Murder and Involuntary Manslaughter.
A level law homework 2 Murder and Involuntary Manslaughter The offence, which Don has committed, is murder because the initial injuries in which Don caused to Tim are thought to have been the main aspect of why Tim died. The definition of murder is, 'the unlawful killing of a living human being, under the Queens peace with malice aforethought.' The definition of murder is then broken down into two separate parts. The first being the Actus reus of the offence which means the guilty act and the second part is the Mens rea which is the guilty state of mind in which the defendant caused harm to the victim. The actus Reus is therefore, the unlawful killing that in Dons case is murder, of a living human being this is fulfilled because Tim was alive at the time of the accident and under the Queens peace which means that everyone in the country is under the Queens laws so this was fulfilled. The mens rea of the offence is the malice aforethought which means an intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm (GBH). The case supporting this was R v Moloney. When applying the law to the facts, there has to be causation. There are two types of causation, Causation in fact, and causation in law. Causation in fact is proven through using the 'BUT FOR TEST' the authority for causation in fact is R v White. This is where you say but for the defendant's actions would the victim have
Statutory Interpretation
Statutory Interpretation The process by whereby judges attribute meanings to words in a statute in order to apply the relevant statute to a case to reach a decision. There are two approaches: Literal and Purposive. The literal approach is where the words are given their plain, ordinary and grammatical meanings. The purposive approach is when the judge looks at the intentions of parliament. Aids available: There are two types of aids available for statutory interpretation, they are Internal aids, which are included within the act, or External aids that are not included within the act. INTERNAL AIDS These are most likely to be used when the literal or golden rules are being applied, but might also be useful in finding the purpose of the act. These parts of the act can be used so long as they do not conflict with the clear enacting words of a statute: * Preamble (often found in old statutes, setting out what acts must do; private acts must have them) * Long Title (sets out the aim of the Act) * Short Title * Definitions section (helps with the literal approach, as words are given their meaning) Punctuation is disregarded, as it was not originally used. EXTERNAL AIDS These are mostly used by judges trying to find the purpose of the act. The following have been traditionally used: * Historical setting * Other statutes * Textbooks * Previous practice in
Statutory interpretation
Statutory Interpretation Assignment III (a) Extrinsic aids are tools which a judge can use to help aid themselves when interpreting a decision, they are situated outside of the relevant statute a judge would be referring to when making a decision. Extrinsic aids that a judge may use include dictionaries (from the year the act was passed), other acts, other cases (precedents) and Hansard, to name a few. Sometimes it can be very difficult for a judge to identify the exact meaning of an act, for example when a broad term is used or when changes in the use of language have occurred. This is when extrinsic aids can prove most useful, as they can help a judge to clarify the exact meaning of an act. One example of a judge using an extrinsic aid is found in the case (Cheeseman v DPP, 1990). In this case a judge used a dictionary to identify the meaning of the word "passenger", a word which had changed in meaning since the Town Police Clauses Act, 1847 had been passed. The judge needed to identify what the word "passenger" meant at the time the act was passed, as the defendant should only be convicted if the 1847 meaning of "passenger" applied to him. To do this the judge used the Oxford English dictionary from 1847, the year the act was passed. This allowed the judge to identify what the word "passenger" meant when the act was passed and then interpret whether the defendant was a
Parliamentary Sovereignty
Parliamentary Sovereignty Parliament has sovereignty in the UK, which is a principle of the UK constitution that makes Parliament the supreme legal authority in the UK. Through this constitution Parliament has the right to create, amend and remove any law, including common law made by judges, however they cannot create any laws that a future Parliament cannot change. Any Acts made by Parliament is supreme over all other laws for example in court if a case comes before a judge that is relevant to an out of date piece of primary legislation the legislation will prevail unless Parliament expressly or impliedly repeal it. Parliament sovereignty is a subject to the Doctrine of Implied Repeal, which states that if an Act made by the current Parliament conflicts with an old act of Parliament the new act take precedent over the conflicting parts of the old one. The Doctrine is the reason why Parliament cannot create a law that will conflict with one that may restrict future law making, therefore allowing more freedom with law making and ensuring that no Parliament will be superior to another one. As Parliament is supreme no judge can challenge or amend Parliament law. There is one major limitation on Parliamentary supremacy, which is the European Court of Justice. On January 1st 1973 the UK joined the European Community as effected by the European Communities Act 1972. By doing
Assess the likelihood of Sid and Kenny avoiding personal liability for the debts of the company
Student I.D. 11207984 Question 3 Assess the likelihood of Sid and Kenny avoiding personal liability for the debts of the company. [20 Marks] Answer This question deals with directors avoiding personal liability for debts of a company, especially within the category of fraud, which is applicable to this scenario. This question also deals with lifting the corporate veil as if the directors are found to be liable the veil will need to be lifted, so as to expose the members whom are found to be liable. When a company is incorporated it is treated as a separate legal entity distinct from its promoters, directors, members, and employees and hence the concept of the corporate veil, separating those parties from the corporate body has arisen. The company as a separate entity was firmly established in the landmark decision in Salomon v. Salomon &Co Ltd1. In this case Salomon, a sole trader, sold his manufacturing business to Salomon & Co Ltd. (a company which he incorporated) in consideration for all but six shares in the company, and received debentures worth £10,000. The other subscribers to the memorandum were his wife and five children who each took up one share. The business subsequently collapsed, and Salomon made a claim, on the basis of the debentures held as a secured creditor. The liquidator argued that Salomon could not rank ahead of other creditors due to Mr. Salomon
