteristic parts of London are: the City, the West End, the East End, and Westminster.

The City is the oldest part of London.

It is the financial center of the UK with many banks, offices, and Stock Exchange.

he City, the 'square mile', as it is often called, stretches along the north bank of the Thames from Temple Bar to the Tower of London.

The City has its own police force and courts of law, and during the working day upward of half a million people earn their living there in the commercial heart of the capital.

Among the institutions in the City are the Mansion House, the Bank of England, the Monument to commemorate the Great Fire of London, the Royal Exchange, and the Guildhall where the Lord Mayor and his Sheriffs are elected.

The West End is the most fashionable part of London.

It is the area of the largest department stores, hotels, cinemas, theatres, concert halls, museums, the best art galleries, historical palaces (including Buckingham Palace, the Queen's London residence), and famous parks, such as Hvde Park with its Speaker's Corner, and Kensington Gardens. The main shopping streets are Piccadilly, Regent Street and Oxford Street.

The East End of London is unattractive in appearance, but very important to the country's commerce.

It is situated to the east of the City.

Here, today we can see kilometers and kilometers of docks of the Port of London, and the great industrial areas that depend upon shipping.

London's docklands - so recently an isolated urban wasteland - is well on the way to being transformed into the most exciting new international water city of the 21^st century.

Westminster is the political center.

The best known streets here are Whitehall with important government offices, and Downing Street with the London residence of Prime Minister and the place where the Cabinet meets.

And here, on the embankment of the Thames, you can see Houses of Parliament.

When Parliament is sitting, the fact is confirmed by the Union Jack flying on the Victoria Tower during the day, and at night by the light in the clock tower of Big Ben.

The imposing clock tower of Big Ben stands as a symbol of London above the night-time traffic in Whitehall.

Although the world famous clock is known as Big Ben, this name is a misnomer.

Тема 13.

Other Courts

Other courts are divided into:

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

Its jurisdiction is now confined to hearing appeals from the remaining colonies, and from those former British territories which have chosen to retain it as their final appeal court.

The judges of the Privy Council are predominantly the same Law Lords that normally sit in the House of Lords, with the addition, every now and again, of eminent judges from Commonwealth countries,

The Employment Appeal Tribunal

It was set up following thegreat increase in recent years of disputes arising from employment, especially involving unfair dismissal or discrimination.

The court hears appeals from industrial tribunals.

Every case is heard by a High Court judge and two lay members chosen for their knowledge and experience of industrial relations: trade union officials, for instance, and representatives of employers' organizations.

The Restrictive Practices Court

Which is of the level of the High Court, has various powers to stop or control restrictive or monopolistic practices in the supply of goods and services - for example, agreements between ostensibly competitive companies to charge a minimum price for their products, against the interests of the consumer.

Coroners' Courts.

Coroners, who must be qualified lawyers or doctors, have a duty to hold public inquests into any violent, unnatural or suspicious death, or in the case of a person dying suddenly without any obvious cause, or in prison or in police custody.

Coroners' inquests are not trials, but witnesses are called, and there is often a jury who decide on the manner of death - suicide, unlawful killing, misadventure or accident - or (where they are not sure) return an open verdict.

Tribunals.

Outside the normal hierarchy of the courts, flourishes a parallel structure of administrative and judicial bodies lumped together under the genera! description of tribunals.

Some of them have been in existence for a century or more, but they have proliferated especially in the last thirty years, since the creation of the welfare state.

Some of the most important and widely used are the industrial tribunals, where workers can claim compensation for unfair dismissal; the supplementary benefit appeals tribunal; rent tribunal; and the immigration appeals tribunal.

Two Foreign Courts

Two courts outside Britain's boundaries have recently come to play a big part in her affairs.

The two deal with completely different issues, and belong to different regional institutions,

The European Court

(more properly, the Court of Justice of the European Community, called the European Union - EU - since 1993) sits in Luxembourg.

It is the court of the EU, and therefore Britain, as its member, is under its jurisdiction on matters affecting the EU.

The European Court of Human Rights

It sits in Strasbourg (France) and operates under the umbrella of the Council of Europe.

Тема 15.

Political system of GB.

The UK is a parliamentary monarchy.

Parliament is the supreme legislative body of the British state.

The British Parliament is one of the oldest Parliaments in the world.

It has existed since 1265.

It consists of two chambers known as the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and the Queen as its head.

The duration of Parliament is five years.

The life of Parliament is divided into sessions.

The main functions of Parliament are: 1) to make laws regulating the life of the community; 2) to approve Government spending and the means by which it raises the money required; 3) to control the executive activity of the Government; 4) to provide a forum for criticism of the Government, and to extract information about the activities and intentions of the Government and the institutions under its control.

