Английский язык в правоведении

Е.Б. Попов 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
АНГЛИЙСКИЙ ЯЗЫК 

В ПРАВОВЕДЕНИИ 
 
 
 
Учебное пособие 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Москва 

ИНФРА-М 

2021

УДК 811.111+340 
ББК 81.2Англ:67 
П58 
 

Рекомендовано редакционно-издательским советом 

Оренбургского института (филиала) 

Московского государственного юридического университета 

имени О.Е. Кутафина (МГЮА) 

 
 
Попов Е.Б. 
П58  
Английский язык в правоведении : учебное пособие / 
Е.Б. Попов. — Москва : ИНФРА-М, 2021. — 202 с. 
 
ISBN 978-5-16-109881-3 (online) 
 
Учебное пособие предназначается для магистрантов и аспирантов 
юридических 
вузов, 
изучающих 
английский 
язык. 
Состоит 
из 
девяти 
тематических 
блоков-модулей, 
отражающих 
различные 
направления 
специализации учащихся: «Разновидности права», «Государственное устройство 
и государственное управление», «Уголовное право», «Экологическое право», 
«Гражданский 
процесс», 
«Право 
предпринимательской 
деятельности», 
«Корпоративное право», «Трудовое право» и «Финансовое право». Каждый 
тематический блок состоит из четырех базовых текстов, составленных на основе 
аутентичного языкового материала о правовой действительности страны 
изучаемого языка.  

 

УДК 811.111+340 
ББК 81.2Англ:67 

 
 
 
ISBN 978-5-16-109881-3 (online) 
© Попов Е.Б., 2021 

ФЗ № 
436-ФЗ 

Издание не подлежит маркировке 
в соответствии с п. 1 ч. 2 ст. 1 

CONTENTS

Introduction ...…………………………................................................
Unit 1. Categories of Law ………………………………………….…

1.1. Introduction to Law ..............................................................
1.2. Public International Law ......................................................
1.3. Private International Law .....................................................
1.4. European Union Law ….......................................................

Unit 2. State Structure and Public Administration ......................

2.1. Constitutional, Administrative and Municipal Law: Explana
tion of Terms ......................................................................

2.2. Purpose of a Constitution ....................................................
2.3. Functions and Powers of Administrative Agencies ………..
2.4. Local Government ………………………………....................

Unit 3. Criminal Law ……………………………………………………

3.1. Criminal Liability ..................................................................
3.2. Legal Protection of People Accused of Crimes ...................
3.3. Criminal Justice Process .....................................................
3.4. Criminal Sentencing …………………………………………..

Unit 4. Environmental Law ............................................................

4.1. Environment Protection: Explanation of Terms …………….
4.2. Principles of International Environmental Law ……………..
4.3. Domestic Environmental Law ..............................................
4.4. Remedies in Environmental Proceedings …………………..

Unit 5. Civil Litigation ……………………………………………….…

5.1. Types of Civil Litigation and Parties to the Litigation ………
5.2. Selecting the Proper Court and Commencement of Pro
ceedings ..............................................................................

5.3. Pretrial Stages of Proceedings ………………………………
5.4. Civil Trial and Alternative Forms of Dispute Resolution …..

Unit 6. Business Law ......................................................................

6.1. Forms of Business: Sole Proprietorship, Partnership and 

Corporation .........................................................................

6.2. Relationships Among Businesses …………………………...
6.3. Financing a Business ..........................................................
6.4. Business Litigation Overview ………………………………...

Unit 7. Corporate Law …………………………………………………

7.1. Corporation, Corporate Financing and Key Players in 

a Corporation ......................................................................

7.2. Corporate Formation, Changes in Corporate Structure and 

Termination .........................................................................

7.3. Ownership of a Corporation and Management of a Corpo
ration ...................................................................................

4
6
6
11
16
19
26

26
30
38
43
50
50
56
61
67
74
74
78
83
89
93
93

97
103
107
114

114
121
126
132
138

138

143

148

7.4. Antitrust Law and Other Means of Government Regulation 

of Corporate Operations ………………………………………

Unit 8. Labor Law ............................................................................

8.1. Three Interrelated Parts of Labor Law ………………………
8.2. Employer-Employee Relationship …………………………...
8.3. Employee Privacy Laws ......................................................
8.4. Trade Unions and Industrial Relations ………………………

UNIT 9. Financial Law ………….......................................................

