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Administrative law is the area of law that regulates the operation of the various levels of government
and the way in which persons and legal entities can appeal decisions of the government. The main code of
Ukrainian administrative law is Th eAdministrative Code of Ukraine. International law involves the
application of international laws (mostly laid down in treaties) in Ukraine. International agreements, ratified
by the Parliament of Ukraine, are a part of Ukrainian legislation. The Constitution of Ukraine allows the
direct application of most international laws in Ukrainian courts. If an international agreement of Ukraine
prescribes rules other than those set by the Law of Ukraine, the rules of that international agreement shall
apply. Laws regulating jurisdiction with an international aspect (e.g. because parties come from different
countries) are not part of international law but form a specific branch of civil law.
On September 2005, the Law of Ukraine On Private International Law was enacted. The Law sets the
procedure for the regulation of private legal relations which are subject to other legal systems in addition to
that of Ukraine.
Commercial law: The Commercial Code of Ukraine describes the details of compliance with the
Constitution of Ukraine clauses for commercial activity. The Code regulates the fundamentals of
commercial activity, including business entities, property basis, responsibility for violations, peculiarities of
legal regulation, and foreign commerce.

Task 3. Topics for discussion.
1. Give the definition of law and speak on the main functions of law.
2. The main ways to classify the law.
3. The difference between substantive law and procedural law.
4. The distinction between criminal and civil law.
5. Dwell on the main subdivisions of civil law.
6. Compare the classification of law in Ukraine and Great Britain.

Task 4. Read the text and speak on the main differences between Civil and Criminal Law in the USA.
Check the meaning of the words in bold.

Differences between Civil and Criminal Law in the USA
Criminal law is much better known to laymen than civil law, as a result of journalists' reports of
famous criminal trials. People often misapply principles from criminal law to situations in civil (e.g., tort)
law, which results in their misunderstanding. That’s why it is necessary to compare and contrast criminal
and civil law.
In civil law, a private party (e.g., a corporation or individual person) files the lawsuit and becomes
the plaintiff. In criminal law, the litigation is always filed by the government, who is called the
prosecution.
Punishment
One of the most fundamental distinctions between civil and criminal law is in the notion of
punishment.
In criminal law, a guilty defendant is punished by either (1) incarceration in a jail or prison, (2)
fine paid to the government, or, in exceptional cases, (3) execution of the defendant: the death penalty.
Crimes are divided into two broad classes: felonies have a maximum possible sentence of more than one
year incarceration; misdemeanors have a maximum possible sentence of less than one year incarceration.
In contrast, a defendant in civil litigation is never incarcerated and never executed. In general, a
losing defendant in civil litigation only reimburses the plaintiff for losses caused by the defendant's
behavior.
Effect of punishment
The notion that the threat of punishment will deter criminal conduct is based on the principle that
human beings are rational. In practice, criminals are either impulsive (i.e., not rational) or believe that they
will not be caught by the police. Therefore, the threat of punishment does not deter criminal conduct, as one
is reminded every day by reading reports of journalists.
Legal theory considers the possibility of loss of freedom (i.e., incarceration) as much more serious
than merely paying damages to an injured plaintiff. As a result of this high value placed on personal
freedom, legal dogma is that criminal litigation is more serious than civil litigation; therefore criminal
defendants have more rights and protections than civil defendants. The economic reality is that most people
would prefer to spend, for example, one year in prison, than pay a million dollars from their personal assets.
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