The House of Commons is made up of 650 elected members, and it is presided over by the Speaker.

The House of Lords is a non-elected hereditary second chamber of Parliament.

The House of Lords is composed of lords spiritual and lords temporal.

The lords spiritual are the two leaders of the Church of and twenty-four bishops.

The lords temporal are peers of royal descent.

The chairman of the House of Lords is the Lord Chancellor.

The House of Lords has formally the power only to revise and amend bills passed through the House of Commons.

The Government Executive power in the UK belongs to the Government, which consists of the Cabinet and other ministers of the Government.

It includes about a hundred politicians under the Prime Minister, appointed to their offices, as ministers, by the Queen on his advice.

It is a constitutional convention that the Prime Minister should be the head of the party with the largest number of seats in the House of Commons.

A modern government is arranged in about fifteen departments.

Queen Elizabeth II is the fourth sovereign of the House of Windsor.

She is a Head of State.

She have signed all new bills and it becomes an Act of Parliament.

Тема 2.

STUDY WORK

My study is not easy so I have to learn many different subjects which are important for future occupation: Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Civil Law, Labor Law, International Law, Criminology and others.

Special subjects are not the only subjects of the curriculum.

I learn some humane, theoretical, optional and additional subjects, such as History of Russia, Philosophy, Theory of State and Law, History of State and Law, Logics, Foreign Languages and others.

I’m take tests and exams on each subject included into the curriculum.

As the academic year is divided into two semesters, terminal tests and exams are held in January and in June.

And then when all the tests and exams are passed successfully, I will have vacation.

At the end of the whole course of studies I will take degree examinations, finals, as they are often called.

The timetable of lectures, tutorials and seminars is regulated by a study schedule.

It provides me with lecture halls and tutorial rooms on time.

I have to attend seminars and not miss lectures.

One of the main principles of the Russian educational system is to unite theory and practice.

So, during the course of studies I’ll have practical training at law enforcement organs.

Much attention is paid to the studying of Foreign Languages: English, German or French.

I had classes in English three times a week, the attendance of which was obligatory.

As English is heavy-reading subjects, I had to work at them hard and devote much time to them.

Тема 11.

The High Court

The High Court is a hotch-potch.

It is a composite description embracing three separate kinds of courts - called divisions - each with separate functions (though they occasionally overlap).

The 81 High Court judges are distributed between the three divisions, which have their home in London's Royal Courts of Justice, an eccentric Victorian Gothic building on the Strand, with outposts in some 25 large provincial towns and cities.

The biggest of the divisions, with the widest jurisdiction, is the Queen's Bench (King's Bench).

Its most important function is as the main civil court for disputes involving more than 5,000 pounds.

Claims for money owing, and actions for damages arising from motor and work accidents are the High Court's main folder.

It also deals with suits, for libel.

The division also includes a Commercial Court, which specializes in large commercial disputes, and an Admiralty Court for shipping cases.

The court can also quash decisions of Magistrates' Courts where they exceed their powers or there are irregularities in the proceedings.

It also takes appeals from lower courts, but only on issues raising points of law.

The court does not hear witnesses or deal with cases which raise only factual points.

The Family Division deals with divorce; disputes between warring spouses involving children, property or money; adoption, wardship, and other questions affecting children.

The Chancery Division deals with tax, interpretation of wills, companies, settlements, trusts, and various other issues affecting finance and property.

Тема 16.

THE WORK OF A PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE

The Prosecutor's Office was established in our country in May 1922.

It is a system of bodies exercising general supervision over the strict and uniform observance of laws by all the ministries, organizations, officials and also by citizens.

Its main function is to see that all laws are correctly and uniformly applied throughout the country.

Its tasks are also strengthening legality and law and order as well as protecting personal rights and freedom of citizens, rights and interests of organizations, etc.

The law on Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation was enacted on January 2, 2000.

Under this law the Prosecutor's Office is headed by the Prosecutor-General who appoints prosecutors of oblasts, cities, towns, and districts.

The lower public prosecutors are subordinated to the higher ones.

The Prosecutor's Office consists of a number of departments: for supervision over lawfulness of court decisions in civil, criminal and arbi­tration cases, and especially in cases of juvenile delinquents: over legal­ity in the sphere of economy and entrepreneurial activity.

Any citizen can complain to the Prosecutor's Office against viola­tion of his/her rights.

The Prosecutor's Office protects the inviolability of a person.

A public prosecutor in our country is an official who has powers to exercise the highest supervision over the strict and uniform observance of laws. In performing their duties public prosecutors must be free and independent of any local bodies.

All public prosecutors are appointed for a term of five years.

