Sample questions for the exam topics

The System of Government in the UK

1. What are 3 branches of power?

2. What type of state system (government) does the UK have?

3. What are the functions of the Sovereign? Name the present-day monarch of the UK.

4. What kind of Parliament does the UK have?

5. How many members are there in the House of Commons?

6. What is the main function of the House of Commons?

7. Who usually becomes the Prime Minister? Name the present-day Prime Minister of the UK.

8. What are main political parties in the UK? What party is the leading one now? What is the opposing party?

9. What is the Cabinet? What are its functions?

10. What is the difference between life peers and hereditary peers, Lords Temporal and Lords Spiritual?

11. What is the main function of the House of Lords?

12. What House has more power in law-making process?

13. What is now the highest judicial body in the UK? What body served as the court of last resort until 2009?

14. What can you say about the place of the UK in the world politics?

 

The System of Government in the USA

1. What branches is the US system of government composed of?

2. What type of state system does the USA have?

3. Who represents the highest executive power in the USA?

4. What do you know about presidential elections in the US?

5. What are the requirements for the US President?

6. What are the functions of the President?

7. Name the present-day US President. What party does he represent? What is the opposing party?

8. What body represents the highest legislative power in the USA?

9. How many Chambers are there in Congress? What are they?

10. How many members are there in the Senate? And in the House of Representatives?

11. How do bills and resolutions become laws in the US?

12. What do you know about lobbyists?

13. What is the head of the judicial branch of power in the US?

14. Who does the US Supreme Court consist of?

15. What is the main principle of operation of all three branches of power in the USA?

16. What kind of government does each state have?

17. Who has the ultimate power in the USA according to the Constitution?

 

UK Court System

1. What is the main function of courts?

2. What is the most common type of court in England and Wales?

3. What kind of offences do magistrates’ courts deal with?

4. What cases are heard in the Crown Court?

5. What kinds of cases are tried in County Courts?

6. What courts hear appeals?

7. What appeals can the Crown Court hear?

8. What appeals can the High Court of Justice hear?

9. What is the highest court of appeal in England and Wales?

10. What kinds of special courts are there in the court system of England and Wales?

11. What kind of cases do juvenile courts deal with?

12. What is the function of coroner’s courts?

13. How would you characterize administrative tribunals?

14. What can you say about the court systems of Northern Ireland and Scotland?

15. What are the functions of the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights? In what situations do people appeal to these courts?

 

 

US Court System

1. What is the main peculiarity of US court system?

2. What kind of cases do federal courts hear?

3. What are the lowest courts in the federal court system?

4. What are higher courts in this system?

5. What is the highest court in the federal court system?

6. What are the lowest courts in the state court system? How are they called?

7. Name different kinds of special courts.

8. What does an appeal court deal with?

9. When is an appeal possible?

10. When does an error of law occur?

11. What is the highest court in the state court system?

12. Does the US Supreme Court hear all appeals brought to it?

13. When is the trial by jury used?

14. What is a precedent?

15. What are the main functions of US courts?

 

Legal Professions (the UK, the USA and Russia)

1. Name legal professions that you know.

2. What are two main types of lawyers in the UK?

3. What are the functions of barristers and solicitors?

4. What do coroners do?

5. What can you say about magistrates?

6. What is the main difference between the American legal profession and the English one?

7. What are the main roles of a lawyer? What are the functions of a lawyer in each of these roles?

8. What kind of skills should an advocate have?

9. Name the organizations of advocates in the UK and in Russia.

10. What is a judge? What are his/her duties?

11. What are the main functions of the jury?

12. What are the functions of in-house counsels? Why has the number of in-house counsels increased lately?

13. What does a notary do?

14. How does a person become an advocate (a judge, a notary, an investigator) in Russia?

15. Why is the career in law so popular? Why did you choose to study law? What would you like to be?

 

 

APPENDIX

TEST YOURSELF (1)

 

Part 1

I. Make up 6 pairs of synonyms and translate them:

to execute, power, to consist of, sovereign, to discuss, to legislate, to debate, to be composed of, authority, to make laws, to put into effect, monarch

