Návrat na detail prednášky / Stiahnuť prednášku / Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika / Právnická Fakulta / Legal English

vypracovaná otázka (19kový) č. 1 (q_1.doc)

1)

a) Reading law at University of P. J. Safarik, academic degrees

The University of Pavol Jozef Safarik with its seat in Košice was established in 1959. The founding of UPJS was one of the most significant events in the recent history of Košice. It became the second university establishment in Slovakia.

The Faculty of Law was incorporated into the structure of the university in 1973. It is run by the Dean who is assisted by three Vice – Deans – for pedagogical work, for research activities, for international relations.

The Academic Senate is composed of two Chambers (the Pedagogical one and the Chamber of Students).

The primary task of the Faculty of Law is to provide a full-time education in law. The number of the students to be accepted for the first year as well as the dates of the entrance examinations is determined by the Faculty Administration. The Faculty receives about ten times as many applications as the number of places available.

After their enrolment into the respective academic year the students have the right to take part in all forms of education, to acquire credits, and to sit for examinations. They are required to write all the subjects prescribed in the given academic year into their course unit records.

The usual forms of university education include lectures, seminars, practical lessons, consultations and specialised practice in the different areas of law. Professors and associate professors usually give lectures, while assistant lecturers (assistant professors) are in charge of seminars and practical lessons. Students’ participation in lectures is not compulsory, while participation in seminars and practical lessons and the passing of the tests may be a prerequisite for acquiring credits. Credits and examinations are the approved forms of evaluation in the university education.

Every academic year is divided into a winter and summer semester, and a period of vacations. Each semester usually includes 12 teaching weeds and an 8-week examination period.

The university study at the Faculty of Law lasts 5 years. After passing the state final examinations the undergraduate becomes a graduate at a graduation ceremony and receives the degree “Mgr.” Some graduates continue their education in a number of postgraduate courses leading to a higher degree, the degree of “Doctor of Law” – abbr. JUDr.

Selected university degrees in GB:

LL. M.

LL. B.

LL. D.

(BSc., M.D., M.A., B.A., etc.)

b) Torts of negligence

Negligence is a tort of recent origin, actionable only on the proof of damage and capable of covering harm of any kind. It “seeps up” most cases where the defendant did not act intentionally or recklessly but was still a fault. The only common feature of liability in the tort of negligence is that there must have been a duty of care owed by the defendant to the plaintiff, that duty must have been breached, and harm must have resulted from the breach (element of causation). Negligence may be committed by omission.

The elements of negligence

1. A breach of the duty of care

A breach of the duty of care means a failure to attain the appropriate standard of care. The standard is that of the reasonable person – but this might be a particular type of person, e.g. an architect, a doctor, a medical consultant, a driver, depending on the particular type of activity which gave rise to the claim. Even the inexperienced must conform to this standard. The standard will depend on such matters as the likelihood of harm being caused, its probable severity, the importance of the activity causing it, and the availability and cost of precautions against the harm.

The courts have always taken the view that a careless person should not have to compensate all the people who suffer as a result of his conduct. For example when a van driver is injured due to the negligence of another driver several people may also be affected. There may be a witness to the accident who suffers nightmares as a lose profits because of inadequate stock. In such cases the task of the court is to consider the interests of the victims whilst being fair to the careless person. This is achieved by asking two questions:

1. Is there a sufficient relationship of proximity between the plaintiff and the defendant?
2. If so are there any policy reasons for negating or reducing the class of persons to whom a duty is owed?

If these questions are applied to the above example the result will be compensation for the van driver, but for policy reasons the witness and trader are unlikely to be compensated. This test is known as the neighbour test.

2. Damage

The plaintiff must show that as a result of the breach of duty he has suffered some damage. If a person’s unreasonable conduct fortunately injures no one then that person cannot be liable in negligence (although he may be guilty of a criminal offence, e.g. careless driving). The rules on damage are summarised below.

3. The damage must be caused to a substantial extent by the defendant’s conduct.
4. The damage must be sufficiently closely related to the negligent act, i.e. it must not be too remote.
5. In most cases the damage must be either physical injury to the plaintiff’s person or property or economic loss consequential upon physical injury, e.g. lost wages as a result of a broken leg.
6. In cases of identifiable psychiatric illness the courts may award damages if such illness is reasonably foreseeable, but considerations of public policy limit the scope of such damages.