BUSA 2106 1st Edition Lecture 5 Outline of Last Lecture I Define and classify law II Identify sources of law Outline of Current Lecture III Understand basic legal terminology IV Understand the structure of the court system Current Lecture Stare decisis precedent authority Stare decisis To stand on decided cases Precedent decided cases Authority Binding authority decisions by courts of higher rank Persuasive authority when there is no binding authority Other categories of law Key terms Civil law Criminal law International and foreign law Domestic law Civil and criminal law Civil law concerns the legal relationships rights and duties between individuals Criminal law concerns wrongs committed by individuals against society Different terminology players procedures different punishments International and foreign law International law Treaties Conventions of international organizations UN Once ratified treated as domestic statutory law Foreign law The law of other countries Relevance to the U S legal system Jurisprudence Beliefs about the fundamental nature of law Natural law Laws should be consistent with a basic set of human rights that are higher than any nation s laws Legal positivism All rights come from the law There is no higher law than a nation s own laws Jurisprudence Con t Historical school originalism Law is a product of historical development Judges should look to the past in interpreting the law today Legal realism sociological school Law is shaped by social forces and needs and should be interpreted according to today s values Structure of the law structure of the court system Who can sue In which court How does a lawsuit work How does an appeal work Civil law separate rules for criminal law Legal terminology Case name Peters v Ditmars Who is the PLAINTIFF is the one filing the law suit there name is the first on the case Who is the DEFENDANT is the one who is being sued Standing Only parties with sufficient personal interest in the outcome of a case have standing to sue Real injury harm no hypothetical lawsuits
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