HCL001 TOPIC 2. Law Justice & Morality

What is justice

Justice is fairness

What is the Latin origin of the word 'justice'?

Derived from the Latin word 'jus,' which means 'law' & 'rights.'

What is morality

Moral thinking and feeling. to do with emotions (inner feelings aka subjective thinking)

What are the dangers of moral thinking?

Moral thinking can be subjective, based on personal opinion, and often relies on emotional feelings rather than perfect reasoning.

why is law not straight forward

bc it is argumentative (argued by lawyers) and bc of law, justice and morality

Moral thinking

based upon your own personal beliefs ab what's right & wrong

How does ethical thinking differ from moral thinking?

Ethical thinking considers standards of conduct, while moral thinking is based on personal beliefs.

What does the phrase 'standards of conduct' refer to in ethical thinking?

It refers to the principles that guide behavior and decision-making in various situations.

Contract law

concerned w the interpretation & enforcement of obligations which arise under special types of commercial agreements

to be a contract

an agreement has to have certain special features required by law

legislation is also called

acts of parliament

primary sources of law

Places (sources) where the law is found stated directly by public authority

2 primary sources of law

legislation (acts of parliament) & decisions of the court

secondary sources in law

Secondary sources are only comments on the law and are not actual laws.

examples of secondary sources in law

well-known text books & articles on contract law

What is the difference between torts and criminal law?

Torts is about civil remedies, criminal law is about public penalties.

law of torts

An area of law developed by the courts over a long period of time.

what does the law of torts deal with

Deals w particular areas of wrongdoing recognised by the legal system as giving rights to the person who has been negatively affected by the wrongful act by to certain remedies

(mainly the right to recover damages from the wrongdoer)

law of torts is called

common law (or court-made/case-made law)

2 types of torts

assault & battery

assault (type of tort)

involves a threat of striking another person w/o consent

battery (type of tort)

involves actual & intentional striking of another person w/o consent/ other legal justification.

what is the role of parliament

to make laws

What is the role of the government

to implement laws

What is the role of judiciary

to interpret the law(s)

why do people go to court

to seek what the law says.

bc the function of the judiciary is to interpret the law