adversarial system: a legal system based on two opposing sides arguing their cases in front of an impartial judge
anarchy: a state of disorder in a society resulting from a lack of government authority
assizes: traveling courts conducted by circuit judges
case law: the collection of recorded cases to use as precedents for future cases
circuit judges: judges that traveled around England hearing cases in assizes
Code of Hammurabi: one of the earliest sets of recorded laws and was written by King Hammurabi of Babylon
common law: system where legal decisions are based on similar cases that have been decided in the past
crime: an act or an omission of an act that a person commits that is considered ‘wrong’ by society and whose remedy is found in the criminal justice system
defendant: person alleged to have caused harm to the plaintiff
divine right: the belief that Kings are kings only because God made them Kings; so, whatever the King decided was accepted by the citizens as being what God wanted
feudal law: legal system where nobles acted as the judges for legal issues that arose from peasants living on their estate
Great Binding Law: the recording of aboriginal oral laws of the Iroquois Confederacy
jury: a group of people that hears a legal case, determines guilt/innocence, and sometimes pronounces sentence
justice: to act ‘justly’ - that is, within an environment of fairness or moral rightness
Justinian's Code: compilation of Roman law commissioned by Emperor Justinian I and whose laws emphasized equity
law: the enforceable rules made by government that regulate life in society, and which are intended to be fair and apply to everyone equally
lawyers: legal 'experts' who help people with legal issues
legal traditions: the beginnings or origins of a legal framework
Magna Carta: a charter that guaranteed basic rights to British citizens, including the right to justice, and the right to a fair trial
morality: a system of values that outlines concepts of right and wrong, as well as good and bad behaviours
Mosaic Law: the law given to the Hebrew people during the 1500s BCE, and is found in the first five books of the Old Testament part of the Bible
Napoleonic Code: collection of French legal writings commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte, enacted in 1804, and formed the basis of French civil law
plaintiff: person alleging harm done to them by the defendant
praetor: a Roman magistrate/judge
precedent: legal decision that sets the standard for similar cases in the future
restitution: a criminal sentence focused on restoring or paying back the victim of the crime or society itself
restorative justice: a form of criminal sentencing where the focus is the restoration of the relationships between the offender, victim, and community
retribution: a criminal sentence focused on punishing the guilty person for committing the act
rule of law: the principle of justice based on the following: government enacts laws in a clear and transparent manner, laws must be clearly and transparently written and applicable to all, laws apply equally to every individual/organization/level of government and their relationships to one another, and the courts will apply the law equally without influence from political or other power
trial by combat: determination of guilt or innocence by fighting a duel...survivor is declared innocent
trial by oath-helping: determination of guilt or innocence by having people swear an oath before God that the accused was innocent
trial by ordeal: determination of guilt or innocence by torturing accused person...if they survived, they were considered innocent...if they died, they were guilty
Twelve Tables: one of the first legal codes in Roman Law
worldview: the way that someone sees the world, a philosophy of life or concept of how the world operates
wrongdoing: an act committed by an individual in an Indigenous society that violated the accepted standard of community behaviour
vassals: peasant servants who pledge loyalty to a superior in exchange for land
Blair, A., Costiniuk, W., Moles, G., O’Malley, L., & Wasserman, A. (2009). Law in Action - Understanding Canadian Law (2nd Ed.). Pearson.
Borrows, J. (2005). Indigenous Legal Traditions in Canada. Washington University Journal of Law & Policy. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1380&context=law_journal_law_policy
Gareau, P.L. (2022, July 15). Indigenous Canada (by University of Alberta). https://www.coursera.org/learn/indigenous-canada/home/info
Gibson, D.L., Murphy, T.G., Jarman, F.E., & Grant, D, (2003). All About Law (5th Ed.). Thomson Nelson.
Golding, W. (2011). Lord of the Flies. Faber and Faber.
Napolean, V. (2007). Thinking About Indigenous Legal Orders. National Centre for First Nations Governance. https://www.law.utoronto.ca/sites/default/files/documents/hewitt-napoleon_on_thinking_about_indigenous_legal_orders.pdf
The Code of Hammurabi. August 10, 2023. Yale Law School. https://avalon.law.yale.edu/ancient/hamframe.asp
Trial by Ordeal: When Fire and Water Determined Guilt. August 10, 2023. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-45799443
What is the Rule of Law - And Why Does it Matter? August 10, 2023. Provincial Court of British Columbia. https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca/enews/enews-04-11-2020
When Roman Law Ruled the Western World. August 10, 2023. Teach Democracy. https://www.crf-usa.org/bill-of-rights-in-action/bria-17-4-b-when-roman-law-ruled-the-western-world