...German Law system Public Law * Public law rules the relations between a citizen or private person and an official entity or between two official entities, e.g. a law which determines taxes * Public law was formerly based on the so-called "superiority inferiority relationship", means that a public authority may define what is to be done, without the approval of the citizen. * E.g., if the authority orders a citizen to pay taxes, the citizen has to pay, even without an agreement. * In return, the authority has to abide by the law and may only order, if empowered by a law. * The newer theory to determine, whether a regulation is public or civil law, is the modified theory of subjects: if at least one of the subjects is part of the state or is legally empowered to act on behalf of any part of the state. Constitutional law * The constitution is called the Grundgesetz (Basic Law) because the drafters saw this legal part as a provisional document, to be replaced by the constitution of a future united Germany. * In reaction to National Socialism, the basic law shows mistrust towards its own people and its own government and was created as a reaction to the problems of the Weimar Constitution. * The constitutional law (Verfassungsrecht) deals mostly with Germany’s constitution and the rights and duties of the various institutions. * A major part are the Civil rights which are first in the basic law (Grundgesetz) and from which everything...
Words: 1929 - Pages: 8
...Do Irish judges have too much discretion in sentencing criminal offenders? If they do, to what extend should their exercise of discretion be curtailed? Judicial discretion is the power the law provides the courts or a judge to choose appropriate sentencing, which is lawful . A sentence is ordered by the judge, based on the verdict of the jury (or judge’s decision if no jury) within the possible punishment set by law . Judges I believe do possess too much discretion in the sentencing of criminal offenders. In the Irish legal system, the sentencing of criminal offences is very broad for judges apart from the mandatory sentence of murder, which leaves the judge no discretion in his/her sentencing. Should Irish judge’s discretion be curtailed? Yes, I would be in favour of a more robust system where judges sentencing is more consistent. The sentencing of criminal offenders in Ireland, at this moment in time, is of the opinion that it is in fact too inconsistent. There are currently certain restrictions on the sentences which are applied to criminal offenders e.g....
Words: 1812 - Pages: 8
...College of Computer Training (CCT) ------------------------------------------------- Assignment Cover Page ------------------------------------------------- INTRODUCTION TO THE IRISH LEGAL SYSTEM INTRODUCTION TO THE IRISH LEGAL SYSTEM Module Title: 6N8395 6N8395 Module Code: Law Assignment One – Origins of the Irish Legal System Law Assignment One – Origins of the Irish Legal System Assignment Title: Owen Keany Owen Keany Lecturer Name: MEMORY TEMBO, HETHERWICK KAMWENDO, NANCY SUNGANI NAMETSO LEGAE . MEMORY TEMBO, HETHERWICK KAMWENDO, NANCY SUNGANI NAMETSO LEGAE . Student Name: (2015334), (2015388), (2015262), (2011853). (2015334), (2015388), (2015262), (2011853). Student No.: 11 October 2015 @ 23.55 11 October 2015 @ 23.55 Assignment Due Date: Academic Year: Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- DECLARATION ------------------------------------------------- I, the above named student, confirm that by submitting, or causing the attached assignment to be submitted, to CCT, I have not plagiarised any other person’s work in this assignment and except where appropriately acknowledged, this assignment is my own work, has been expressed in my own words, and has not previously been submitted for assessment. I, the above named student...
Words: 2664 - Pages: 11
...Cigarette Tax in Ireland After reading both articles from The Irish Times written by Eugene Regan and Chris Macey on the issue, should cigarettes be taxed so highly by the government with over 80% of the price of cigarettes is from the taxes that the government set. This issue has caused a lot of discussion amongst us Economists. The argument is whether or not you think cigarettes are price inelastic or price elastic. If you think cigarettes are price inelastic which means that the change in price of cigarettes is disproportionate to the demand for cigarettes then you believe in Mr. Regan opinion. The price elastic view is taken up by Mr. Macey where he believes that the demand for cigarettes is very much dependent on the price. Both articles but forward two very good arguments with very clear reasons why they think the government should try and stop this high growth of criminal activity in the area of smuggling cigarettes into the country. As we found out from the articles that there is a very high percentage of contraband cigarettes in existents in Ireland today due to the very high price set by our government. Over a quarter of all cigarettes smoked in Ireland are illegal. Irish criminal gangs our making huge profits by selling smuggled cigarettes into the Irish black market (worth over €526 million to these criminal gangs) and the government need to do something about. Both articles try to solve this problem with very different views. Reading both articles I do think...