AS LAW - Judicial Precedent
Judicial Precedent Judicial Precedent Read Elliot and Quinn page 5 to 23. ) Doctrine of Stare Decisis The English system of precedent is based on the Latin maxim: "Stare Decisis et Non Queita Movere", stand by what has been decided and do not unsettle the established. The idea is that by following precedents, which are the previous decisions of judges, fairness and certainty will be provided. Precedents can only operate if the legal reasons for past decisions are known. Therefore, at the end of a case (civil) there will be a judgement in which the judge will give not only the decision but also the legal reasoning which lies behind it. 2) Ratio Decidendi This is the legal reason or principal which lays behind the decision and it is this ratio which will provide the precedent for judges to follow in future cases. The remainder of the judgement is known as the: 3) Obiter Dicta "Other things said by the way." These comments do not form part of the ration (reasoning) and are therefore not part of the precedent. For instance, sometimes a judge will speculate on what his decision would have been if the material facts had been different. Sometimes, part of the Obiter Dicta may be put forward in future cases and although it will not form a binding precedent it may help to 'persuade' a later judge towards a particular view in the law. N.B. It is sometimes difficult to
Royal Prerogative
Royal Prerogative The classic definition of the Royal Prerogative has been provided by A.V. Dicey: "The prerogative is the name for the remaining portion of the crown's original authority, and is therefore...the name of for the residue of discretionary power left at any moment in the hands of the crown, whether such power be exercised by the king himself or his ministers." The RP comprises special powers, rights and immunities rested in the Crown at common law. Identifying each of these powers and scope is problematic since there is no authoritative source. This uncertainty is a concern because, as a matter of constitutional principle, those exercising power should be able to identify authority justifying its exercise. Thus, these should be a set of Parliamentary and Judicial controls over the RP. The Queen retains a few constitutional powers; these are normally conventional in practice. They include; the appointment of the PM and ministers, the dissolution/prorogue of parliament, and granting royal assent to Acts of Parliament. The Queen as the embodiment of the Crown also possess legal powers e.g. The Crown is not bound by express words in a statute, and also, no court order can be enforced by the Crown. The RP is a real source of legislative power with an obvious potential for abuse. There is no exhaustive list, however, having completed its inquiry into the RP, the PAC
police powers
Law and the legal system How police activities are controlled by the law and the effects of civilian and military law on the armed forces Task 1 The police are controlled by the law just like any other member of public. They will be prosecuted for selling drugs. They will be fined for dropping litter. They will not be let off lightly for any type of crime. Aside from civilian law though there are also laws inside the police force. The police are controlled by PACE (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984). This 'law' is split up in 6 different codes; * Code A - Stop and search * Code B - Searching premises and seizing property * Code C - Detention, treatment and questioning * Code D - Identification * Code E - Audio recording of suspects * Code F - Visual recording of suspects Examples of police abusing their powers: * Enter premises, ie...Trespass * Force confessions * Take and change evidence * Take away people's rights. An example of the police abusing their powers would be the Birmingham six, these were six men who were sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975 in an infamous miscarriage of justice for two pub bombings in Birmingham that killed 24 people. Their convictions were overturned by the Court of appeal on March 15, 1991 largely on the basis that traces of nitro-glycerine found on their bodies could have come from innocuous sources such as soap. The
Why did a campaign for women's suffrage develop in the years after 1870?
History Coursework Question 1. Why did a campaign for women's suffrage develop in the years after 1870? There were many reasons why campaign for Women's Suffrage developed in the years after 1870. Following the set up of the Society for the Promotion of Women's Suffrage in 1867 women started to believe that they could succeed and gain equal rights. During the nineteenth century, men from the working classes had successfully campaigned for the right to vote, and women were now beginning to seek the same rights. Women made up half the population, and although many worked and paid taxes, and some owned property, just as the men did, they did not have equal rights. Women were discriminated against and had little power in all sorts of ways, from marriage to industry. In the nineteenth century women were expected to marry and have children, and once married they had to stay dependant on a man and if a women work after marriage, her earnings would belong to her husband. Also, women had little choice and respect in careers and professions. It was virtually impossible for women to become doctors, engineers, architects, accountants or bankers. One profession open to women was teaching, a low status and low paid job in the 19th century. Another problem area for women was schooling. There were many educational restrictions for girls as there were few schools that provided good
tort law
Introduction. For this piece of work I will be examining the principles of duty of care using relevant case law examples. I will be discussing the consequences where there is a breach of that duty. I will also give a brief explanation of statutory liability and highlight some if the controls on exclusion clauses at common law and by legislation. Duty of Care. Duty of care is a legal obligation that is imposed on any individual but only when they adhere to a reasonable standard of care while performing any acts that could harm others. A duty of care must clearly be recognised in order to proceed with an action in negligence. The claimant must be able to articulate a duty of care imposed by law which the defendant has breached. Breaching a duty may subject an individual to liability in tort. Duty of care can be known as the responsibilities of an individual held towards another individual in society. Duty of care cannot really be defined by law; however it will often develop through the jurisprudence of common law. An example would be doctors. Doctors will be held reasonable standards for members of their profession, rather than those of the general public in cases related to them. In cases of landowners in common law, is the extent of their duty of care to those who came on their premises. However this varied depending on whether a person was classified as a trespasser,
