Law week 1 Introduction to law:
What is Law:
- The rules and regulations which govern (regelen) the activities of persons within a country.
- Law tells you what you are allowed to do, what your not allowed to do and what you are
required to do.
- Provides necessary rules that balance the various interests of different members of the
community.
- Each country has different laws.
The main sources of law:
- Code (wetboek)
- Act of parliament (statute): It creates new laws or changes laws or brings back old laws. An
act must past various stage in the parliament before it becomes a law. Bill: when an act is
processing through parliament.
- Delegated legislation: Laws that are not made by the parliament but another body that has
the knowledge and/ or time to make them. This body can only make a law if the parliament
give them the power to.
Case law: The law that is based on and produced through a series of decisions made by judges in the
higher courts. They are based on the development and application of existing laws on cases that are
coming before the court. (voor de rechter komen)
Custom law: (gewoonte recht) law that is based on customs (gewoontes). It cannot be in contrary to
an act of parliament.
Different sorts of legal systems:
o Common law or Civil law
o Public law or Private law
o National law of International law
Common law/ English law: Law based on and developed through the rules and decisions made by
judges. Judges make choices based on earlier cases. Characteristics of common law/ English law:
Continuity of old law: Developed and changed versions of the old law in the 11 th century.
Absence of a legal code (wetboek): The laws are not based on codes.
Law-making role of judges: The judges make and change the laws.
Doctrine of binding precedent: The judge applies earlier based cases with similar facts to
their decision.
Adversarial system of trial: Passive role of the judge and an active role of the lawyer. the
judge stays neutral, while the lawyer presents evidence, on which the judge decides the case.
Advantages Flexible and up to date.
Disadvantaged The power lays with non-elected judges and it is difficult to find the laws.
What is Law:
- The rules and regulations which govern (regelen) the activities of persons within a country.
- Law tells you what you are allowed to do, what your not allowed to do and what you are
required to do.
- Provides necessary rules that balance the various interests of different members of the
community.
- Each country has different laws.
The main sources of law:
- Code (wetboek)
- Act of parliament (statute): It creates new laws or changes laws or brings back old laws. An
act must past various stage in the parliament before it becomes a law. Bill: when an act is
processing through parliament.
- Delegated legislation: Laws that are not made by the parliament but another body that has
the knowledge and/ or time to make them. This body can only make a law if the parliament
give them the power to.
Case law: The law that is based on and produced through a series of decisions made by judges in the
higher courts. They are based on the development and application of existing laws on cases that are
coming before the court. (voor de rechter komen)
Custom law: (gewoonte recht) law that is based on customs (gewoontes). It cannot be in contrary to
an act of parliament.
Different sorts of legal systems:
o Common law or Civil law
o Public law or Private law
o National law of International law
Common law/ English law: Law based on and developed through the rules and decisions made by
judges. Judges make choices based on earlier cases. Characteristics of common law/ English law:
Continuity of old law: Developed and changed versions of the old law in the 11 th century.
Absence of a legal code (wetboek): The laws are not based on codes.
Law-making role of judges: The judges make and change the laws.
Doctrine of binding precedent: The judge applies earlier based cases with similar facts to
their decision.
Adversarial system of trial: Passive role of the judge and an active role of the lawyer. the
judge stays neutral, while the lawyer presents evidence, on which the judge decides the case.
Advantages Flexible and up to date.
Disadvantaged The power lays with non-elected judges and it is difficult to find the laws.