 

II. Choose the right word to fill in the gap and translate the sentences:

1. Parliament has ______ power.

a) executive b) judicial c) legislative

2. The highest judicial power belongs to _____.

a) the House of Lords b) the Supreme Court c) archbishops

3. The Queen has little direct ______.

a) effect b) power c) office

4. ______ is the chairperson of the House of Lords.

a) The Speaker b) The Home Secretary c) The Lord Chancellor

5. ______ has more power in law-making process in the UK.

a) The House of Lords b) The House of Commons c) The Cabinet

 

Part 2

III. Write down 4 types of questions.

1. St. Paul’s Cathedral was built during Norman times.

2. The men will be paid £200 for their work.

 

IV. Change the Voice: a) Active into Passive; b) Passive into Active.

a) 1. Parliament makes laws.

2. The teacher punished the boy for that.

3. The police have already arrested two men.

4. You can find this information in the Constitution.

b) 1. The ministers of the Cabinet are chosen by the Prime Minister.

2. Members of the House of Commons are elected by the British people.

3. Life peers are appointed by the Queen.

4. The telephone was invented by Alexander Bell in 1876.

 

V. Put the verb into the correct form in Passive:

1. Great Britain (wash) by the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

2. The news (announce) tomorrow.

3. How many languages (speak) in Canada?

4. The car (steal) yesterday.

5. I can’t use the office at the moment. It (clean).

6. My friend (already/finish) the translation of the text.

 

VI. Translate into English.

1. Этот законопроект был обсужден в прошлом году.

2. Этот законопроект обсуждается сейчас в прессе.

3. Этот законопроект только что был обсужден в Палате Общин.

4. Этот законопроект будет обсужден в следующем месяце.

 

 

TEST YOURSELF (2)

 

I. Complete the sentences:

1) A lot of interesting subjects (изучаются) by the students.

2) She said that lectures on law (посещаются) by many students.

3) I (не видела) the dean today.

4) He (опубликовал) his article this year.

 

II. Translate the sentences defining the tense of the verbs:

1) He made a mistake in his dictation.

2) He had finished his work by that time.

3) She is going to the Institute.

4) Dinner will have been cooked.

5) I shall be working at 3 o’clock tomorrow.

6) The work had been done by this time yesterday.

7) He speaks English very fluently.

8) Punishment must be aimed at reforming criminals.

 

III. Choose the correct version:

1) You are asked for by the dean.

a) Вас спрашивал декан.

b) Вы спрашивали декана.

c) Вас просит декан.

2) This conference is much spoken about.

a) Поговорим об этой конференции.

b) Об этой конференции много говорят.

c) Надо много говорить об этой конференции.

3) The letter has been translated into English.

a) Письмо переводят на английский.

b) Письмо переведут на английский.

c) Письмо было переведено на английский.

4) He will come to the court.

a) Он приходит в суд.

b) Он придёт в суд.

c) Он пришёл в суд.

5) He was asked to try this case.

a) Он попросил расследовать это дело.

b) Его попросили расследовать это дело.

c) Его попросят расследовать это дело.

6) She is asked to come.

a) Она просит прийти.

b) Её просят прийти.

c) Её просили прийти.

 

 

IV. Translate the sentences into Russian:

1) She was given some articles to translate.

2) He has been asked to try this case.

3) The project will not be finished tomorrow.

4) Sometimes crimes are committed in groups.

5) The train was stopped by him.

6) More important cases are heard by the courts of the second instance.

7) That law was adopted in 1969.

8) The convicted was sent to prison.

9) Their books have been translated into English.

10) New houses are being built in our town.

11) The problem is being talked much about.

 

V. Put all kinds of questions and translate the sentences:

1) They will be invited there.

2) The act done was defined as a crime.

3) Laws affecting life of citizens are enforced by the police.

 

VI. Define the part of speech of –ed-forms. Translate the sentences:

1) Later on really a robber stopped the coach and demanded the money.

