法律英語(yǔ)課件-第九課

1、Lesson Nine Contract Law7/26/20221法律英語(yǔ)Contract Definition A contract is basically an agreement between two or more people which creates an obligation to do, or not do, something. The agreement creates a legal relationship of rights and duties. If the agreement is broken, then the law provides certai

2、n remedies. 7/26/20222法律英語(yǔ)Three FactorsThere are three factors necessary to create a contract: 1) an offer, 2) acceptance, and 3) consideration. One party makes an offer, the second party must accept the offer and there must be consideration exchanged. Consideration has to be something of value.7/26

3、/20223法律英語(yǔ)Example of ContractsEmployment contractsService ContractsBuilding ConstructionInsurance ContractsContract involving real propertySale of Intangibles(stocks, bonds, patents, copyrights,etc)7/26/20224法律英語(yǔ)Contract lawContract law covers the legal implications of a contract. For instance, cont

4、ract law determines what is and is not consideration, whether a contract was actually intended, if the parties making the contract were legally competent, whether there was fraud or duress involved, or how a contract is terminated. 7/26/20225法律英語(yǔ)BackgroundUniform Commercial CodeConsumer Protection S

5、tatutesLabor LawInsurance Law涉及合同問題7/26/20226法律英語(yǔ)美國(guó)合同法由法律保證執(zhí)行強(qiáng)制執(zhí)行的限度法律補(bǔ)救方法Expectation damages預(yù)期賠償金Agreed upon remedies補(bǔ)救協(xié)議Equitable relief衡平救濟(jì)7/26/20227法律英語(yǔ) TEXTContract an agreement between two or more persons.Not merely a shared belief 不僅僅是共有的想法A common understanding as to something而且是對(duì)某些未來將要進(jìn)行的事項(xiàng)

6、有共同的理解7/26/20228法律英語(yǔ)Contract Document The set of papers in which such agreement is set forth.文件陳述契約的一系列文件。7/26/20229法律英語(yǔ)For lawyers Contract - an agreement that has legal effect. 合同是具有法律效力的契約。It creates obligations for which some sort of legal enforcement will be available if performance is not fort

7、hcoming as promised. 它設(shè)立了當(dāng)不按約履行時(shí)，便可由某種法律強(qiáng)制手段保證實(shí)施的義務(wù)。7/26/202210法律英語(yǔ)Three elements in a transactioncontract1. The agreement-in-fact事實(shí)協(xié)議2. The agreement-in-written書面協(xié)議3. The set of rights and duties 一系列權(quán)利與義務(wù)7/26/202211法律英語(yǔ)THE WAYS訂立協(xié)議和執(zhí)行協(xié)議的方法 The role of lawyers and judges1. In creating contracts在制定合同

8、中的作用；2.in deciding disputes that may arise with respect to their performance在裁決履行合同時(shí)可能出現(xiàn)爭(zhēng)議時(shí)的作用；3.in fashioning appropriate remedies for their breach在形成對(duì)其違約的適當(dāng)補(bǔ)救時(shí)的作用7/26/202212法律英語(yǔ)Property A great of thing are susceptible “ownership”Tangible 有形的 Intangible 無形的7/26/202213法律英語(yǔ)Ring bulldozerGone with th

9、e windThe Empire State Building7/26/202214法律英語(yǔ)Rights 國(guó)家保護(hù)該“所有人”使用、享受乃至耗費(fèi)該物的權(quán)利，將所有其他人排除在這種權(quán)利之外。Use Enjoy Consume Exclusion 7/26/202215法律英語(yǔ)Real property 不動(dòng)產(chǎn)Land buildings動(dòng)產(chǎn)personal property7/26/202216法律英語(yǔ)/real property:all land, structures, firmly attached and integrated equipment, anything growing on

10、 the land, and all interests in the property.personal property (personalty) : movable assets (things, including animals) which are not real property, money or investments.7/26/202217法律英語(yǔ)Less tangible property不太有形的資產(chǎn)Copyrights 版權(quán)Patents 專利權(quán)Shares of corporate stock 公司股權(quán)Negotiable instruments 票據(jù)權(quán)7/26/

11、202218法律英語(yǔ)Any social thatRecognizes property rightsAlso address the question of how it should respond when someone violates those rights7/26/202219法律英語(yǔ)Even societies that do not permit private ownership of wealth to the degree that ours does are likely to recognize the personal rights of individuals