9.1. Money, Financial Instruments and Financial Institutions ….
9.2. Preconditions for Efficient Financial Systems ………………
9.3. Overview of Tax Law …………………..……………………..
9.4. Insurance in Brief Terms ……………………………………..

154
161
161
165
170
175
183
183
187
190
194

Introduction
Предисловие

Учебное пособие предназначается для магистрантов и аспирантов 

юридических вузов. Содержание пособия ориентировано на создание благоприятных условий для изучения профессионального английского языка в 
рамках дисциплины «Иностранный язык в правоведении». Структура учебного пособия и предлагаемая система заданий направлены на оптимальное 
сочетание аудиторной работы и внеаудиторной подготовки учащихся. В 
пособии представлены материалы из аутентичных англоязычных источников, которые разработаны для формирования у учащихся профессиональных умений как рецептивной, так и продуктивной речевой деятельности на 
иностранном языке (чтение, аудирование, говорение, письмо).

Пособие состоит из девяти тематических блоков-модулей, отражаю
щих различные направления специализации учащихся: «Разновидности 
права», «Государственное устройство и государственное управление», 
«Уголовное право», «Экологическое право», «Гражданский процесс», 
«Право предпринимательской деятельности», «Корпоративное право», 
«Трудовое право» и «Финансовое право». Каждый тематический блок 
имеет типовую структуру, включает в себя 4 базовых текста, разработанных на основе аутентичного языкового материала о правовой действительности страны изучаемого языка, и предполагает выполнение следующих
видов заданий:

PRACTICE – четыре взаимосвязанных друг с другом задания на усво
ение и закрепление материала, содержащегося в каждом из текстов:

– во-первых, нужно прочитать и перевести базовый текст;

– во-вторых, нужно составить список из 7-9 английских слов или фраз, 

которые являются ключевыми для прочитанного текста (к ключевым относятся опорные фрагменты текста в форме отдельного существительного 
или в форме фразы, в которой главным словом является существительное);

– в-третьих, нужно подготовить на английском языке 5-7 утверждений, 

которые в реферативной форме отражают основное содержание прочитанного текста, и быть готовым озвучить эти утверждения в ходе аудиторного 
занятия;

– в-четвертых, к прочитанному тексту нужно составить на английском 

языке 5 ‘специальных вопросов’ (Special Questions или W-Questions) и быть 
готовым в ходе занятия не только задать другим учащимся свои вопросы 
по содержанию этого текста, но и оценить их ответы на поставленные вопросы. 

LEXIS – послетекстовый блок призван помочь учащимся адекватно 

интерпретировать текст; этот блок содержит перевод всех тех слов, которые в тексте выделены курсивом; слова даны именно в том порядке, как 
они встречаются в самом тексте. LEXIS содержит то значение переводимых 
слов, которое наиболее соответствует контексту их употребления в каждом 
конкретном случае.

SUPPORTING DATA – учащимся предлагается ознакомиться с мате
риалом, схематично изложенным либо в таблице, либо в бланковом документе, либо на рисунке, а затем своими словами пересказать эту информацию.

WEB ACTIVITY – студентам предлагается, воспользовавшись указан
ными ссылками, самостоятельно ознакомиться с общедоступными англоязычными видеоматериалами, которые дополняют информацию, изложенную в тематических текстах.

MAKE A REPORT – задание предполагает подготовленное учащимся

устное выступление с обобщающим докладом по пройденной теме; в монологическом высказывании необходимо отразить основное содержание всех 
четырёх базовых текстов блока-модуля, учитывая рекомендуемые пункты 
плана и используя типовые фразы из Приложения (см. стр. 201).

Unit 1. Categories of Law

Разновидности права

1.1. PRACTICE:
1) SCAN the text;
2) MAKE UP a list of seven-nine key words from the text below;
3) SUMMARIZE the given text briefly in five-seven sentences;
4) PREPARE a list of five questions to ask about the text; and be 

ready to interview the students in your group. 

Introduction to Law

1. Law is a body of official rules and regulations, generally found in consti
tutions, treaties, acts of parliament, ordinances, executive orders, enforced customs, court decisions, that are used to govern a society and to control the behaviour of its members. 

