United States

The US Congress, the lawmaking arm of the federal government, consists of two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Any congressman in either house, or the president, may initiate new legislation.

The proposed legislation, or bill, is first introduced in the House of Representatives, then referred to one of the standing committees, which organizes hearings on it and may approve, amend or shelve the draft. If the committee passes the bill, it is considered by the House of Representatives as a whole. If passed there, it goes to the Senate for a similar sequence of committee hearings and general debate.

In cases of disagreement, the House of Representatives and the Senate confer together. Once passed by the Senate as a whole, the bill has to be examined by two more standing committees - the Committee on House Administration and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration - and is then signed by the speaker of the House and by the president of the Senate.

Finally, it must be signed by the president, who has the right to veto it. If the president vetoes a bill, it can still become a law - but only if it is passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress.

TASK 2. Answer the questions.

1. In which House does new legislation usually start?

a) in Great Britain

b) in the USA

2. What is a bill ? How does a bill become a law ?

a) in Great Britain

b) in the USA

3. Who has the right of veto ?

a) in Great Britain

b) in the USA

TASK 3 Work in groups. Find as many differences (similarities) in the lawmaking in GB and the USA as possible.

Unit III V THE COURT SYSTEM OF ENGLAND AND WALES

TASK 1 Read the text and examine the chart.

The most common type of law court in England and Wales is the magistrates' court. There are 700 magistrates' courts and about 30,000 magistrates.

More serious criminal cases then go to the Crown Court, which has 90 branches in different towns and cities. Civil cases (for example, divorce or bankruptcy cases) are dealt with in County courts.'

Appeals are heard by higher courts. For example, appeals from magistrates' courts are heard in the Crown Court, unless they are appeals on points of law. The highest court of appeal in England and Wales is the House of Lords; (Scotland has its own High Court in Edinburgh, which hears all appeals from Scottish courts.) Certain cases may be referred to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. In addition, individuals have made the British Government change its practices in a number of areas as a result of petitions to the European Court of Human Rights.

The legal system also includes juvenile courts (which deal with offenders under seventeen) and coroners' courts (which investigate violent, sudden or unnatural deaths)! There are administrative tribunals which make quick, cheap and fair decisions with much less formality. Tribunals deal with professional standards, disputes between individuals, and disputes between individuals and government departments (for example, over taxation).