12、 to be free from certain kinds of conduct 即使是那些對(duì)財(cái)產(chǎn)私有權(quán)的許可沒有達(dá)到我們這種程序的社會(huì)，也會(huì)承認(rèn)個(gè)人的人身權(quán)利不受某種行為的侵犯。7/26/202220法律英語(yǔ)certain kinds of conduct給人造成身體傷害其他對(duì)個(gè)人自由或尊嚴(yán)的侵犯Infliction of physical injuryOther interferences with freedom or dignity7/26/202221法律英語(yǔ)Criminal law vs. tort lawCriminal law focuses in those violati

13、ons of personal and property rights that society deems serious enough to be deterred by the threat of severe punishment for their commissionTort law considers what remedy should be made to the individuals so injured7/26/202222法律英語(yǔ)Criminal lawtort lawoverlapTreason判國(guó)罪Tax evasion偷稅罪Slander誹謗7/26/20222

14、3法律英語(yǔ)Ownership of propertyInclude the right to use and consume the thing owned所有權(quán)包括對(duì)屬于自己的物品使用和耗費(fèi)的權(quán)利be more to the advantage of the owner to transfer the right of the ownership to some other person in exchange for something else of value有時(shí)所有者以所有權(quán)與其他人交換有價(jià)值的東西可能更有利。7/26/202224法律英語(yǔ)7/26/202225法律英語(yǔ)Agreeme

15、nts for exchange are the means by which some resources are assembled and put to productive use.交換的契約是將一些資源組合起來，使之得到有效利用的手段。7/26/202226法律英語(yǔ)Some agreement for exchange call for the immediate and simultaneous exchange of money for goods and services. 有效交換契約要求現(xiàn)金與貨物、服務(wù)的立即和同時(shí)交換。7/26/202227法律英語(yǔ)Exchange of

16、significant size涉及到大額交易時(shí)Both the planning and performance to be spread over a considerable period of time交易的計(jì)劃和履行都要經(jīng)歷相當(dāng)長(zhǎng)的時(shí)間。7/26/202228法律英語(yǔ)The law of contractsLegal mechanism for protecting the expectations that arise from the making of agreements for the future exchange of various types of performa

17、nce.合同法是保護(hù)預(yù)期的法律機(jī)制，該預(yù)期產(chǎn)生于就未來交易各類履行而制定的契約。轉(zhuǎn)讓財(cái)產(chǎn)提供服務(wù)支付貨幣7/26/202229法律英語(yǔ)Legal problems do not always fit neatly into the pigeonholes that legal theorists have created.法律問題不可能總是與法理學(xué)家所創(chuàng)立的分類完全相符。Frequently they raise issues involving more than one body of law.法律問題往往涉及到不止一部法律。7/26/202230法律英語(yǔ)“fraud” conduct欺詐

18、行為L(zhǎng)ease agreements between landlord and tenant Property lawContract lawA breach of contractA tort7/26/202231法律英語(yǔ)The web of the lawMay not be quite seamless法律之網(wǎng)可能并非結(jié)實(shí)無縫They are not ironclad and unchanging法律并非打不破和不可改變。7/26/202232法律英語(yǔ)Source /authority法律淵源 Primary source 首要法源Secondary source次要法源 以前的司法判決

19、成文法法令勸導(dǎo)性法源法學(xué)家的解釋美國(guó)法學(xué)會(huì)的法律注釋匯編7/26/202233法律英語(yǔ)首要法源7/26/202234法律英語(yǔ)次要法源7/26/202235法律英語(yǔ)What are Restatements of the Law法律注釋匯編Restatements are secondary sources that seek to restate the legal rules that constitute the common law in a particular area. They are written by the American Law Institute (ALI), a

20、prestigious legal organization composed of noted professors, judges and lawyers. The ALI has completed Restatements in 15 areas of law including Torts, Contracts, Property, Conflict of Laws, Foreign Relations Law, and Products Liability. 7/26/202236法律英語(yǔ)Contract lawCommon law Judge-made law法官定法Rules

21、distilled from a composite of court decisions in prior cases. 從以前案件的各種法官判決意見中抽取出來的規(guī)則7/26/202237法律英語(yǔ)Technical jargon 專業(yè)術(shù)語(yǔ)Full of strange wordsFamiliar words with unfamiliar or specialized meaningAssumpsit 口頭約定Quantum meruit按合理價(jià)格給付 Consideration對(duì)價(jià) Offer要約7/26/202238法律英語(yǔ)Judicial system of decision-maki