2. Being a complex body of rules, law serves a variety of functions. For 

instance, it can serve to keep the peace, promote social justice, maintain the status 
quo, preserve individual rights, protect minority groups, and provide for orderly 
social change.

3. To be capable of performing the function of guiding behavior, a system 

of rules must satisfy the following principles: 

– rules must be expressed in general and understandable terms; 
– rules must be prospective in effect; 
– rules must be publicly promulgated; 
– rules must be consistent with one another; 
– rules must not be changed too frequently so that the subject can rely on 

them; and 

– rules must be administered in a manner consistent with their wording. 
4. Secular and religious law. Depending on the main sources of law in a 

particular jurisdiction and the predominant methods of interpreting and enforcing 
the laws we may speak about different national legal systems. First of all, the 
national legal systems are generally modeled upon elements of either religious or 
secular systems of law which hold quite different views as to sources of law, 
scope, sanctions, and function. 

5. The source of religious law is the deity, legislating through the prophets. 

For example, Iran, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have legal systems based on Islamic 
law, or sharia. Secular law is made by human beings, and one of its most famous 
examples – the US Constitution – begins with the words “We, the people…”. It 

follows from this difference in their source that religious laws are perceived to 
be eternal and immutable, while secular rules can be changed by their makers. 

6. Religious law tells people what to believe as well as how to behave, 

whereas secular law deals with our external actions as they affect others. In a 
religious legal system disputes are usually adjudicated by an officer of that religion, so the same person is both judge and priest. In a secular system, by contrast, 
the office of judge is separate, and is guaranteed by the principle of judicial independence. 

7. A further difference lies in the enforcement of the laws: in a secular system 

sanctions are imposed in this world. The sanctions and rewards of a religious 
system may also occur in this world, but are often to be felt most keenly in the 
next or ‘spirit world’.

8. The secular legal systems may be further subdivided into four main types: 

civil law (including Western European and Latin American legal systems); common law or Anglo-Saxon system (e.g. legal system of England and Wales, Canada or United States); customary law (e.g. aboriginal law in Mongolia, Afghanistan, and most African countries); and mixed or pluralistic law (e.g. Albania, 
Cyprus, Hong Kong, South Korea). 

9. Differences between civil law and common law countries. The civil 

law system (also called civil code system, continental law or Romano-Germanic 
law) is the legal system where laws are legislated and codified by parliament or 
some other form of representative government. The fundamental principle of 
civil law systems is that the laws applied to citizens are made by citizens through 
their political representatives. Judges are there to administer laws, not make 
them. Civil law systems are mainly inquisitorial rather than adversarial. That 
means courts are there to track down the truth, not to be a forum where two sides 
battle to demonstrate to an impartial judge or jury who is right and who is wrong. 

10. One aspect that is central to a civil law system is that the laws are codi
fied, which means that laws of a similar nature are grouped together to create a 
logical system across an entire area: labor law, administrative law, criminal law, 
etc. Areas with civil code systems of law try to ensure that all laws have consistent principles and interact with each other in a logical way. 

11. While civil law systems are essentially based on written law, in common 

law system, on the other hand, laws are sometimes said to be ‘unwritten’. Traditionally, common law evolved through usage rather than being imposed by codified legislation as with the civil law countries. 

12. Under common law system, derived from the English common law, leg
islation has historically played only a small part in resolving legal disputes between private parties – individuals, corporations, or other organized groups not 
connected with the government. Large areas of the law are unaffected by legislation. In these areas, the courts apply principles from case law that they themselves 

have developed in their long history of delivering written decisions, and in novel
situations of developing new principles.

13. In a common law system, significant part of legal environment is created 

by precedents set after judges decide actual cases. When a judge hears a case that 
has a new issue in it, the judge makes a decision regarding the issue in the case. 
That decision, if supported by a higher court, then becomes a precedent that must 
be followed by other courts if they try similar cases. The precedent remains the 
law unless and until a higher court overturns the decision. The practice of following decisions made by other courts for similar issues is known as stare decisis.

14. It is tempting to consider this process to be not very different from the 

case law methodology of the civil law. There is an important difference, however. 
The common lawyer derives the appropriate rule by reliance on precedent and its 
interpretation and, only lacking precedent, resorts to general principles or to policy considerations. The civilian judge is not so restricted but derives the appropriate rule from the structure of the legal system and from the general principles 
of law; nor will the decision in the present case have a necessary effect on later 
cases. 