2) The suspect had an affected, absent way of talking.

3) She begged now to excuse her and awarded the man with one hundred dollars.

 

VII. Complete the sentences:

1) I showed her the book … by my brother. (writing, written)

2) We spoke about the holidays …in Moscow. (spent, spending)

3) The student …football is my brother. (played, playing)

4) The girl… through magazines is a second year student. (looking, looked)

5) We admired the picture… by the student. (painted, painting)

6) The girl …with you is our monitor. (talked, talking)

 

 

TEST YOURSELF (3)

I. Arrange the following words in pairs of synonyms:

To carry out, constitution, freedom, to execute, circuit, to rule, liberty, to govern, independent, set of rules and laws, free, county

 

II.Match the following expressions:

1) a governor a) посол

2) an ambassador b) округ

3) to carry out c) представитель

4) an amendment d) проходить обе палаты

5) district court e) назначать

6) Chief Justice f) поправка

7) circuit g) губернатор

8) a representative h) исполнять

9) election campaign i) Председатель Верховного суда

10) politician j) окружной суд

11) to pass both the Houses k) избирательная кампания

12) to appoint l) политик

 

III. Put all types of questions to the sentence:

The Constitution has been repeatedly amended to meet the changing needs of the nation.

 

IV.Choose the right word to fill in the gap:

1) Congress has ______ power.

a) executive b) judicial c) legislative

2) The highest judicial organ in the USA is _____.

a) the High Court of Justice b) the Supreme Court c) the Federal Court of Appeal

3) The Constitution of the United States was adopted in ______.

a) 1787 b) 1786 c) 1789

 

V. Choose the right answer:

1) The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution are called:

a) the Preamble

b) the Bill of Rights

c) the Articles of Confederation

2) How many representatives does each state have in the House of Representatives?

a) 2

b) the number depends on the area of a state

c) the number depends on the population of a state

3) Who is a lobbyist?

a) A person who is paid and who tries to persuade a government that a particular law should be changed

b) Someone who lives in a particular city, country or state and has rights and responsibilities there

c) An important official who represents his or her government in a foreign country

 

VI. Translate the following sentences into English:

1) 10 поправок к Конституции содержат основные права человека.

2) В состав Сената входят два представителя от каждого штата, избираемые сроком на 6 лет.

3) Президентские выборы проводятся каждые четыре года в ноябре.

4) Законодательная власть принадлежит Конгрессу, состоящему из двух палат.

5) Президент назначает глав министерств, послов в другие страны и федеральных судей.

 

TEST YOURSELF (4)

 

I. Make up sentences matching these two columns and translate the sentences:

A prosecutor is Juvenile courts are The European court of Justice is The magistrates’ court is A barrister is Juries are Queen’s Counsel is

– situated in Luxembourg – a lawyer who has the right to represent his clients in higher courts – courts which deal with offenders under seventeen – the title of the highest level of barristers – the most common type of court in England and Wales – usually used in certain criminal cases – a lawyer who carries on legal proceedings against a person or an organization

 

II. Make up 5 pairs of synonyms and translate them:

innocent, a defendant, trade law, a magistrate, penal law, not guilty, commercial law, justice of the peace, criminal law, the accused.

III. Choose the most suitable word to fill in the gap and translate the sentences:

1. In English courts the punishment is passed by _____.

a) the jury b) the presiding judge c) the clerk of the court

2. The training and career structures for barristers and solicitors are quite ____.

a) the same b) original c) different

3. In England jurors _____ at random from Electoral Register.

a) are chosen b) choose c) chose

4. Magistrates don’t usually get _____ for their work.

a) prizes b) titles c) salaries

5. The jury decide whether _____ is guilty or innocent.

a) the counsel for the defense b) the defendant c) the investigator

6. Criminal appeals _____ in the Crown Court.

a) heard b) hear c) are heard

7. Countycourts _____ with civil cases.

a) are dealt b) deal c) have dealt

8. Barristers specialize _____ representing clients in higher courts.

a) in b) on c) with