Chapter 5: The Constitution as a Code

1775 1783

The war against the British in ________ was not only a war of independence against a colonial power but also a revolution against the principle of monarchial rule.

American legal culture

The Constitution was born in slavery, survived a civil war, but it has continued to live at the center of the ________.

legal traditions

The study of American constitutional law provides a bridge to ________ based on codification.

Many of the distinctive features of American law are attributable to its constitutional history-dating back to the Declaration of Indepen

dence in 1776 and the Constitution Convention in 1787

The belief in an American "exceptionalism," including a willing

ness to go to war with their mother country for their rights and equality within their nation, distinguishes Americans from their Canadian neighbors, who only won independence and the "repatriation" of their constitution after two hundred years of participating in the Commonwealth

1788

The Constitution came into force in ______ after ratification by nine of the thirteen states

Canadian law

___________, both common law and civil law, is governed by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, adopted in 1982.

criminal law

In the field of __________, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia all support the International Criminal Court.

British

The war against the_________ in 1775–1783 was not only a war of independence against a colonial power but also a revolution against the principle of monarchial rule.

independence

The basic spirit of American law, therefore, reflects a desire to guard its _______________ and to cultivate its own constitutional principles.