15. Sources of law in both these legal systems can roughly be described by 

the following hierarchy: 

– The constitution – the basic law from which all other laws draw their 

power. This law might be created by a sovereign, such as a monarch, or by a 
government. A constitution is a “higher” law by which all other laws are governed; all other laws must comply with the constitution in order to be valid and 
enforceable.

– General principles of law – basic principles of the legal system that per
vade it and derive from norms of positive law. Lawyers resort to ‘general principles of law’ as guidelines in the interpretation of statutory norms both for the 
purpose of defining their interrelation and for their application.

– Legislation – also known as statute law, statutes, or acts – is passed by 

legislature under the authority of and in compliance with the constitution.

– Subordinate or delegated legislation – rules passed under authorization of 

a statute by a body designated in the statute, such as the national government, by 
a minister of the central government or by a regional government. 

– Administrative rulings – rulings handed down by administrative regulatory 

bodies created by the legislation to hear complaints and applications by individuals and groups, according to the terms of the legislation. 

– Court decisions or case law (only in common law countries) – judgments 

handed down by judges after hearing a case before the court. Sometimes a decision impacts only the parties involved, but other times the decision includes explanations and opinions that shape the law and have relevance beyond the specific parties. 

16. Law may also be classified on other grounds, for instance, into national 

and international law, public and private law, substantive and procedural law. 

17. Substantive and procedural law. Substantive law defines the rights and 

duties of persons; it determines a wide variety of matters – for example, what is 
required to form a contract, what the difference is between larceny and robbery, 
when one is entitled to compensation for an injury, and so on. Procedural law (or 
adjective law) defines and deals with procedures for enforcing the rights and duties of persons. The rules of procedure and jurisdiction determine the court or 
administrative agency that may handle a claim or dispute; the form of the trial
or appeal; the time limits involved; the kinds of evidence that may be presented 
and the scope of available remedies. 

18. Public and private law. Public law is that area of law that deals with 

the state and the relations of the state with the public. It includes such branches 
as constitutional, administrative and criminal law. Private law involves the various relationships that people have with one another and the rules that determine 
their legal rights and duties among themselves. Private law is sometimes referred 
to as “civil law” in its general meaning.

19. International and national law. National or domestic law is a set of 

written and unwritten rules by which a particular country is governed and the 
activities of people and organizations are controlled within a given state. International law deals with general principles, norms, and standards that apply between 
sovereign states and other entities legally recognized as international actors. International law is the law of the whole international community.

major data sources: Smyth J.E. Law and Business Administration in Canada. Pearson, 2016; https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/civil-law-system; https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/legal_systems;
http://www.saylor.org/books; http://study.com/

LEXIS from the text:

treaties – международные договоры
act of parliament – закон, принятый парламентом
ordinance – указ, распоряжение, декрет, приказ, предписание, постановле
ние

executive order – правительственное постановление
enforced custom – обычай, обеспеченный правовой санкцией 
court decision – постановление суда, решение суда
behaviour – образ действий, поведение
social justice – социальная справедливость
be capable of performing the function – быть в состоянии выполнять функции
prospective – относящийся к будущему
publicly promulgated – опубликованный, всенародно объявленный

consistent – согласующийся
administer – применять (нормы права), исполнять
wording – формулировка, словесное выражение
source of law – источник права
jurisdiction – подведомственная область, территория в подведомственности 

органа власти

predominant – преобладающий, преимущественный, доминирующий
model – сформировать, создавать (по образцу)
religious – религиозный, духовный
secular – светский
scope – область применения
deity [‘di:ətı] – божественная природа
prophet – пророк, проповедник
sharia [ʃə’ri:ə] – шариат
eternal – бесконечный, вне времени
immutable – неизменный, безоговорочный
external action – внешнее действие
adjudicate – вынести судебное решение или приговор
judge – судья 
priest – священник
judicial independence – судебная независимость
enforcement – обеспечение выполнения
impose – налагать, устанавливать, назначать
reward – поощрение
keenly – остро, сильно
civil law – цивильное право, континентальное право, позитивное право
common law – англосаксонское право, общее право Англии, некодифициро
ванное право

