LESSON 2

A. Read the following text: Magistrates

There are two types of magistrates in England and Wales: lay magistrates, also known as lay justices, who have the title of 'justice of the peace', and stipendiary magistrates The former is a !ody of men and women which has !een in existence since the fourteenth century, and is called on to pass judgement on their fellow citi"ens, without any real legal training The latter is a !ody of lawyers, called upon to do su!stantially the same jo!, which dates from the eighteenth century They !oth exercise their powers in a less formal court than the other courts, known as the #agistrates' $ourts, and deal with more cases than any other court of law in the English legal system The main jo! of the magistrates is to deal with civil and criminal cases too trivial to !e dealt with !y the $rown and $ounty $ourts %n terms of their criminal jurisdiction the #agistrates' $ourts deal with something over &'( of all cases The English legal system divides criminal offences into three !asic categories: ) 'summary offences' is the category of minor crimes such as parking offences, minor assaults, !egging, and less minor crimes such as drinking and driving which are tried without a jury* ) 'indicta!le offences' are those more serious offences for which the police are given a power of arrest and which will !e tried !y jury* murder, manslaughter and serious fraud all come within this category ) + num!er of offences, !ecause of the fact that they are not uniformly major or minor, are termed 'either way' offences which may or may not !e tried !y a jury at the re,uest of the defendant The !est example of these offences is theft which may involve either very small or very large amounts of money The magistrate's criminal jurisdiction is principally limited to summary and either way offences -where the defendant elects not to have a jury trial. /owever, magistrates have an important role to play in serious criminal proceedings Where a person is charged with an indicta!le offence, magistrates sit as examining justices to decide whether the prosecution's case is strong enough to warrant committing the accused for trial in the $rown $ourt This procedure is known as 'committal proceedings' They also issue arrest and search warrants to the police The civil jurisdiction of the magistrate is limited to minor matters including matrimonial and family matters, and the granting of licenses -for !etting, li,uor etc . 0ustices of the peace are chosen !y the 1ord $hancellor on the advice furnished !y +dvisory 2oards which have a certain num!er of su!committees or advisory panels in the regions These organisations are concerned with recruiting magistrates from amongst the 'worthy' mem!ers of the locality %t is not a!solutely clear what criteria are used in the selection, !ut it is fairly sure that many 0 3 s are chosen on the recommendation of an existing magistrate 4thers, it seems are chosen for their !ackground in voluntary work such as in churches or youth organisations They are not paid a salary !ut receive expenses incurred in the performance of their judicial duties +lthough they are lay persons, they have some legal knowledge as they receive two short courses of instruction during which they are initiated into the !asic aspects of

the law, including evidence, sentencing and procedure They are assisted !y 'clerks to the justices', normally solicitors or !arristers of at least seven years' standing, who perform the administrative work of the court and advise the magistrates on points of law and procedure 6tipendiary magistrates are to !e found in most of the large towns and cities of England and Wales %n 1ondon there are only 'metropolitan stipendiary magistrates' 6tipendiary magistrates are full)time mem!ers of the court chosen !y the 7ueen on the advice of the 1ord $hancellor They receive wages or a 'stipend' and unlike lay magistrates they may sit alone -a ,uorum of two is re,uired for lay justices. They are normally !arristers or solicitors of at least seven years' standing

B. +n +merican friend of yours who needs to find out some specific information a!out magistrates in England has left you a list of ,uestions +nswer the ,uestions as concisely as possi!le
5 9 : < ' = > What criteria are used in the selection of a 0 3 8 /ow much legal knowledge is necessary, and do 0 3 s receive any help8 ;o magistrates get paid at all8 What sort of offences do they deal with8 ;o magistrates play any role in indicta!le offences8 What civil jurisdiction do they have8 ;oes a magistrate sit alone or must there !e several of them per case8

C. ?ind synonyms in the text for the following English words and expressions
5 not an expert (adj.) @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 9. to handle @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ : petty @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ < infringement of the law @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ ' soliciting money or goods @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ = offence that is tried in the $rown $ourt @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ > murder with mitigating circumstances or no mens rea @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ A stealing money, property or goods @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ & sum @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5B to choose @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 55 to justify @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 59 document authorising the arrest of a person or a search of his property @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5: permission to do something that would otherwise !e unlawful @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5< the head of the judiciary @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5' deserving @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5= that arise @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

5> something which proves the existence @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 5A helped @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

-or

non)existence.

of

fact

D. ?ill in the !lanks to o!tain a summary of the passage you have just read
+ @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ magistrate, otherwise known as a @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ of the @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ deals with @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ and criminal cases that are not serious enough to go as far as the $rown or $ounty $ourts Cnlike @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ magistrates, who receive a @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ and are allowed to sit @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ they can claim only @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ that arise in the course of their @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ duties #agistrates handle all @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ offences as well as some D@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@E offences, where the defendant prefers a @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ without @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ They also decide which cases should !e referred to the higher @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@, during what is termed @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ proceedings

Hunting Season
Washington State Attorney Season And Bag Limits Section 1400.01 - General

5 +ny person with a valid Washington 6tate hunting license may harvest attorneys 9 Taking of attorneys with traps or deadfalls is permitted : Filling of attorneys with a vehicle is prohi!ited %f accidentally struck, remove dead attorney to roadside and proceed to nearest car wash < %t is unlawful to chase, herd, or harvest attorneys from a snow machine, helicopter, or aircraft ' %t shall !e unlawful to shout GwhiplashG, Gam!ulanceG, or Gopen !arG for the purpose of trapping attorneys = %t shall !e unlawful to hunt attorneys within 5BB yards of $adillac dealerships > %t shall !e unlawful to use cocaine, currency, or staged vehicle accidents to attract attorneys A %t shall !e unlawful to hunt attorneys within 9BB yards of courtrooms, law li!raries, whorehouses, health spas, am!ulances, or hospitals & %f an attorney is elected to government office, it shall !e a felony to hunt, trap, or possess it 5B /arvested attorneys must have a state health department inspection for distemper and ra!ies prior to !eing stuffed or mounted 55 %t shall !e illegal for a hunter to disguise himself as an accident victim, young law clerk, drug dealer, !ookie, or sheep for the purpose of attracting and hunting attorneys

Bi liogra!"#
#ichael 2rookes ;avid /olden Wesley /utchinson Engle"a pentru juriHti, traducere de $ristina +nghel, Editura Teora, 9BB> http:IIwww lawlaughs comIanimalsI!aglimits html

<