Overview of the American Legal System



Overview of the American Legal System

I. Ways to Organize the Law

A. Origin

B. Content

C. Jurisdiction

II. Origin

A. Constitutional

1. UK does not have a constitution

B. Statutory

1. Law passed by a legislature

2. Law passed by initiative or referendum

C. Administrative

1. Rules & Regulations

2. Executive Orders

D. Common

1. Judiciary

III. Content

A. Substantive vs. Procedural

1. Substantive: What the law is about

a) E.g., Murder is the unlawful taking of a human life with malice aforethought

2. Procedural: How to go about doing something

a) E.g., Sentences in cases of capital murder will be determined by a jury

B. Criminal vs. civil

1. Traditional definition of Crime: wrong against society

2. Traditional definition of Tort: wrong against an individual

a) But many crimes are acts directed primarily against individuals; e.g., robbery

b) And many torts are acts directed against large numbers of people; e.g., acts that result in class action suits (like product liability cases)

3. Practical definition of Crime: Any act to which the legislature attaches a criminal sanction (e.g., fine, prison, death).

4. Psychological definition of Crime: acts that “tear at the fabric of society” due to the fear or outrage that they engender.

5. Traditional classification of crimes

a) mala in se (bad in themselves)

b) mala in prohibita (bad because they are prohibited)

c) But societies differ in what they consider acceptable

1) E.g., who can be killed justifiably

2) E.g., who can have sexual intercourse together

C. Jurisdiction

1. International

2. Federal

a) District (trial) Courts

b) Circuit (appellate) Courts

c) US Supreme Court

d) Court of Military Justice

3. State/local

a) Trial

1) Small Claims

2) Municipal Courts

3) Superior Courts

b) Appellate Courts

c) State Supreme Court

D. “Overlapping jurisdiction”

1. Federal and State

a) E.g., Rodney King cases -- state assault trial and federal civil rights trial

b) Criminal and Civil

1) E.g., O. J. Simpson cases – criminal homicide case and civil deprivation case

2. Trials and Appeals

a) Trial courts

1) Determine facts

2) Apply law

3) Focus on specific cases

b) Appellate courts

1) Interpret law

2) Supervise applications

3) Focus on general principles

3. To appeal a decision of a trial court

a) Allege harmful error

b) Usually in the interpretation of a law

c) Appeals on facts are rarely allowed

d) Appeals must be directed to the appropriate court

1) Issues of state law are appealed to state courts

2) Issues of federal law to federal courts

3) Legal system is reactive not proactive

e) Amicus Curiae (friend of the court) briefs: common place for social science evidence to enter into legal proceedings at appellate level

IV. Flow of Case Through Criminal Justice System



A. The criminal justice system is a complex system

1. Many Decision-makers

2. Many Decisions

3. Many Different Standards

V. Conflicts

A. Between goals of the legal system

1. Search for truth

2. Resolution of disputes

B. Between philosophical approaches

1. Social Control

2. Due Process

C. Between Psychology and Law

1. Determinism vs. Free Will

a) E.g., Legal Responsibility vs. psychological cause

2. Probability vs. Discrete Decisions

a) E.g., Predictions of dangerousness

3. Empirical vs. Doctrinal

a) E.g., Stare decisis vs. hypothesis testing

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