Download Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures

Where Does the Law Come From?
Do you know the difference
between right and wrong?
How?
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Morals vs Ethics
Morality refers to a society’s values and
beliefs about right and wrong.
Ethics refers to the rules used to determine
the difference between right and wrong.
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Where Do Ethics Come From?
1. The Greatest Good (utilitarianism)
2. The Golden Rule
3. Real-World Ethics (feelings/opinions)
– People just know instinctively
– Individuals decide what is right and wrong
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Ethics
The Greatest Good
– The greatest good for the greatest # of
people
– Can be misapplied (is it okay to sacrifice 1
person to save 10?)
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Ethics
Real-World Ethics (Feelings/Opinions)
– Nathan comes from a poor family, while Erin’s family is
wealthy. Nathan believes that Erin has more money than she
needs. When she leaves her purse unattended in the school
cafeteria, Nathan steals her billfold. Nathan defends the theft
by saying that he feels he deserves the money more than Erin,
who can always get more from her father.
– Isn’t stealing always wrong?
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Ethics
The Golden Rule (Do unto others as you
would have them do unto you)
Apply empathy – put yourself in someone
else’s shoes
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Ethics
The Golden Rule applied correctly:
–
Steve is the star pitcher on Franklin High School’s varsity baseball team.
However, he is having a bad outing against the Vikings of St. Joseph High.
Frustrated, Steve throws two pitches at St. Joseph’s best batter. When the
umpire ejects Steve from the game, Franklin’s coach does not argue. Instead,
he tells Steve, “You were wrong to throw those pitches at that kid. If it’s right
for you to throw at their batters, then it would be right for their pitchers to throw
at our batters.” Steve agrees that he would not want to be a pitchers target
either.
The Golden Rule gone wrong:
–
When law tests are handed out in Mrs. Martin’s class, Max accidentally
receives two copies of the exam. He fills out one and returns it, but keeps the
other. After class, he gives the copy to his friend, Bob, who will have a chance
to look at it before his afternoon law test. Max justifies his conduct by saying
he would want Bob to give him the test if Bob had been the one to receive the
extra copy.
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Ethics
So what about businesses and
corporations? Are they bound by ethics
too?
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Social Responsibility of Business
Decisions made by business have farreaching effects on society.
In the past, many business decisions were
made solely on a cost-benefit analysis.
– “Bottom line” impact.
Such decisions may cause negative
externalities for others.
Corporations owe some degree of social
responsibility.
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Social Responsibility of Business
Theories
Theory
Maximizing profits
Social Responsibility
To maximize profits for stockholders.
Moral minimum
To avoid causing harm and to
compensate for harm caused.
To consider the interests of all
stakeholders, including stockholders,
employees, customers, suppliers,
creditors, and local community.
Stakeholder interest
Corporate citizenship To do good and solve social problems.
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Section 1.1 The Foundations of Law
People do not always behave morally or
ethically, so we need law.
Law is a system of rules established by a
government according to the values of
society and having legal force.
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Law and Ethics
Ethical and Legal Conflicts
– There are times where your ethics could be in conflict with the
law.
• Clark is the editor of the Franklin High Herald. Rita tells Clark that
another student is selling drugs on campus. She asks Clark not to
reveal her identity in his news article or to the police. Clark agrees.
When the article appears and the student is arrested, Clark has to
testify at the trial. Clark refuses to identify Rita even though the
judge orders him to do so. Clark is held in contempt of court and is
fined
• Other examples might include: abortion, anti-war sentiment, etc.
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5 Sources of the Law
There are five main sources of law:
constitutional law
common law
statutory law
court decisions
administrative law
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1: Constitutions
Constitutions
•US Constitution and State Constitutions
•Which do you think are more powerful?
•A constitution is a formal document that
lays out the basic principles that govern
society.
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US Constitution
US Constitution
– The Supreme Law (Supremacy Clause)
– 1st 10 amendments = The Bill of Rights
• What are your rights?
• What does the 1st amendment guarantee?
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Bill of Rights
1st Amendment-Freedom of Speech (+
religion, press, assembly)
– Fully Protected Speech
• political, symbolic
– Limited
• Offensive speech, commercial (limited and restricted)
– Unprotected
• Dangerous, defamatory, obscene, child pornography
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2: Common Law
Common Law
Common law is the set of laws created over
time through customs and judgments by
courts, which later courts must follow.
•
Establishes precedent
•
We know what will happen based on what
has happened before
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Common Law
Common Law
Chancery
Courts
Law Courts
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3: Statutory Law
Statutory Law
Statutory law is the set of laws created by a
governing body, called a legislature, whose
purpose is to pass new laws.
•Congress makes the laws
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4: Court Decisions
Court Decisions
Courts make laws in three ways:
through the
common law
tradition
by interpreting
statutes
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through judicial
review, or
deciding
whether some
laws conflict
with the
Constitution
Court Decisions
Court decisions also establish precedent
– Stare Decisis = To stand by the decision
– All cases with similar circumstances will be decided in
a similar way
– The higher the court, the more important the precedent
Roe v Wade
Brown v Board
of Education
Miranda v State of
Arizona
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5: Administrative Law
Administrative Law
Administrative law is the set of laws
created by government agencies.
• FTC, FDA, IRS, etc.
• They make their own rules
• Investigate their own rules
•Determine guilt/innocence of who violates their rules
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Section 1.2
The Court System and
Trial Procedures
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
The United States has two major court
systems: the federal and the state courts.
The power a court has to hear a case and
make a judgment is called jurisdiction.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
The federal court system consists of:
district courts
appellate courts
special U.S. courts
the Supreme Court
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
Most state court systems consist of:
local trial courts
general trial courts
special courts, such as juvenile courts
intermediate appellate courts
state supreme courts
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
An appellate court is not a trial court, but
reviews the decision of a lower court.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
Courts hear two types of cases:
criminal
civil
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
Civil cases are brought by one individual
against another.
Criminal cases are brought by the
government for offenses committed against
the public.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
A civil case begins with one individual suing
another. The plaintiff is the person bringing
the lawsuit. The defendant is the person
being sued.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
A criminal case begins with the arrest and
arraignment of a person.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
An arrest is when a person is legally
deprived of his or her freedom.
An arraignment is when a person is read
the charges and asked to plead guilty or not
guilty.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
There are several steps to a trial:
selecting the jury
arguments and evidence by the lawyers
judge’s instructions to the jury
verdict and judgment
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
If the defendant is found liable in a civil
case, the plaintiff is granted a remedy, often
in the form of money.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
If the defendant is convicted in a criminal
case, the defendant is punished in the form
of a fine, imprisonment, or both.
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Section 1.2 The Court System and Trial Procedures
In either case, if the defendant is found
liable or convicted, the defendant has the
right to appeal the judgment to an
appellate court.
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