Definition of legal norm.

Definition of law.

Law is a collection of norms of conduct created, applied and executed by the public authorities.

Law may be understood in the subjective and objective meaning.

In the subjective meaning law is a collection of entitlements of an individual, for example the ownership right, the right to conduct economic activity.

Law in the objective meaning is a collection of norms legalized into a normative act, the violation of them is adjudicated by public authorities.

Definition of legal norm.

A legal norm is a social norm of conduct resulting from legal provision, directed to addressee who are entities in the situation designed by the legal norm itself or entities having features specified by the legal norm. Legal norms require or forbid the addressee to behave in specified situations in a specific way. Legal norms are created, applied and executed by public authorities by means of justice and coercion.

Elements of legal norm (possible practical question).

- a hypothesis (determines the category of addressees and the circumstances in which it shall be applied);

- a disposition ( determines the behaviour of an addressee and may have a form of an entitlement or a legal obligation);

- a sanction (includes legal consequences in case the addressee does not follow the norm; there are 3 types of sanctions: criminal - resulting from the criminal law, exec u tional - imposed in the event of the violation of administrative or civil norms, of invalidity of a legal transaction - imposed in the event of violation of a civil-law norm.).

Collective enforcement and its meaning for the notion of law.

Collective enforcement – one characteristics that distinguishes legal rules from other rules is that the former are normally enforced by collective means and in particular by organs of the state, while this is not true for the latter. Moreover, legal sanctions have very specific sanctions such as incarceration, fines, compensation of damage, etc, while the sanctions or nonlegal rules are less specific. (Int to law)

5. Differences between law and other systems (morality, religion, social norm).

Legal norms are created, applied and executed by public authorities by means of justice and coercion.

1) There is a marked distinction between law and morality. The first point of difference is that laws are enforced by the state whereas canons of morality are followed at the call of institution. If one disobeys the commands of law or violates the laws, he is liable to be punished by the state but if one fails to observe the scruples of morality, he is not liable to be awarded physical punishment.

2) There are many things which are not illegal according to law but are unacceptable to morality.

3) Another point of distinction between law and morality is that laws are certain and universal and they are universally applicable to all citizens whereas the canons of morality are quite uncertain

Postulates for legal system.

Postulate of completeness - no lacunas (loopholes) in the system

Postulate of coherence – no collisions between norms.

By using rules of inference and collision rules legal practice attempts to construct a system which satisfies both these demands. The justification of such an activity of legal practice is delivered by construction of a “rational law giver”.

First order collision rules (possible practical question).

* Lex superior derogat legi inferiori – superior norms suppress inferior norms

* Lex specialis derogat legi generali – particular norms suppress general norms

* Lex posterior derogate legi priori – later norms suppress earlier norms

Differences between civil and common law system.

Common law

1) Spread British colonies

2) Are codified

3) Judicial precedents are binding

4) Judge makes ruling, sets precedents and acts as a moderator between conflicting

5) Primary source- precedent/case law

6) An adversarial system

Civil law

1) Refers to European kingdoms and colonies

2) Not codified

3) Judicial precedent aren’t binding

4) Judge established facts and applies the code of applicable law

5) Status or subsidiary laws are the primary sources of law

6) An inquisitorial system

Customary law.

The customary law was the fundamental form of law-establishment in past centuries. It is „the unwritten law” resulting from opinion shaped in a given society that specified regulations of behaviour are legally binding. It becomes the law by the fact that the state expresses its will to incorporate it into the binding law system. Sometimes the customary law plays a great importance in the systems of the statutory law like, in Germany, Switzerland, in Asia and African countries. The system of law based on custom are British and American systems

Public versus private law.

Public law is a collection of the norms organizing the fundamentals of the functioning of the public authority and the relationship between the state and the society. Criminal law, constitutional law, administrative law, taxation law

Private law is a collection of legal norms regulating autonomous and free activity of respective entities in the social and business sphere; contract law, property; aw, family law, tort law, commercial law

The simple difference between public and private law is in those that each affects. Public law affects society as a whole, while private law affects individuals, families, business and small group.

13. Natural law.

* Law of nature divine law, a law which is eternal and universal

* Natural law is believed to exist independent of human will

* Central idea: there is a higher law based on morality against which the moral of the legal validity of human law can be measured.

* If legislation isn’t moral, then it isn’t law.

Legal positivism.

Legal positivism is a school of jurisprudence whose advocates believe that the only valid laws are those written rules, regulations, and principles that have been expressly enacted, adopted or recognized by the official political authority.

15. Sources of law and its hierarchy (Polish legal system, EU legal system, International law) (possible practical question).

Sources of Polish legal system:

1. Constitution

2. Statutes

3. Ratified international agreements

4. Regulation

Sources of EU:

1. Primary law

2. Secondary law

3.General principles of law

4. Conventions between the member states

Sources of international law:

1. Treaties

2. Custom

3. General principles of law

4. Judicial decisions

5. Writings of jurists

Universally binding law

-The constitution of 2 April 1977

-Ratified international agreements

-Statutes

-Regulations

-The local government law

Internal Polish law

- Resolutions

-Orders issued by the President of Poland, the Prime Minister

-The acts of local laws that are not universally binding law

-Non-ratified international agreement

Rules governing civil law.

The most important rules of civil law having their roots in the Constitution and the law of the European Union are:

-The rule of equal treatment of subjects of civil law which orders that all subjects of civil law are treated equally, and all exceptions to this rule should be occasional and be regulated in the statutory law;

-The rule of freedom of contract which results mainly Article 353(1) of the Civil code due to which the parties concluding an agreement may shape the legal relationship as they deem proper provided its contents and aim are not contrary to the nature of the relationship, the statutory law or the rules of social co-experience.

The rules of social co-existence include the principles of ethics and the principle of honesty in concluding agreements with the other party:

-the rule of the protection of the ownership right

-the rule of the performance of liabilities

-the rule of good faith

-the rule of compensation of damages

-the rule of the protection of once acquired rights

-the rule of the protection of personal goods

Loss of legal capacity.

A natural persons losses his legal capacity upon death or as a consequence of recognition of deceased person.

Legal persons lose their legal c-y when they are removed from the relevant register of the liquidation process is completed.

Capacity for legal acts.

* Ability to acquire rights and incur liabilities

* A person with legal capacity may perform on their own behalf legal actions aimed at creating, changing or terminating a legal relationship

* Full capacity for legal acts, limited capacity for legal acts, full legal incapacitation.

Corporations

- Independent legal entity owned by share holders, in which the share holders decide on how the company is run and who manages it

-Have legal personality

Partnership

- Business in which 2 or more individuals share ownership

-Don’t have legal personality

Join-stock company

-The share capital of the company must be at least 5000 pln

-Limited liability company may be engaged in public share issues

Limited liability company

- The min. share capital of the company is 100000 pln

-The share capital in joint stock company may be raised by public subscription

-Shares in joint stock companies are issued in the form of share artifices by limited liability companies.