A public prosecutor can be a person not younger than 25 years old, who has the higher legal education and possesses necessary moral and professional qualities.

The Prosecutor's Office institutes criminal proceedings.

Investiga­tors ascertain the circumstances under which crimes were-committed, collect evidence against the perpetrators of crimes and their accom­plices.

The public prosecutor brings a charge before the court in the name of the state.

At the trial his task is to assist the court to pass a just sentence.

After the trial the public prosecutor checks the sentences and judgements handed down by, the court as to their legality.

He has the right to enter any appeal if in his opinion the sentence or judgement is erroneous.

The public prosecutor has also the right to appeal against all unlawful decisions and actions of state organs and officials.

Тема 17.

THE WORK OF AN ADVOCATE

The institution of legal defense was created in our country in 1864.

They are to protect the rights and lawful interests of citizens and organizations, to maintain justice, to ob­serve and strengthen legality.

The principal task of the Bar is to grant le­gal assistance to citizens and organizations.

The Bar is a self-governing organization, which brings together the advocates.

It is independent of bodies of investigation, prosecutor's of­fices, the courts and bodies of authority and management.

Constitutional right to a defense is guaranteed to everyone in Rus­sia.

Our constitution states: "The defendant in a criminal action shall be guaranteed the right to legal aid. No one may be adjudged guilty of a crime and subjected to punishment as a criminal except by the sentence of a court in conformity with the law”.

After the accusation always follows a defense.

The role of a defense counsel in criminal proceedings is of spe­cial importance.

His duties are defined as follows: The defense counsel is obliged to make use of alt the ways and means of defense indicated in the law for the purpose of bringing to light the circumstances exonerating the accused or mitigating his responsibility, and to render all the neces­sary legal aid to the accused.

So the duty of the advocate is to help to exonerate the accused.

If an advocate is able to make a careful and skilful analysis of evi­dence he can refute the arguments of the prosecution and establish the innocence of the accused.

But the advocate is not obliged to prove the defendant's innocence.

Serious disputes often arise between the prosecution and the defense where all arguments and circumstances of the case are brought out in an effort to come to a just judgement.

The advocate also plays an especially important role in passing sentences.

In the court proce­dure the advocate helps to establish the truth.

He files petitions to exam­ine the evidence, calls new witnesses, introduces documents and certifi­cates, states and defends his opinion.

If he introduces arguments that mitigate the guilt of the defendant he helps the court pass the correct judgement.

If in advocate's opinion a sentence handed down by the court is heavy he has the right to appeal the sentence in a higher court.

A signifi­cant part of the advocate's time is spent in drawing up appeals.

He gets moral satisfaction when his appeal is redressed.

The advocate who is convinced of the innocence of his client must fight to the end for the truth.

Тема 3.

THE URALS STATE LAW ACADEMY

The Law Academy is one of the biggest leading higher educational institutions in our country. Its foundation goes back to April 1931.

It was formed on the basis of the Irkutsk State University as a law faculty.

Later It was reorganized into the Siberian Institute of Soviet Law.

In 1934 the Institute moved into Sverdlovsk, got the name of the Sverdlovsk Institute of Law and bore this name till 1992.

Now it is called the Urals State Law Academy.

Till 1976 there was only one faculty at the Sverdlovsk Law Institute - the Law faculty.

In 1976 the following three faculties were set up at the full-time department: the Judge and Prosecutor Training Faculty, the Investigator and Criminalist Training Faculty and the Faculty of Legal Service in the National Economy System.

Later, two of them were united into the Law Faculty.

And the Faculty of Legal Service was given a new name - the Business Law Faculty. Besides, a Customs Department was formed.

At present, the Academy has five institutes at the day department: the Institute of the Prosecutor's Office, the Institute of Justice, the Institute of Business and Law, the Institute of the Bar and the Institute of External Economic Relations.

Moreover, within the Academy there is also the Institute of Management and Law and the Faculty of the Secondary Professional Education.

Besides the full-time department there is also a part-time department and a correspondence department.

The Academy is' housed in three study buildings with libraries and reading halls where the students are able to get ready for their classes.

There are also snack bars and dining halls where the students can have a snack or dinner during breaks or after classes.

The Academy possesses a high intellectual potential: over 50 Doctors of Sciences, more than 150 Candidates of Sciences, many experienced lecturers work at the Academy.

The teaching staff is over 300 people.

The student body of all the departments taken together numbers more than 8,000 people and several tens of post-graduates.

The Academy is headed by Rector and Vice-Rectors (Pro-Rectors). The study, methodical and research work is guided by the dean's offices and by different chairs.

The Academy trains judges, prosecutors, advocates, jurisconsults, investigators, customs officials and other lawyers.

