Exercises

1. Tick off the true sentences.

1. Usually courts don't decide civil cases.

2. In England a defendant can be forced to pay a fine.

3. Civil actions can never be started by individuals.

4. Criminal and civil procedures are considered different in all the сountries.

5. The plaintiff can claim for compensation in Court.

2. Choose the correct alternative in each case to complete the sentence.

1. The English Magistrates' Courts deal with.

1. civil and criminal cases;

2. most serious crimes;

3. civil cases only

2. The victim of a road accident can get compensation if

1. the driver, who injured him, was drunk;

2. the driver, who injured him, pleads himself guilty;

3. he (the victim) proves his case in a civil action

3. The phrase "The people vs. Smith" means

1. a civil case against a person;

2. a civil or a criminal case against a person;

3. a criminal case against a person

4. The Japanese Family Court deals with

1. divorce proceedings;

2. civil and criminal cases;

3. crimes committed by children under 17.

3. Choose the right verb to complete the sentence.

1. The law forbids/permits/approves any criminal activity.

2. Criminal cases equal to/ differ from/imply civil cases.

3. The victim of a road accident must prove/negotiate/disguise his case in court.

4. Courts must ignore/decide/differentiate criminal and civil cases.

5. An English criminal court can allow/force/offer a defendant to pay fine as a punishment.

4. Give the Russian equivalents to the following words and phrases.

• to violate the law

• to be found guilty of arson

• to make a rather clear distinction, between

• to pay a fine as punishment

• victims of the road accident

• one's claim for compensation

• "The People vs. Mr. Smith"

• the main argument

• civil court

• a rapist

• court procedure

• be injured in a road accident

• to force to pay a fine

5. Read the text again and find antonyms for the following words.

to observe similarity to do good

to permit benefit to disapprove

criminal

6. Fill in the gaps with words and expressions from the text.

1. He was seriously ___________ in a __________.

2. ______________ is a person who brings an action of law.

3. Every citizen in a democratic country may ________________ the protection of the law.

4. It's __________ to drive at high speed.

____________ was ___________ by the Court to pay a _________.

Are you going to start ______________ against the company?

He was constantly ___________ by that nightmare.

He claimed $5000 ___________ from his employers for the loss of his health at work.

_____ a private ______ to bring a prosecution against other citizens.

I will _________ to you that the witness is quite unreliable.

7. a) Crime is a problem in most countries, especially in the large cities. Here is a list of some criminals and the crimes they commit, but it is incomplete. Fill in the missing parts. Use a dictionary if necessary.

Criminal	Crime	The criminal…
Thief	robbery/theft	stole some jewellery
Murderer		killed the policeman
	hijacking	hijacked a plane
Drug dealer Drug pusher	drug dealing	dealt in pushing cocaine
	kidnapping
Rapist
Mugger		mugged an old lady
Car thief		stole BMW
	trespass	trespassed on/upon Mr. Brown’s (private) property
	robbery
Terrorist		committed an act of terrorism (e.g. bombing, murder, kidnapping)

b) Which is the worst kind of crime in your opinion? Why? Discuss in a group.

8. Change the verbs to the Past Simple or the Past Continuous. Then retell the story.

THE UNLUCKY BURGLAR

One evening Alf (watch) the television and (eat) his supper when the door suddenly (open) and a burglar (come) in. He (wear) a mask and (carry) a sack. Before doing anything else he (tie) Alf to the chair. Then he (go) upstairs to look for money. Although he (not find) any money he (find) lot of jewellery, which he (put) into his sack. In his rush to get downstairs he (not see) the dog which (lie) at the bottom of the stairs and he (fall) over it, loosing his glasses. While the burglar (look for) them, Alf (try) to free himself. Finally Alf (manage) to escape and he (phone) the police. As soon as the burglar (find) his glasses he (run) out of the house. However, unfortunately for him, the police (wait) for him at the end of the garden.