Out of enormous curiosity about the legal and judicial system in the west, I find and see some courtroom drama movies and TV shows to try to get insights about how the legal and judicial system works in the west. Some of them are classic ones. I'd like to list their names.
movie
1. To Kill a Mocking Bird
an attorney fight for the accused black person's justice which was badly biased by the white majority, not only with his powerful words but also with his persevering acts
2. 12 Angry Men
12 ordinary persons of different social status, different education level, different occupation, acting as jurors, debating in a meeting room, showed how the jury system works.
3. Kramer vs. Kramer
a common civil case about the custody right of a boy. a happy ending with a bit suspense. the point is not how the father or mother has more legitimacy to live with child, but what is the best environment for the child to grow up in a single parent family.
4. Witness for The Prosecution
an murder case of much suspense in the ending. great playwriting
5. Judgment at Nuremberg
a famous international trial on Nazi German top officials. thought-provoking
6. Runaway Jury
Out of disappointment on the US judicial system to do justice for those impaired by guns, which proliferated through strong sales channel supported by gun manufacturers, a man managed to become a juror and influence other jurors to reach a verdict favorable to the striving prosecution and also striking to the defendant, and at the same time, extorting a large sum of money from the defendant, gun manufacturers. The weakness of the jury system is also unfolded.
7. JFK
Even now the truth of assassination of JFK is not yet known, so how could a film unravel what really happened at that time? The point is not reveal the truth, but enlighten the people not to be cheated by the misrepresented truth distorted by government for hidden purpose and never give up the rights to pursue the truth. The closing of the prosecutor is very powerful.
8. The Devil's Advocate
It is about the ethical conducts of lawyers? Maybe.
TV show
Out of many courtroom shows such as Law and Order, Shark, Boston Legal is my favorite one in the same class. Boston Legal perfectly blend humor, flirting and exciting court trial.
Showing posts with label law. Show all posts
Showing posts with label law. Show all posts
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
notes of legal system
From the very beginning of human civilization, people lived under the order of rules. Among them are social customs, moral codes and laws. Almost every modern state was ruled by law to some extent. Some countries have more complete and thorough judicial system than others. There are two most used legal system today, common law and civil law. Common law originated in England and thrived throughout all Britain common-wealth countries, some colonial countries of Britain and also the United States. Most of the rest countries adopted a kind of civil law system.
Common law is also called case law, because the main criteria of judgment is the cases which have been decided and can be used to determine similar cases happened later. Given the cases accumulated along the time is so enormous, it must be very difficult for the lawyers or judges to reference these cases. Therefore, there is no country completely ruled by common law. Many common rules have been generalized from these cases and written in separate codes as judging criteria. The most noticeable feature of common law is that the judges can largely participate in the process of legislation by making precedent cases. Maybe this feature partly accounts for the meaning of "common". The power comes from common people, not the elite legislation.
Civil law is probably the most used legal system in the world. One of the reasons is that continental law is enacted and enforced in a top-down manner. The legislation of a country passed laws and the judicial system ensured the obedience of law of the subjects. Obviously civil law system gives the judges less control or participation in the process of legislation, which make those countries which are not governed by an elected government tend to adopt civil law system in order to keep power in the control of the few.
The legal system plays a very crucial part in modern state governance. It even determines whether a country will prosper or perish. In short, the law system provides a rule of game in which each parties, government,individual or corporation, can make best of their capabilities to get as much benefits as possible.
Common law is also called case law, because the main criteria of judgment is the cases which have been decided and can be used to determine similar cases happened later. Given the cases accumulated along the time is so enormous, it must be very difficult for the lawyers or judges to reference these cases. Therefore, there is no country completely ruled by common law. Many common rules have been generalized from these cases and written in separate codes as judging criteria. The most noticeable feature of common law is that the judges can largely participate in the process of legislation by making precedent cases. Maybe this feature partly accounts for the meaning of "common". The power comes from common people, not the elite legislation.
Civil law is probably the most used legal system in the world. One of the reasons is that continental law is enacted and enforced in a top-down manner. The legislation of a country passed laws and the judicial system ensured the obedience of law of the subjects. Obviously civil law system gives the judges less control or participation in the process of legislation, which make those countries which are not governed by an elected government tend to adopt civil law system in order to keep power in the control of the few.
The legal system plays a very crucial part in modern state governance. It even determines whether a country will prosper or perish. In short, the law system provides a rule of game in which each parties, government,individual or corporation, can make best of their capabilities to get as much benefits as possible.
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