Words: 1719 - Pages: 7
...Sinn Fein Sinn Fein (/ʃɪn ˈfeɪn/ shin-FAYN) is an Irish republican political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves",although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone:Originating in the Sinn Fein organization founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party (the other party is the Workers' Party of Ireland), and has been associated with the Provisional Irish Republican Army Gerry Adams has been party president since 1983. Sinn Fein is currently the second-largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly, where it has four ministerial posts in the power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive, and the fourth-largest party in the Oireachtas, the parliament of the Republic. Sinn Fein also received a plurality of Northern Ireland votes in the 2010 United Kingdom general election, although the Democratic Unionist Party won more seats. Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (Irish: Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster Scots: Polis Servis o Norlin Airlan) is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor of the defunct Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) which, in turn, was the successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) in Northern Ireland. Although the majority of PSNI officers are still from the Protestant community, this dominance is not as pronounced as it was in the RUC because...
Words: 1268 - Pages: 6
...qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmrtyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmrtyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmrtyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmrtyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwer...
Words: 1224 - Pages: 5
...PRINCIPLES OF SENTENCING: TOWARDS A EUROPEAN CONVERSATION Paper delivered at Conference on “The Limits of the Criminal Law” at Leiden University, January 23, 2008 and subsequently published in Cupido (ed), Limits of Criminal Law (Nijmegen, 2008).[1] Tom O’Malley Senior Lecturer in Law National University of Ireland Galway First, I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the students of Leiden Law School for having organised this conference. Thanks to their vision and energy, representatives from several European countries have gathered in this historic venue to discuss some key aspects of criminal law and criminal procedure. More often than not, we think of European law solely in terms of European Union law, the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights or both. Needless to say, the study of European law even in this limited sense is of the highest importance given its impact on our national legal systems and our daily lives. However, growing levels of legal and political integration now demand that we broaden our vision of European law to encompass the domestic legal systems of individual European states. Some work has already begun in this regard,[2] but it is only on rare occasions such as this that we can engage in a meaningful exchange of ideas and information on areas of common concern. Criminal justice is a most appropriate and worthy topic with which to begin. In times past, sentencing would not have featured very prominently...
Words: 9462 - Pages: 38
...Cup was scheduled to hold in Brazil and 400,000 fans were expected for the quadrennial tournament but some concerns arose prior to the tournament that had to do with the growing rate of crime in the country especially Rio de Janeiro which is Brazil’s biggest tourist destination (Biller, 2014). In Rio de Janeiro, robbery numbers on public transport increased from 345 to 629 in August 2013 and assault with intent to rob rose by 37% (Radnedge, 2013). Due to the level of corruption and violence the police themselves in Rio inflict on the public, citizens are not encouraged to report criminal activities because they are scared of the police authorities and do not respect them (Brazil, 2014). During the first half of the year 2013 the police were held responsible for the death of 362 citizens in Rio de Janeiro and even though the police report these loss of lives as a casualty due to gun fights with criminals, the Human Rights Watch and some other groups report that some of these killings result from unconditional use of force and others do not (Human Rights Watch, 2014). All these problems highlighted shows lack of public security and poor police conduct is plaguing the city of Rio de Janeiro and adequate measures should be taken by the government to resolve these problems. In the year 2007, the Brazilian government pledged £850m to the betterment of Rio de Janeiro’s huge slum as a way to stop organised crime in the region (BBC, 2007). This is a good idea, but it might not guarantee...
