Legal Systems and Institutions

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Examines the different legal systems and institutions that exist around the world, including common law, civil law, and Islamic law, and the ways in which they interact with social norms and cultural practices.

Jurisprudence: The study of legal theory, including the types of law, sources of law, and the purpose of law.
Comparative law: The study of different legal systems and legal cultures, including how laws differ between countries and regions.
Constitutional law: The study of the fundamental principles and rules that form the basis of a country's legal system, including the division of powers, fundamental rights and freedoms, and constitutional amendments.
Criminal law: The study of crime, including the types of crimes, criminal proceedings, and sentencing.
Civil law: The study of non-criminal disputes between individuals or organizations, including tort law, family law, contract law, and property law.
Public international law: The study of relations between sovereign states and international organizations, including the principles governing international treaties and human rights.
Private international law: The study of legal issues that arise when conflicts arise between different legal systems in different jurisdictions.
Legal research and writing: The skills needed to conduct legal research and write legal documents, including legal briefs, legal memos, and opinions.
Ethics and professional responsibility: The rules governing the conduct of lawyers and other legal professionals, including their duty to clients, the court, and society.
Critical legal studies: The examination of legal systems from a critical perspective, including the consideration of power, social justice, and legal pluralism.
Common Law System: Is where legal decisions are made by judges based on precedent, and there is no written constitution or code of laws.
Civil Law System: Relies on written law codes, which are interpreted by judges. The judges are not bound by precedent and are free to interpret the law as they see fit.
Religious Law System: Draws its legal principles from religious teachings, such as the Islamic law in Iran, the Jewish law in Israel, and the Canon Law in the Catholic Church.
Socialist Law System: Based on Marxist theories and emphasizes collective rights over individual rights, with the state owning and controlling most of the means of production.
Common Law System with a written constitution: Combines the common law system with the protection of fundamental rights enshrined in a constitution.
Mixed System: Combines features of more than one legal system. For example, South Africa combines civil law and common law.
International Law: Governs relations between states, international organizations, and individuals across different countries.
Environmental Law: Regulates the use of natural resources and aims to protect the environment from harm caused by human activity.
Human Rights Law: Protects the fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals from government or other organizations.
Intellectual Property Law: Protects the rights of creators of original works such as inventions, literary and artistic works, and trademarks.
Labor Law: Regulates the relationships between employers and employees, including collective bargaining agreements and minimum wage standards.
Health Law: Covers issues related to healthcare, including patient rights, medical malpractice, and insurance regulation.
Tax Law: Governs the taxation of individuals and businesses, including income, property, and estate taxes.
Criminal Law: Regulates behavior that is considered harmful to society and punishes offenders through fines, imprisonment or death.
Family Law: Governs family relationships, including marriage, divorce, child custody, adoption, and domestic violence.
"The contemporary national legal systems are generally based on one of four basic systems: civil law, common law, customary law, religious law or combinations of these."
"The legal system of each country is shaped by its unique history and so incorporates individual variations."
"The science that studies law at the level of legal systems is called comparative law."
"Both civil (also known as Roman) and common law systems can be considered the most widespread in the world."
"Civil law is the most widespread by landmass and by population overall."
"Common law is employed by the greatest number of people compared to any single civil law system."
"The variations among legal systems are influenced by the unique history of each country."
"The civil law is also known as Roman law."
"Common law is employed by the greatest number of people compared to any single civil law system."
"National legal systems can incorporate combinations of civil law, common law, customary law, and religious law."
"The science that studies law at the level of legal systems is called comparative law."
"Civil law system covers the largest landmass."
"Civil law system covers the largest population overall."
"The unique history of each country shapes its legal system."
"The unique history of each country determines the individual variations in legal systems."
"To study law at the level of legal systems."
"Civil law and common law systems are the most common."
"Civil law is also known as Roman law."
"Common law is employed by the greatest number of people compared to any single civil law system."
"National legal systems incorporate civil law, common law, customary law, and religious law or combinations of these."