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THE FACULTY OF LAW ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES Podgorica , 04 . 04 .201 6. UNIVERSITY OF MONTENEGRO. UNIT THREE - LISTENING Essential terms Plaintiff: the aggrieved party who institutes a legal action (tužilac)
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THEFACULTY OF LAWENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES Podgorica, 04.04.2016. UNIVERSITY OF MONTENEGRO
UNIT THREE - LISTENING Essential terms Plaintiff: the aggrieved party who institutes a legal action (tužilac) Defendant: the party against whom the grievance (tužba) is filed (optuženi) Appeal: a request by the losing party in a case to have a higher court review the application of law (žalba) Appellant: the party appealing a lower court’s decision (podnosilac žalbe) Appellee: the prevailing party in a lower court against whom the appellant seeks an appeal
UNIT THREE - LISTENING Jurisdiction: the area(s) over which a court has the power to hear cases and impose judgment (nadležnost) Remand: an appellate court may send the case back to the lower court in certain circumstances for further action (vratiti na ponovno suđenje) Trial court: the court having initial jurisdiction over a case, hearing both facts and law, and basing its decision on an application of the law to the facts (prvostepeni sud) Cause of action: the legal basis for a court case; facts that trigger the application of a particular law; cases are sometimes dismissed for failure to state a cause of action (osnovanost tužbe)
LISTENING 3 A. Listening Script [Note: In the script are several mistakes that are common in spoken English, such as leaving off a final -s sound and faulty pronoun agreement. These types of mistakes are made by native speakers as well as nonnative speakers and are generally overlooked if made infrequently.) Jens (a visiting German lawyer) Simone (an American attorney) SIMONE: Jens, good to see you again. I’m glad we’re going to be working on this case together. JENS: Me too. You were really a great help in Germany last year. We still talk about that case. SIMONE: My pleasure. This time you’ll need to help me pull it out of the fire. JENS: What? A fire.Where? SIMONE: No, no. That’s just an expression. It means you’re going to help me save this case which my learned colleague, Ben, says is a lost cause.
LISTENING 3 JENS: Ah, well. I will do my best. One thing bothers me though—Ihave never actually been in an American courtroom. Theonly ones I’ve seen have been on TV. SIMONE: Well, you’ll be relieved to know that procedures in courtroomsbear very little resemblance to those on TV. However,there are some simple rules you might want to keep in mind. JENS: Good. Where do we begin? SIMONE: There’re certain verbal and physical rules to follow. First,always stand when you speak to—we say address—the judge. JENS: What do you call him? SIMONE: Be careful. Many judges in America are women. You call her“Your Honour.”
JENS: Fine. What about the other attorney? SIMONE: You can just call them “Mr.” whatever, although there aresome older forms some people still use. JENS: Mr.? Hmmm, are all American attorneys men? SIMONE: Touché! Sorry. To be on the safe side use the neutral form“Ms.” for all women unless she introduces herself as “Mrs.” JENS: Miss? I thought that was just for young, unmarried women. SIMONE: No, not Miss, Ms. [spells it out]—the final sound is a z notan s. JENS: Do I need to stand up to speak to them? SIMONE: No, you only stand to address the “Court.” That’s anotherway to refer to the judge. JENS: Thanks. That’s a bit complicated and I’m famished. Say, it’shigh time we go to lunch. SIMONE: High time. My, aren’t we British today?
WHAT IS THE CASE ABOUT: • MS. HRADEC BROKE HER LEG IN THE US • SHE SUED THE COMPANY FROM PRAGUE – MBP (SHE WAS THE PLAINTIFF) • THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE MADE A DECISION THAT MBP – THE DEFENDANT – IS NOT GUILTY • MS HRADEC – WA NTS TO APPEAL • SHE HIRES MS. SIMONE FORT TO REPRESENT HER IN APPEAL PROCEDURE • SIMONE IS ASKING JENS WEIHRAUCH TO HELP HER WITH GROUNDS FOR APPEAL AS JURISDICTIONAL EXPERT
USE THE FOLLOWING WORDS TO FILL IN THE TEXT ON PAGE 44: DEFENDANT APPEAL REMAND APPELANT PLAINTIFF TRIAL JURISDICTION
TRANSLATE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES: All cases concerning goods, property, debt repayment, breach of contract (with some exceptions such as insolvency proceedings and non-contentious litigation), are subject to Civil Procedure Rules. The judge performs the role of case manager. The court sets a timetable for litigation, with the parties being under an obligation to the court to adhere to timescales which control the progress of the case. Most claims are initiated by the use of a claim form, which functions as a summons. The claim form can be used for different types of claim, for example for specified or unspecified monetary sums, or for the claimant to ask the court to make an order.