customary law – обычное право (совокупность традиционно сложившихся 

обычаев, правил, за которыми специально закреплено значение правовых норм)

aboriginal law – туземное право, обычаи коренных жителей
conduct – образ действий, поведение
representative government – представительное правление
inquisitorial – следственный
adversarial – состязательный
track down – исследовать, отыскать
impartial – беспристрастный, справедливый, непредвзятый
jury – присяжные заседатели, суд присяжных
entire area – сфера применения целиком
written law – писанное право, писаное право, статутное право
unwritten – неписаный 

evolve – развиваться, образовываться
unaffected – не подвергшийся воздействию
case law – прецедентное право
novel – ранее не существовавший
precedent – судебный прецедент
overturn – отменять 
stare decisis [,stα:reı dı’sı:sıs] – лат. «стоять на решённом», обязывающая 

сила прецедентов (основополагающий принцип прецедентного права, 
согласно которому предыдущие судебные решения являются обязательными для аналогичных последующих судебных дел)

tempting – заманчивый
policy considerations – основополагающие выводы процессуального харак
тера

comply with – соответствовать
pervade – охватывать, наполнять собой
subordinate – подчинённый, второстепенный
delegated legislation – делегированное законодательство
administrative ruling – административное постановление
complaints and applications – жалобы и ходатайства
public law – публичное право
private law – частное право
substantive law – материальное право 
procedural law ≈ adjective law– процессуальное право, формальное право 
larceny – воровство, кража
robbery – кража; грабеж
be entitled to – иметь право, быть уполномоченным
injury – вред, повреждение, порча, убыток, ущерб
handle a claim or dispute – урегулировать претензию или спор
trial – судебное разбирательство; судебный процесс, суд
appeal – апелляция
time limits – предельный срок, регламент
evidence – улика; свидетельское показание
entity – самостоятельная правовая единица, субъект права

1.2. PRACTICE:
1) SCAN the text;
2) MAKE UP a list of seven-nine key words from the text below;
3) SUMMARIZE the given text briefly in five-seven sentences;
4) PREPARE a list of five questions to ask about the text; and be 

ready to interview the students in your group. 

Public International Law

1. Public international law is the body of law that governs legal relations 

between or among states or nations. To qualify as a subject under the traditional 
definition of international law, a state has to be sovereign: it needs a territory, a 
population, a government, and the ability to engage in diplomatic or foreign relations. 

2. A more contemporary definition expands the traditional notions of inter
national law to confer rights and obligations on intergovernmental international 
organizations and even on individuals. Intergovernmental international organizations, or IGOs, are formed between two or more state governments. Some 
IGOs operate by making decisions on the basis of one vote for each memberstate, some make decisions on a consensus or unanimity basis, while still others 
have weighted voting structures based on security interests or monetary donations. The United Nations, for example, is an international organization that has 
the capacity to engage in treaty relations governed by and binding under international law with states and other international organizations. 

3. There are nearly 2000 international organizations that deal with a wide 

variety of topics requiring international cooperation, such as the World Trade 
Organization (WTO), the International Labor Organization, the International 
Civil Aviation Organization, the Universal Postal Union, the International Organization for Standardization, the International Organization for Migration, and 
such prominent regional intergovernmental organizations as the European Union, 
the Organization of American States, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, 
etc.

4. The position of individuals under international law has evolved signifi
cantly during the last century. Now, more than ever, under international law individuals are being given more rights and being held responsible for their actions. 
Human rights law, for example, has tried to establish that every person around 
the world has certain basic rights that cannot be violated. At the same time, individual accountability under international law has been established for violations 
of the laws of armed conflict (humanitarian law).

5. Sources of international law. Article 38(1) of the International Court of 

Justice (ICJ) Statute enumerates the sources of international law and provides 
that international law has its basis in international custom, international conventions or treaties, and general principles of law. A rule must derive from one of 
these three sources in order to be considered international law. 

6. Custom. Customary international law is defined as a general practice of 

law under article 38(1)(b) of the ICJ Statute. States follow such a practice out of 
a sense of legal obligation. Rules or principles must be accepted by the states as 
legally binding in order to be considered rules of international law. Thus, the 
mere fact that a custom is widely followed does not make it a rule of international