22、ng 司法決策體制Stare decisis 遵從前例adherence to past decisions (Precedents)A prior decision with facts sufficiently similar to the case “subjudice”, that the court feels obliged to follow it and to render a similar decision.以前案例的事實(shí)與尚未判決的案件事實(shí)非常相似，法院認(rèn)為有義務(wù)按照前例做出類似的判決。7/26/202239法律英語(yǔ)Stare decisisLatin for to st

23、and by things decided. Stare decisis is essentially the doctrine of precedent. Courts cite to stare decisis when an issue has been previously brought to the court and a ruling already issued. Generally, courts will adhere to the previous ruling, though this is not universally true. 7/26/202240法律英語(yǔ)7/

24、26/202241法律英語(yǔ)從兩個(gè)方面證明以判例法為主要依據(jù)的法律制度的合法性1. Offers a high degree of predictability of decision 提高了判決的可預(yù)見性程度2. Puts a rein on the nature proclivity of judges to decide cases on the basis of prejudice, personal emotion, or other improper factors. 限制法官在案件判決時(shí)以偏見、個(gè)人情感或其他不恰當(dāng)因素為基礎(chǔ)的自然癖好。7/26/202242法律英語(yǔ)The char

25、acteristic of a systemWhich may sometimes be a virtue, sometimes a defect, of being static and conservative, generally oriented toward preservation of the status quo.遵從前例的制度的特征是靜止和守舊，總體上趨向于保持現(xiàn)狀，這有時(shí)是優(yōu)點(diǎn)，有時(shí)是缺點(diǎn)。7/26/202243法律英語(yǔ)Blind adherence When a common law judge concludes that blind adherence to prec

26、edent would produce an unjust result in the case presented for decision.普通法法官盲目堅(jiān)持判例，也會(huì)導(dǎo)致對(duì)當(dāng)前案例判決的不公正結(jié)果。7/26/202244法律英語(yǔ)避免的方法：A precedent is considered to be “binding” on a court only if it was decided by that same court or by an appellate court of higher rank in the same jurisdiction.同一個(gè)管轄區(qū)的相同法院或其上級(jí)巡回

27、法院作出的先例判決才有約束力。Other precedents are be “ persuasive”.其他判例只具有勸導(dǎo)性。7/26/202245法律英語(yǔ)A precedent If a precedent of the latter type is in fact unpersuasive, the judge is free to disregard it. 如果后一種類型的判例實(shí)際上沒有勸導(dǎo)性，法官可以忽視該判例。7/26/202246法律英語(yǔ)If the precedent is not merely persuasive, but binding, it cannot simpl

28、y be ignored. It may, however, be avoided. 如果判例不僅有勸導(dǎo)性而且有約束力，那么該判例不能簡(jiǎn)單地被忽視，但卻可以被回避。A precedent 7/26/202247法律英語(yǔ)If the facts of the present case do not include a fact that appears to have been necessary (“material”) to the earlier decision, the court may “distinguish” the precedent, render a different

29、decision. 如果以前判決不包含對(duì)當(dāng)前案例有實(shí)質(zhì)必要影響的事實(shí)，那么法院可以“區(qū)別”前例，提出不同的判決。A precedent 7/26/202248法律英語(yǔ)If the earlier precedent is indeed binding, but is difficult or impossible to distinguish, there is one other way to avoid its effect.如果比較早的判例確實(shí)有約束力，但是難以或無法區(qū)別，有一個(gè)其他方法避免其效力。A precedent 7/26/202249法律英語(yǔ)If the court of de

30、cision is the one that created the precedent (or is a higher court), it can simply “overrule” the early decision.如果判決的法院與作出先例的法院相同，或者比作出先例的法院等級(jí)高，它可以“推翻” 以前的判決。A precedent 7/26/202250法律英語(yǔ)Overruling relatively drastic actionIs usually reserved for instances in which the court feels that the rule estab

31、lished by the earlier precedent was ill conceived at the outset or it has been outmoded by the later developments.推翻前例是個(gè)比較激烈的行為，一般在法院覺得以前的判例一開始就設(shè)計(jì)錯(cuò)誤時(shí)或者隨著以后的發(fā)展該判例不合時(shí)宜時(shí)才采用。7/26/202251法律英語(yǔ)Contract lawHistorically, as common law普通法Rather than statute 制定法Exception : “statute of frauds”“欺詐條例”是個(gè)例外Requires