Once a claim has been issued, a copy is served on, that is, delivered to, the defendant with a response pack inviting them to either admit the claim, using a form of admission, or to defend it, using a form of defence (odricanje od tužbenog zahtjeva). The response pack also contains an acknowledgement of service form to confirm receipt of the claim, and a counterclaim form for the defendant to use if they wish to claim against the claimant. A defendant must respond within 14 days of service of the particulars of the claim. If the defendant does not respond, judgment may be given in favour of the claimant. The defendant may be able to get a time extension for filing a reply on defence by using the part of the acknowledgement of service form which states an intention to defend the claim.
Parties are encouraged to settle their differences and for this purpose a stay in proceedings, that is, a temporary halt, may be agreed.
TRANSLATE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES: The police investigate a crime and may apprehend suspects and detain them in custody. Criminal proceedings can be initiated either by the serving of summons setting out the offence and requiring the accused to attend court, or, in more serious cases, by a warrant of arrest issued by a Magistrates’ Court. Lawyers from CPS may act as public prosecutors. Summary offences, tried without a jury, are minor crimes only triable in the Magistrates’ Courts. Indictable offences are serious crimes, such as murder, which can only be heard in the Crown Court.
The formal document containing the alleged offences, supported by the facts, is called the indictment. If the defendant pleads guilty, the Magistrates’ Court can either proceed to sentence or commit to the Crown Court for sentence, where more severe penalties are available. If there is a not guilty plea, the court can decide the mode of trial. The person charged may request a trial by jury. If granted, such trials take place in the Crown Court. The English system of justice is adversarial, which means that each side collects and presents their own evidence and attacks their opponent’s by cross-examination
In a criminal trial, the burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty. A person accused or under arrest for an offence may be granted bail and temporarily released. However, bail may be refused, for example if there are grounds for believing that the accused would fail to appear for trial or commit an offence. In the crown Court there may be a preparatory hearing for a complex case before the jury is sworn in. Once a trial has begun, the defendant may be advised by counsel to change his or her plea to guilty, in expectation of a reduced sentence. If, at the end of the trial, the court’s verdict is not guilty, then the defendant is acquitted.
a WARRANT OF ARREST - a court document authorizing the police to detain someone. an INDICTMENT - a written statement with details of the crimes someone is charged with a SUMMON - a formal order to attend court
USE THE FOLLOWING COLLOCATIONS TO FILL IN THE SENTNECSE ON PG 49: SEVERE PENALTIES DEFENCE COSTS REASONABLE DOUBT REALISTIC PROSPECTS INDICTABLE OFFENCES
LISTENING 4 Lawyer: Well, maybe I should start by explaining how things work. You say that a writ has been served on you, informing you that an action has been filed against you for breach of contract. Is that right? Client: Yes, I got that yesterday. Lawyer: OK. That means that a complaint against you has already been filed with the court. Our next step will be to draft an answer to this complaint. Client: How does that work? Lawyer: In order to be able to draft an answer, I’ll need information from you – facts, documents and the like – so that I can begin preparing your defence. Of course, we’ll then also have to start building up evidence to support your defence. For example, we may wish to get affidavits – sworn statements – from potential witnesses supporting the statements you’ve made in your defence.
LISTENING 4 . Client: Right. What happens next? Lawyer: Well, it depends on how we wish to proceed. We should try to have the case dismissed as soon as we can. This’ll require filing motions. We’ll also have to draft briefs clarifying our legal positions, which we’ll then submit to the court. Client: I see. Do you think there’ll be a trial? Lawyer: That’s hard to say exactly. Client: Um, if there is a trial, when will it take place? Lawyer: When the time comes, the court’ll issue a notice to inform us of the date and time of the hearing.
THAT’S ALL FOLKS. THANK YOU FOR COMING! SEE YOU NEXT WEEK.
