Similarities And Differences Of Common Law Legal Systems Of The United States And Great Britain

The United States Constitution was ratified and made law September 17, 1789. For Americas yet-to-be history the Framers knew the Constitution had to have a way to grow and change with the people, and their needs. This paper will cover the amendment process, the need for the Bill of Rights, how the Bill of Rights has affected America, what the Bill of Rights have granted American’s, discuss the later amendments, and what effect the later amendments have had.

The United States is a country that was founded on the principle of freedom; it took the Bill of Rights to be added to the Constitution to guarantee citizens freedom. The Bill of Rights consists of the first ten amendments in the constitution; a document that outlines how the new American government would be created and operated. The Constitution was ratified in 1788 which was the start of protecting the interests of each citizen, two years later the Bill of Rights was proposed by congress and went into effect in 1791. It was designed to prevent the government from taking total power over citizens and to provide them with legal defenses. This essay will discuss the understanding of how

Under the Civil Law system, the laws are written and codified that the judges have to follow verbatium. Whereas, under the common law system that is followed by Australia, India and the United Kingdom, the laws are codified, doctrine of precedents is followed but the higher courts have the power to over-rule old judgements and existing law in cases where the law breaches the basic structure. (Peterson)

The U.S. Constitution, drafted by the founding fathers at the constitutional convention, drew from several historical documents, ideas, and figures in order to “form a more perfect union.” Among these influences were the Magna Carta and English Bill of Rights, originating in England. However, the U.S. sought to differentiate from England, in order to be better than what they had recently gained independence from. In order to do so, the founding fathers referenced The Mayflower Compact, The Articles of Confederation, Social Contract Theory, Classical history, and Montesquieu. Through the inclusion of these ideas, the United States Constitution made improvements to Great Britain’s government system.

Common law developed in the judicial system of England and its colonies before 1776. Statutory law refers to the body of law that is enacted by state and federal legislatures. Common law is not in any particular form; it consists of quotable statements taken from relevant opinions by prior judges, as well as ancient statutes, and is often summarized in legal treatises. Statutory law is found in the current published laws of each jurisdiction and is relatively concise. Although most states have adopted common law by legislative decree, state legislatures do not feel obligated to pass statutes consistent with common law, and inconsistent statutes supersede common law. Only in areas in which the legislature has not acted does common law serve as the primary authority. For example, the adoption of the Uniform Commercial Code in each state changed some rules of common law previously in effect.

It is no surprise that the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen and the American Bill of rights share many similarities. The Bill of Rights restated many ideas from the Virginia Declaration of Rights, crafted by George Mason. The Declaration of the Rights of Man was also influenced by Mason’s ideas during the framing of the document. Both pieces were heavily influenced by John Locke’s philosophies of every man’s right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The similarities between the documents show their close connection in idea and

Chapter one of the textbook, Constitutional Law and the Criminal Justice System by J. Scott Harr, Karen M. Hess, Christine Orthmann, and Jonathon Kingsbury discuses a historical overview of the United States, or better known as the U.S. Constitution. To elaborate, the textbook educates the reader on why the U.S. Constitution was created, as well as what its main purpose is. Most people know that the U.S. Constitution was not necessarily an original thought by the United States. In fact, it was greatly influenced by the English document known as the Magna Carat (Harr, Hess, Orthmann, & Kingsbury, 2015, p. 13). In addition, the U.S. Constitution was fashioned, mainly, as a binding document to prevent any one person from having complete power in the United

The Bill of Rights as it stands for the United States entered as a stems from a vow as promises so to speak was made by the Fathers of Confederation to the states during the effort for ratification of the Constitution in 1787-1788. Numerous states had created some conditions for their ratification; the appendage of amendments, which would assure citizen’s a safeguard like a safety net for their human rights in contrast to the central government and therefore the people had a rather remarkable circumstances in which the entrenchment of a bill of rights in the American Constitution was prepared by means of the fundamental command of the states, they themselves being alarmed about the central government which was not officially enforced

Compare to patterns of criminal activity and violence in England during this period. Explain their effect on the development of constitutional law and political freedom in England. Finally, explain how English Common Law influenced the American criminal justice system. Provide an example.

Ratified in 1788 and 1791 respectively, the Constitution of the United States and the Accompanying Bill of Rights have set the stage for the political culture and society which has, and continues to exist in the United States of America. The system of laws, regulations, liberties, and rights created by these documents has set the stage for many of the dynamic qualities inherent in the American culture. Because of the dynamic and intentionally vague nature of the documents, championed by the Non-Originalist view interpretation of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights the American legal system possesses the ability to adapt and evolve along with the continuously evolving American society and culture.

The Constitution of the United States of America is always touted and considered by many across the globe as one of the most liberal and people-friendly Constitutions in the world over. This assertion flows from the lofty language with which the document was written by its drafters and further inherent in the subsequent amendments. It represents the supreme law of the U.S, having been promulgated back in 1778. On the other hand, The Declaration of Independence is the document that reflects the desire that the people of America had to gain self-rule, after being under the British Colony. The document came into being in 1776 (Tsesis 96). There have been divergent views among legal scholars on whether the U.S Constitution reflects, implements or practices the language of the Declaration of Independence. A closer look at both documents reveals that both advocate majorly for the upholding of the indefeasible, inalienable and indubitable rights of the people. In this paper, I will seek to shew that the Constitution puts into practice the language of the Declaration of Independence, why and how.

The development of the criminal justice system in America was greatly influenced by English common law. However, there were some notable differences. In developing what would become the Constitution, the Founding Fathers were also influenced by the fractious relationship the colonies had had with the British sovereign and by Enlightenment philosophy of inalienable human rights. After America became a sovereign nation, it created a written constitution which specifically delineated the rights of all citizens in what came to be known as the Bill of Rights. The process of judicial review of American law was established with the U.S. Supreme Court case of Marbury v. Madison (History and organization of the federal judicial system, 2008, American.gov).

Common law is law originating from use and custom rather than from written statutes. The term refers to non-statutory customs, traditions, and precedents that help guide judicial decision making (Schmalleger). The judge

Common law - that part of the English law not embodied in legislation. It consists of rules of law based on common custom and usage and on judicial court decisions. English common law became the basis of law in the USA and many other English-speaking countries.

Nowadays every legal system wants to achieve justice. Different legal traditions in the world have given a different meaning of this concept by following one of the two legal systems: a civil law system and a common law system. The civil law system emerged from Roman law and throughout many centuries has been developed in continental Europe and often is called a “continental legal system”, achieving its prominence through development of aqui communitare in Europe. The common law system emerged in England during the Anglo-Saxon period and was developed by British colonies, reaching its peak in the United Kingdom and the United States of America.