After completing the education our graduates work at courts, prosecutor's offices.

Militia, the Bar, notary offices, other law enforcement organs, and also at state and government bodies of different levels and in legal service of the national economy system.

Тема 8.

My future occupation.

One of the most popular professions among the young people of our country is the profession of a lawyer.

The profession of a lawyer is very interesting and diverse.

The pro­fession of a lawyer is quite necessary for regulating social relations in the state.

After my graduating from the Urals State Law Academy I can work at the Bar, in the organs of the Prosecutor's Office, in different courts, in notary offices, in legal advice offices, in organs of tax inspection, in organs of militia, as well as in different firms, companies, banks, enterprises, etc.

I can work as advocates, judges, notaries, investigators, prosecutors, juriscon­sults, inspectors, customs officers, traffic officers, and other workers of law enforcement agencies.

To be a good specialist a lawyer should know many laws and his/her proper application.

Then I will perform my duties well.

I have been studying theory of state and law, civil law, civil procedure, criminal law, criminal procedure, labor law, criminalistics, criminology, and many others since 2000.

Be­sides, any lawyer is expected to know human psychology as throughout his/her career a lawyer will meet different people: children and adults, the sick and the healthy; the poor and the rich; educated and uneducated persons; people of different nationalities, languages and religions; vic­tims, witnesses, suspects; first offenders and recidivists; prisoners and general public.

I will have to deal with a variety of people and situa­tions.

That's why the profession of a lawyer may be considered to be very difficult and noble at the same time.

Lawyers have agreed upon six basic elements of professionalism.

They are: ethics, competence combined with independence, professional wisdom and continuing learning, civility and obligations to the justice sys­tem.

The first element is enlargement of individual autonomy, good faith in dealings, truth seeking, full disclosure, reasonable limits on adversarial conduct and adherence to public interest.

The second element of professionalism is professional compe­tence, which must include independence in judgment and advice.

Com­petence should also involve an efficient allocation of resources.

There is still another element of professional competence, and that is practical wisdom. It calls for a broad comprehension of the role of law and of the values society cherishes, an understanding of human beings, and a mature perspective.

In the context of professionalism, civility covers not only surface po­liteness or courteous treatment of opponents.

Civility has a much deeper meaning than cosmetic courtesy. We mean respect for individual dignity and worth.

Тема 14.

THE WORK OF AN INVESTIGATOR , MILITIA, AN OPERATIVE

AND A field-criminalist

The Russian Militia was established on November 10th, 1917.

Our Militia is to deal with many problems and all of them are of great importance.

It is effective law enforcement, educational and pre­ventive work that are to be in the center of activities of militia agencies at our time.

Militia stations are in con­tinuous operation of crime prevention; crime investigation and crime so­lution, day and night patrol service, traffic safety and problems of juvenile delinquency, organized crime and racketeering.

One of the main tasks of our Militia is to improve militia-public rela­tions; to increase public's trust and sense of security.

Another problem of our Militia now is to combat modern crime, i.e. spread of drugs, drug-related crimes, crimes relating to money and terrorism.

The service in the Militia is difficult and dangerous, but it is neces­sary and honorable, because all the militia officers are to protect life, work and rest of our people.

Quite a lot of people work as inves­tigators in the organs of the Militia or of the Prosecutor's Office.

Investigation means a search.

That's why the duty of an investiga­tor is to search for the truth, for the offender, for witnesses who help to reconstruct the happening and will present evidence of it in court.

The in­vestigator must be able to make a searching inquiry into the facts sur­rounding the commission of the crime or economic offence, i.e. what it is, where it was, who the offender was, when, why and how he was commit­ting the crime.

The duties of the investigator together with the field-criminalist are to find, to collect and to protect evidence, such as fingerprints, footprints, and other traces of the criminal act.

Every good investigator should be intelligent, compe­tent, patient, tactful, composed, persistent and sympathetic, but he should be firm if it is necessary.

He must also possess special investiga­tive aptitudes and professional instinct.

In English an operative may be called a "detective", a "plain-clothes man", a "sleuth", a "CID man".

The main task of an operative is to pre­vent crimes and to solve them by using special means, methods and forms of fighting crimes.

The quick and accurate solution of crime depends largely on the personal ef­forts.

It also depends on his education, his intelligence and his decision-making judgements.

He tries to function effectively in combating crime and to act prop­erly under operative conditions.

After graduating from the Law Academy some of our students are going to be a field-criminalists.

It means that they should know Criminalistics very well because quick and accurate solution of crime will depend on their education and practical skills that is why they exert every effort to study well.

They take pictures of the crime scene, make diagrams and sketches.

The most interesting work is the work in fingerprinting.