Words: 2327 - Pages: 10
...Inequality – Via wealth, opportunity, unemployment, education, race, area (inner cities for example) or class can leave people exposed to the kind of poverty that can then lead on to a breakdown of social and personal morality, thereby diluting the common understanding of crime to such a degree that crime becomes an acceptable necessity in order to improve ones situation. In this way areas of poverty can arguably become crime eco systems, within which crime itself can evolve until it almost redefines itself in a sub cultural context. B) Culture – Certain aspects of criminal behaviour, or deviant behaviour are, rightly or wrongly, most commonly attributed to poverty laden areas of a society. In this way poverty itself becomes, the cause and the advertisement for crime to be an attractive proposition. For instance gang culture, gun, knife and drug cultures, to name a few, are all familiar paths for a criminal career within a cycle of poverty and can all seem both attractive and lucrative based on collective perceptions and shared social identities or the embedded institutional reasoning of an under privileged minority. C) Political cause – With poverty also comes, the identification of the victim. Victims of social injustice, of under privilege, the rank of invisibility and the lack of a voice. These can lead to mass statement making and attention seeking crime whereby anger and frustration are unleashed via mass deviance. An example of this may be the London Riots of 2012...
Words: 1473 - Pages: 6
...Cornell Search About LII / Get the law / Lawyer Directory / Get Legal Forms / Legal Encyclopedia / Help Out • • Wex • all pages • articles • español • Inbox Project • search • FAQ Legal systems Introduction: profusion and variety There are hundreds of legal systems in the world. At the global level, international law is of great importance, whether created by the practice of sovereign states or by agreement among them in the form of treaties and other accords. Some transnational entities such as the European Union have created their own legal structures. At the national level there are over 180 sovereign states in the United Nations Organization. Many of these are federal or confederal, and their constituent parts may well have their own law. But, despite this great variety, it is important to begin by emphasizing one great division: that into religious and secular legal systems. Each side of this split holds quite different views as to law, in its source, scope, sanctions, and function. The source of religious law is the deity, legislating through the prophets. Secular law is made by human beings, and one of its most famous examples begins with the words 'We, the people'. It follows from this difference in their source that religious laws are perceived to be eternal and immutable, while secular rules can be changed by their makers. Religious law tells people what to believe as well as how to behave, whereas secular law deals with our external actions as they...
Words: 8159 - Pages: 33
...review by any other court. Supreme courts typically function primarily as appellate courts, hearing appeals from decisions of lower trial courts, or from intermediate-level appellate courts. However, not all highest courts are named as such. Civil law states do not tend to have singular highest courts. Additionally, the highest court in some jurisdictions is not named the "Supreme Court", for example, the High Court of Australia; this is because decisions by the High Court could formerly be appealed to the Privy Council. In a few places, the court named the "Supreme Court" is not in fact the highest court; examples include the New York Supreme Court, which is superseded by the New York Court of Appeals, and the former Supreme Court of Judicature of England and Wales. Some countries have multiple "supreme courts" whose respective jurisdictions have different geographical extents, or which are restricted to particular areas of law. In particular, countries with a federal system of government typically have both a federal supreme court, and supreme courts for each member state, with the former having jurisdiction over the latter only to the extent that the federal constitution extends federal law over state law. Jurisdictions with a civil law system often have a hierarchy of administrative courts separate from the ordinary courts, headed by a supreme administrative court as it the case in the Netherlands. A number of jurisdictions also follow the "Austrian" model of a separate constitutional...
Words: 4621 - Pages: 19
...governmental institution with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out administration of justice in civil, criminal and administrative matters. The legal tradition prominent in the Commonwealth Caribbean is that of the common law tradition, which originated in England, the court system of the territories is also influenced by tradition. The courts in the region are modeled on those of England. The power to create and regulate such court systems, however, is no longer derived from colonizing power, but from the written Constitutions and other local statutory instruments to be found in the territories which have gained independence. In the majority of the Commonwealth Caribbean the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council sits at the apex of this hierarchy of courts while others have replaced it with the Caribbean Court of Justice (the CCJ). Consequently, decisions of judgments emanating from the Privy Council or the Caribbean Court of Justice are the most authoritative in the hierarchy. Next in the hierarchical structure are the Courts of Appeal, then the Supreme Courts or High Courts followed by intermediate courts such as the Family Courts, Resident Magistrates' Courts and Juvenile Courts which are inferior courts and has the least authority. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council This court is comprised of Law Lords of the United Kingdom and hears appeals from decisions of the Court of Appeal of Jamaica. Like most of the British Commonwealth...