32、certain contracts to be evidenced by a signed writing 該條例要求某些合同是書面合同。7/26/202252法律英語(yǔ)Statute of fraudsLaw in every state which requires that certain documents be in writing, such as real property titles and transfers (conveyances), leases for more than a year, wills and some types of contracts. The o

33、riginal statute was enacted in England in 1677 to prevent fraudulent title claims.7/26/202253法律英語(yǔ)Statute of fraudsThe statute of frauds has itself become so overlaid by court decisions that it has more of quality of common law than of a modern statute.該欺詐條例本身已添加了如此多的法官判決意見，以至于它具有的普通法的品質(zhì)已經(jīng)超過其現(xiàn)代制定法的品質(zhì)

34、。7/26/202254法律英語(yǔ)Contract law Essentially a common law system, except be affected by a remarkable modern statute, the Uniform Commercial Code. 除非受到著名的現(xiàn)代制定法統(tǒng)一商法典的影響，合同法至今還保留著普通法體系。7/26/202255法律英語(yǔ)When a court decided a case governed by a statute, its reasoning differs from that used when common law pri

35、nciples are applied.當(dāng)法院依照制定法判案時(shí)，法院的推論與采用普通法原則時(shí)是不同的。7/26/202256法律英語(yǔ)Statute Any court , even the highest court of the jurisdiction, is bound to follow the provisions of a valid statute that apply to the dispute before it. 所有法院甚至最高法院都要依據(jù)有效的制定法條款規(guī)定來處理提交到它面前的爭(zhēng)議。7/26/202257法律英語(yǔ)Fundamental political tenet

36、The legislature has ultimate lawmaking power so long as its acts within the bounds of its constitutional authority. 社會(huì)基本政治原則：只要在憲法授權(quán)的范圍之內(nèi)，立法機(jī)關(guān)有最終的立法權(quán)。Modify修改Eliminate廢除7/26/202258法律英語(yǔ)對(duì)制定法文字有不同的解釋Courts seek to ascertain the legislatures purpose in enacting it, in order to adopt a construction that

37、will best effectuate that purpose.法院試圖確定立法機(jī)關(guān)的意圖，以便采用能最好地實(shí)現(xiàn)該意圖的解釋。Legislative history7/26/202259法律英語(yǔ)American Law InstituteFormed in 1923. Preparation and promulgation of what purported to be accurate and authoritative summaries of the rules of common law in various fields 美國(guó)法律協(xié)會(huì)準(zhǔn)備和發(fā)布各領(lǐng)域精確的權(quán)威的普通法規(guī)則匯編。

38、Restatement注釋匯編7/26/202260法律英語(yǔ)American Law InstituteThe American Law Institute(ALI) was established in 1923 to define, summarize, or restate existing common law. Between 1923 and 1944, Restatements were adopted for the law of agency, conflict of laws, contracts, judgments, property, restitution, sec

39、urity, torts, and trusts. 7/26/202261法律英語(yǔ)The Restatement of Contracts合同法注釋匯編The first and most successful “restatement”Acceptance and use by the bench and barAdopted by ALI in 1932. 7/26/202262法律英語(yǔ)The RestatementConsists of “black-letter” statements of the “general rule”關(guān)于“一般規(guī)則”的“黑體字”陳述Supported wit

40、h at least some commentary and illustration 至少有幾個(gè)注釋和例證作補(bǔ)充Dont have the force of law沒有法律效力7/26/202263法律英語(yǔ)The RestatementsSecondary authority 次要法源Remarkably persuasive 非常有說服力A court often justify its decision by simply citing and quoting The Restatements rule on a given point.法院經(jīng)常通過援引和引用注釋匯編的原則來證明自己在某

41、一案例中判決的正確性。7/26/202264法律英語(yǔ)In 1962, ALI began to prepare a revised of its RestatementThe Restatement (second) of contracts was adopted in 1979.與第一版比，第二版更強(qiáng)調(diào)多樣化和靈活性，建議要給予法官更多的自由裁決權(quán)。A freer rein for judicial discretion7/26/202265法律英語(yǔ)Have clearly had a powerful effect in shaping judicial views of what the common law of contract ought to be. 合同法注釋匯編在有關(guān)合同的普通法應(yīng)該是怎么樣的這一司法觀念形成方面有強(qiáng)力的作用。The Restatement of Contracts7/26/202266法律英語(yǔ)Secon