Words: 1271 - Pages: 6
...issue of Tax evasion in Ireland and around the world has significantly increased in the last few years. The downturn in the Irish economy along with pressures from some of our major international trading partners(European Union, International Monetary board and US) has increased the pressure on the Irish government to strengthen its revenue arm and try and recover millions of euro that it has lost through tax evasion and corruption. The loss of this revenue to the exchequer has serious affects on the Irish economy and limits the money that could be spend on education, infrastructure, public health and Social Welfare to name a few. Tax avoidance and tax evasion often get confused with one another and are often considered to mean the same. Tax avoidance is defined as the lawful minimization of tax liability through sound financial planning techniques such as phasing the sale of assets over a period long enough to effect maximum exemption from capital gains tax while tax evasion is defined as the unlawful attempt to minimize tax liability through fraudulent techniques to circumvent or frustrate tax laws, such as deliberate under-statement of taxable income or wilful non-payment of due taxes . While Tax avoidance is legal, tax evasion is an offense and is punishable by both civil and criminal penalties. “The public’s attitude to tax evasion has also changed and so too has the attitude of the courts. It is no longer enough to admit a serious revenue offence and simply refund...
Words: 481 - Pages: 2
...Legal Aspects of Intoxication Aditya Vikram Yadav Student Chapter 1 Abstract Intoxication as defined in S. 86 has remained a convenient defence in numerous murder cases, as it allows for acquittal in case of temporary insanity due to drunkenness. Through this paper we explore the jurisprudential history and the legal aspect of intoxication and find ways to bypass the landmark judgement of Basdev v. State of PEPSU(1956), which established the doctrine of insanity based on previous English judgements. This paper seeks to find ways for the police to establish guilt in such cases. S. 86 Scope of Section – The Indian Courts attribute the same knowledge to an inebriated person as they do to when he is sober. If the man has not gone very deep in drinking, the court can gather from the facts his intention, and whether the act was intended. Therefore, in cases where intention is essential, drunkenness is a defence. This section creates an artificial rule for effect of evidence and significance of facts, and the section must be read as it is and construed strictly. No knowledge or intention further of that of a sober man can be established to an intoxicated person. Drunkenness where not available as a defence can be offered as a mitigator of sentence. The section makes clear that intoxication has no effect on a person’s knowledge, and he must be presumed to cause the consequences of his acts. The difference between S. 85 and S. 86 is essentially based on whether the drunkenness...
Words: 3419 - Pages: 14
...Introduction Unlike the United States, our criminal procedure follows an adversarial system, which is based under English Common Law. The people of Iran and many other countries and governments in the Middle East, follow Islamic law, also known as Sharia Law. Sharia Law is the underlying influence of the legal code in many Muslim countries. What is Sharia Law? Sharia law, also known, as Islamic law is a movement derived from the Holy Quran that allows such countries as Iran to govern personal status laws, regulations that pertain to divorce and marriage, inheritance and custody. In the Middle East, Sharia law contains major controversy when it comes to influence status law as well as criminal law. The Holy Quran and some of its interpretations are used to justify what Americans would describe as cruel and unusual punishments like death by stoning and the unequal treatment of women in their dress, status, inheritance and independence (Johnson, 2010). The Iranian government follows and sets forth laws under Sharia and the ways of the Holy Quran and prophet Mohammed. Sharia developed in 632 CE after the death of the prophet Mohammad and passed down by scholars as the ways of “Allah”, the ways of the one and only God. People of the Muslim faith follow a school called the Ja’fari, which is most notable in Iran as Shia-dominant (Johnson, 2010). Elements Under Sharia Law: The primary element of Sharia is the Holy Quran. There are not other appeals that go against the...
Words: 1322 - Pages: 6
